Tourism Business Update - 5 Dec 2025

Dazzling new Fire and Ice Festival set for city centre this weekend: 6 and 7 Dec

Swansea city centre is set to sparkle this weekend as blazing fire and glistening ice take over the streets in a festive winter spectacle.

Visitors can follow a trail of dazzling ice sculptures, capture magical moments in the giant snow globe on Portland Street, and try their hand at interactive ice carving.

There'll also be fire and ice shows at St David's Place and dynamic fire performances on Oxford Street. Timings of the fire and shows - together with a map for the ice trail - can be found here.

On Saturday and Sunday, ice trail maps will also be available at the market garden in Swansea Market, Costa Coffee on Whitewalls and Oxford Street, and the new central library at the Y Storfa development on Oxford Street.

Other festive events and activities include the Christmas Market, which is now available on Oxford Street and Portland Street until December 22.  

On Saturday December 13 and Sunday December 14, Mistletoe and Markets will bring a programme of live entertainment and special Christmas characters at both Swansea Market and the Christmas Market. More details can be found here.

Waterfront Winterland has also now returned to Museum Park until January 4.

Head here for more information on all Swansea Christmas events and exact timings for activities forming part of the Fire and Ice Festival.

Read more about all the events happening this month in the city centre

Free buses are back for the festive season

Shoppers heading into Swansea city centre can get there for free on the weekends before Christmas on the following dates:

• December 6 and 7
• December 13 and 14
• December 20 and 21
• Monday December 22, 23 and Christmas Eve
• December 27, 28, 29, 30 and 31

Journeys must start and finish in the City and County of Swansea. This offer is about encouraging people into the city centre as well as giving residents and visitors the chance to travel all across Swansea and enjoy what's on our doorstep. 

NEW: Shopper Hopper free shuttle bus

Welcome to your new Shopper Hopper shuttle service - the perfect way to get about the city centre for free, five days a week.

Our city centre Shopper Hopper service is a 15-seater mini bus that links the railway station and the bus station, stopping off at Swansea Market in between.

The first service will leave the railway station at 9.00am. The last service will leave Swansea Market (Whitewalls) at 4.15pm, going direct to the railway station for 4.30pm.

Each loop will take about 45 minutes and will run continuously all day, so all passengers have to do is go to the hopper stops, wait for the next one to turn up and hop on. 

Find out more about the free Shopper Hopper 

Y Storfa opens in city centre

This flagship community services hub, delivered by Swansea Council, is located in the former BHS building on Oxford Street.

Y Storfa is a cornerstone of the council's £1bn regeneration programme - and will help increase footfall in the city centre by bringing together a wide range of services under one roof, creating a modern, welcoming environment.

It's close to hundreds of car parking spaces - including bays for those with mobility challenges, and to public transport routes and stops. 

Visitors can find the city's Central Library at Y Storfa, the council's Housing Options and Housing Support services and the West Glamorgan Archive Service. Careers Wales and Citizens Advice Swansea Neath Port Talbot will have bases there - and other services such as Swansea University's South Wales Miners' Library will also be based at Y Storfa.

Read full story

£116 million business rates support package announced by Welsh Government

A new transitional relief scheme will help businesses manage rates changes from next April.

The Welsh Government has announced an additional £116 million of support, as business rates in Wales will be updated to reflect current property values.

From 1 April 2026, the revaluation will mean many will see their bills fall, while others will see them go up.

Any business whose bill increases by more than £300 next year because of the revaluation will have the rise phased in gradually over two years, rather than paying the full increase immediately.

For the first time since 2010, the multiplier will be reduced for all ratepayers. Small and medium-sized retail shops will benefit from a new lower rate, cutting their bills by around £20 million.

The Welsh Government already provides £250 million each year in permanent business rates relief. Around two thirds of all properties in Wales either pay no rates or receive some form of relief.

For further information please select the following links: Written Statement: Non-domestic rates support for 2026-27 (3 December 2025) | GOV.WALES and Business Rates in Wales | Business Wales.

HMRC live webinars - Dec

Expenses and benefits for your employees - social functions and parties

• Conditions for the event to be exempt from tax and National Insurance
• What to do if it's not exempt
• PAYE Settlement Agreements and how to apply

Expenses and benefits for your employees - phones, internet and homeworking

An overview of the tax and National Insurance treatment where an employer:

• Provides a mobile phone
• Reimburses the use of a personal mobile phone
• Provides broadband in an employee's home, or pays towards it
• Provides homeworking expenses to its employees

Expenses and benefits for your employees - company cars, vans and fuel

• How to use the online calculator to work out the amount to report for payrolling or on the P11D
• Fuel made available for private use
• Essential record keeping

Partner with Us: Category Sponsorship Opportunities at the Swansea Sports Awards

Swansea Council are delighted to announce the upcoming Swansea Sports Awards, a prestigious celebration of sporting excellence across our city. This annual event shines a spotlight on athletes, coaches, volunteers, and clubs who make an outstanding contribution to sport in Swansea.

Nominations close on 6 January 2026 and a ceremony will take place on 2 April 2026 at the Brangwyn Hall.

We are inviting local businesses to join us as category sponsors. Sponsorship offers a unique opportunity to:

• Showcase your brand to a wide audience of athletes.
• Align your business with values of teamwork, achievement, and community pride.
• Gain visibility through event publicity, social media promotion, and on-stage recognition.
• Support local sport and help us celebrate the people who inspire Swansea.

Sponsorship Categories available are:

• Inspiring Young Person of the Year Award
• Sportsperson of the Year Award
• Community Coach of the Year Award
• Sportsperson with a Disability of the Year Award
• Senior Club or Team of the Year Award
• Junior Sportsman of the Year Award
• Junior Sportswoman of the Year Award
• Getting Swansea Active Award

For more information please contact: zena.laws@swansea.go.uk or call 07813 579290

Find out more about the Swansea Sports Awards

Preventing slips, trips and falls as the nights draw in - your legal duty

Darker evenings and colder weather can increase the risk of slips, trips and falls in the workplace. A business has a legal duty to ensure the health and safety of its staff, volunteers, contractors and users.

Slips and trips cause over a third of all major injuries and can also lead to other types of accidents, such as falls from height or into machinery.

At this time of year surfaces can be perilous, which means slip and trip accidents may become more frequent. There are plenty of seasonal factors to consider when avoiding these sorts of accidents including:

• poor lighting
• excess water from rain
• wet and decaying leaves 

The Health and Safety Executive's guidance helps you to understand what causes slips and trips and how to prevent them and their slips and trips webpages also provide plenty of further information and resources, including advice on what to do next if there has been a slip or trip accident at work.

Digital Inclusion Wales Grants 

The Welsh Government's new Digital Inclusion Wales Grant will support projects that help people overcome barriers to using digital technology by improving basic digital skills, building confidence, and ensuring they have the tools and support needed at a local level.

The grants are open to all sectors, including community groups, social enterprises, third sector organisations, faith groups, and public and private bodies.

Two types of funding are available:

• The Core Grant supports long-term projects based on local needs for up to three years, helping organisations make digital inclusion part of everyday life. Around £390,000 will be available each year, with typical awards of about £43,500.
   
• The Innovation Grant funds short-term projects that test new and creative approaches to helping people use digital technology, with £60,000 available and typical awards of around £15,000.

The grant builds on the Welsh Government's learnings through previous pan Wales digital inclusion programmes and the leading work on a minimum digital living standard.

Applications are open until 9 February 2026. 

Guidance and application forms are available here: New grants to help people become confident in using digital technology | GOV.WALES and Apply for the Digital Inclusion Wales Grant | GOV.WALES.

Have your say: New generation of local nature reserves for Swansea

Swansea is set to create a new generation of 16 new Local Nature Reserves (LNRs) in the coming years under proposals unveiled by the council.

We would love to hear your views on an initiative that will boost some of the city's less well-known green gems alongside popular places like Singleton Park and Brynmill Park, Swansea Bay and Clyne Valley Country Park.

The community engagement programme is already underway where there will be opportunities to express your views in person but you can have your say online here.

LNR status can only be designated on land owned or on a long-term lease to the council. Swansea already boasts six LNRs, such as Bishops Wood and Cadle Heath, but there haven't been any new ones declared for almost 30 years.

LNR status can enable the council and community groups to access grant funding to enhance biodiversity and develop ideas that will boost the green and blue spaces as destinations for wider audiences such as interpretation panels and improved access as suitable.

Have your say on local green spaces

Get Your Business Seen - Join VisitSwanseaBay.com for Free

Are you a tourism or hospitality business based in Swansea? You may be eligible for a free listing on the official destination website VisitSwanseaBay.com.

The site is a key part of year-round marketing campaigns designed to attract both new and returning visitors to the area.

Since its relaunch earlier this year, traffic to partner listing pages has grown by nearly 64% - offering greater visibility for local businesses.

Free listings are available to accommodation providers, attractions, activity companies, and food and drink businesses who become Visit Swansea Bay Partners and enjoy a range of promotional benefits.

Find out more by emailing tourism.team@swansea.gov.uk or register your business for free here.

Already confirmed for 2026:

28 Feb-1 March 2026: Croeso
1-3 May 2026: Tunes in the Bay
16 May 2026: Pride
24 May 2026: Swansea Triathlon
7 June 2026: Swansea Half-Marathon
12 July 2026: IronMan 70.3 Swansea
5-13 Sept 2026: Gower Walking Festival
20 Sept 2026: Swansea Bay 10k

Find out about more events happening in Swansea

Found this tourism trade update useful? Pass it on or contact Geraldine.Williams@swansea.gov.uk