TODAY is being heralded as a special day for Milford Waterfront, as the doors to the brand new, 100-bedroom Tŷ Hotel Milford Waterfront opens to guests.
Lucy Wonnacott, Marketing Manager said: “We’ve been on quite a journey over the last 30 years, reinventing the former dockyard into a tourism destination. It must have been quite hard for locals to believe in the 1980s what the area would become in the future, but just look at it now. From the Tall Ships Race launching at Milford Marina back in 1991, to the transformation of heritage buildings into attractions, the addition of new buildings to accommodate residents, and hospitality, retail and service businesses, and innovative additions for visitors to eat and stay. Over the last 10 years in particular the transformation has been incredible thanks to a dedicated independent business community, committed to making Milford Haven a place that people want to visit. We’re extremely proud that our hidden gem in Pembrokeshire has evolved into a must-visit destination for locals and visitors, who come to Milford Waterfront to enjoy our bustling food scene, browse in the fantastic boutique shops and galleries, enjoy attractions such as Milford Haven Museum and Phoenix Bowl, and a varied calendar of events. But many guests just enjoy spending time here taking in the ever-changing views of Milford Marina and the Milford Haven Waterway.
The Herald asked why the hotel was built and if the Port felt that there was demad for such a large facility.
We were told: ”The Port of Milford Haven’s raison d’etre is “Building the Haven’s prosperity”. This doesn’t just mean generating income for the Port itself, it means that we invest in projects and initiatives which facilitate opportunities for us to prosper, as a community (in fact, as a Trust Port established by an act of Parliament, we ensure that our profits are reinvested for the long term benefit of the community). Growing prosperity in hospitality and tourism is one of the Port’s key strategic themes and we’re fully committed to investing in Milford Waterfront to enhance the local tourism economy. We have a strategic partnership with Visit Pembrokeshire, and also actively support the great work that Visit Milford Haven does in promoting all that Milford Haven has to offer.
“The project to build a hotel started many years before the demolition crew came in to start removing the old ice factory which served the fleets that fished out of Milford Haven for decades. It was a collaborative project which took detailed planning, and an investment of over £10m by the Port of Milford Haven. But, as our CEO, Andy Jones would say, “We know how to run a port, but we don’t know how to run a hotel so finding the right partner to manage this successfully for us was crucial.” So, we were delighted to announce in March 2021 that the Celtic Collection would be managing this brand new 100-bedroom Tŷ Hotel, right in the heart of Pembrokeshire and that it would be built by Welsh contractor, Carter Lauren Construction.”
