AECOM to Oversee Multi-million-pound Center Parcs-style Activity Resort in Wales

(Source: Travel Weekly China)

A major adventure resort offering a wide variety of physical, thrilling and wellness activities, a 100-bedroom hotel and 400 luxury lodges on a 480-acre (194-hectare) Welsh site will be project managed by AECOM.

Afan Valley Adventure Resort – the brainchild of the man who launched Center Parcs in the UK in 1987, Peter Moore, and Gavin Woodhouse, chairman of Northern Powerhouse Developments – will offer a mix of healthy and exhilarating pastimes, including water sports, mountain biking, survival training, trampolining, surfing and zorbing, in response to rising demand for British holidays with a stronger emphasis on being active outdoors.

Northern Powerhouse appointed AECOM to deliver project management, cost consultancy and wider multi-disciplinary services on the £130m (US$172m, €142m) project.

"The appointment of AECOM as project managers of the Afan Valley Adventure Resort is a decision we believe provides yet another tried and tested company working on our common goal," said Woodhouse. "Years of research and planning have now culminated in what we feel will be an amazing experience for our guests. We needed a project partner that can understand our vision and deliver to our standards, while controlling costs."

The active lifestyle resort, which is expected to create 1,000 full time jobs, is divided into a number of themes, such as alpine, forest, trails, Zen and "Xtreme", and will boast – among other things – ski slopes, an aqua adventure park, ice skating, gyms, steam rooms and saunas, zip wires, indoor climbing walls, Laser Quest, a soft play centre, a virtual reality centre, BMX and skate parks, aqua caving, an equestrian centre, bars, restaurants and retail outlets.

There will also be a Bear Grylls Survival Academy.

AECOM director James Gundy said: "The plans for Afan Valley Adventure Resort have caught the imagination of all who have seen it and we were no exception. Having met Gavin, Peter and the team behind it, the partners involved and seen the site where it will be built, we are immensely excited to be part of what promises to be a truly unique and inspirational project."

Construction work on Afan Valley Adventure Resort is set to begin in 2018.