A luxury hotel that struggled for years with “terrible” internet access is now enjoying world-class online connectivity.
Tre-Ysgawen Hall Country House Hotel and Spa on Anglesey is among hundreds of North Wales businesses to benefit from FibreSpeed – the high-speed fibre optic network designed to help the region achieve its economic potential.
Neil Rowlands, general manager at Tre-Ysgawen, says having access to the FibreSpeed network has transformed daily life for the hotel and its customers.
He said: “The situation before FibreSpeed was desperate. Our connectivity was virtually non-existent and we were having constant problems.
“The low capacity meant we were having issues with guests not being able to access the internet, and behind the scenes we lacked reliable access to the network and the online tools we need to run the business.”
The hotel got in touch with FibreSpeed service provider Xwavia, whose engineers created a state-of-the-art wireless connection linking Tre-Ysgawen Hall to the FibreSpeed network. Tre-Ysgawen is now able to offer guests free WiFi throughout the hotel, with download speeds of 20Mbps.
Neil said: “These days people want constant access to Facebook and Twitter.
“We run our social lives online so it’s important for people to know they will have connectivity when they stay here. For corporate guests, of course, internet access is absolutely critical.”
He added: “For us guys working back of house, FibreSpeed has made an enormous difference in terms of download and upload speed.
“We use an online tool called Guestlink, which allows us to update rates and availability on several popular sites like LateRooms simultaneously and automatically.
“In the old days we would struggle to log on due to poor access, and would end up visiting each and every site separately.
“With about 60 per cent of our bookings being made online, this situation could not continue.
“The old method was very time consuming and was open to mistakes being made. Now we have reliable, high-speed access we have no problems using Guestlink – meaning there is no risk of overbooking.
“We also use social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook a lot to keep in touch with customers, so having a solid connection has made a big difference from a marketing perspective too.”
The FibreSpeed network runs across North Wales from Holyhead to Deeside, and uses fibre optic technology that carries vast amounts of data at close to the speed of light.
Xwavia, added: “Tre-Ysgawen is one of the finest hotels in north Wales, and we are proud of our role in ensuring that it now has high-speed internet access.
“Here at Xwavia we are passionate about bringing online connectivity to rural areas, and this is a fantastic example of how a successful business can derive real benefit when that happens.”