Hikers refuse to go back to beautiful Wales tourist hotspot because of 'anti-English' hatred

A group of hikers has refused to return to a tourist hotspot in Wales thanks to the "anti-English" attitude of locals.

The country is known for its warm welcome but walker Amy Hurst, 56, says that was not her experience on a walking holiday in Llanberis, Eryri, with seven female friends, all aged between 55 and 70. Despite the village being popular with visitors from all over the world, they claimed they encountered "astounding hatred for the English" during their four-day trip.

Florist and mother Amy told NorthWalesLive: "The hatred for the English in North Wales is astounding, we will not be returning. When we first arrived, we were walking down the street when one of us remarked on there being a funeral care place.

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"A guy walking past overheard us and said 'it's free for the English'. It was a bit strange."

The following night, Amy claims the group entered a pub where they faced more hostility as a man said: “Let’s not bother with these they’re bloody English.” Amy added: “We had to tell them to leave us alone.

"We ended up leaving the pub and one of our group challenged the man and asked him why he felt the way he did - he turned into a cowering little boy. We felt a bit scared, it just felt very threatening.

"The vibe was awful all round we were all shocked at how bad it was. I've been to Wales a few times but this was really anti-English and probably anti-women too - I will not be going back.

"It's hardly Barcelona where they want the tourists out because there are too many. I wouldn't recommend going there to anybody. It's such a beautiful place but the people were just off we basically just got abused."

Tourism tensions have been spiking across Europe recently with concerns about the detriments of too much tourism leading to protests and even anti-tourism graffiti. Though Wales has witnessed its share of demonstrations concerning second homes, tourists being targeted are unusual.

Jim Jones, chief executive of North Wales Tourism, insists the region maintains its status as "friendly and welcoming". He added: "I'm saddened to hear this group of ladies had this experience whilst visiting Llanberis. We work so hard to promote North Wales, which has a reputation for being a friendly and welcoming region."