Sustainable Tourism
Hay Retreats is owned by Sue and Steve Felgate who have ten years of experience providing luxury self catering accommodation at Castara Retreats, offering cottages in Hay On Wye. Developed in partnership with local people, our aim there is to share the economic opportunities of tourism with the community, and in ways that are sensitive to, and protective of, their culture and environment.
We have similar aims for our new tourist venture, Hay Retreats. Here we offer something different to classic cottages in Wales by offering contemporary accommodations that honour both the surrounding countryside and the principles of sustainable tourism. Our three riverside properties have wonderful views and are designed to create a “living in the landscape” experience for our guests to enjoy and renew their connection with nature.
We hope that visitors enjoy Hay and what this thriving community offers, whether it’s a stroll around the bookshops and gift shops, a week at the Literary Festival, walks in the hills, bike rides around the lanes, canoeing on the river, or a meal out in a local pub or restaurant. All of this is immediately accessible on foot from our accommodations, and with little impact on our carbon footprint.
We are delighted to be offering quality contemporary accommodation for clients seeking luxury self catering cottages in Powys, on the border with England. We offer country holidays in Wales that do not necessitate a flight and which, together with the considerable attractions of Hay itself, draw people all the year round. Visitors impact positively on the local economy by making use of local amenities and services. Creating a vibrant economy in rural Wales is challenging. For many years Hay on Wye has responded to these challenges successfully with its bookshops and literary festival and more. We hope to contribute to this success by offering quality accommodation for holidays, weekend and mid-week breaks.
We also appreciate the opportunity to have a direct relationship with our clients via our website and email without depending on agents to find our customers. This reduces our overheads. It also enables us to get to know our clients, to better understand their requirements and to make sure that they are happy with the quality of our accommodation.
In developing Hay Retreats we have tried to be sensitive to our carbon footprint: the properties are well insulated with energy efficient gas central heating and low energy lighting. The water system utilises diffusers, and where feasible we have sourced furniture from local and sustainable suppliers. Storage bins are provided for recycling of waste and we use environmentally friendly cleaning materials.
At the bottom of each page of this website we have a link to Jump4Timbuktu, our charitable fair trade initiative with the Tuareg artisans of Timbuktu in Mali, West Africa. You can see their exquisite silver jewellery and buy on line, or better still stroll into the centre of Hay and buy directly at The Hay Makers Gallery.
We also promote the works of art that you see on the walls and which help create a stylish boutique holiday accommodation feeling. Our commission of 15% is donated to the charity for investment in community projects in Timbuktu. You can read about these projects on the charity website by clicking here. As a consequence of Jump4Timbuktu activity, Hay on Wye received a Gold Star Award for Livelihoods sponsored by the United Nations and the Welsh National Assembly.
Climate change has changed our view of what we need to do to achieve long term sustainability for the planet. We are pleased to present Hay Retreats offering luxury self catering accommodation in Wales founded on sustainable principles within our local rural economy.
