Swansea praised for its class and vibrancy

A classy, vibrant and metropolitan city with some of the friendliest people on Earth - that's how a top football magazine has described Swansea

National Waterfront Museum, Swansea

The praise from FourFourTwo magazine came in the build-up to the Swans home game against Blackburn in the Premier League last weekend.

FourFourTwo has a readership of more than 90,000 people across the world.

Journalists from the magazine visited Swansea to spend some time in the area based around the Everton match at the Liberty Stadium.

Swansea Council helped organise and oversee the visit.

Swansea now features alongside cities like Barcelona and Liverpool in the magazine's online travel guide.

The magazine says: "The city centre itself has enough to keep anyone happy: a superb National Waterfront Museum packed with fascinating interactive features, great restaurants, a buzzing nightlife and a flourishing market, where you can find bargains on everything from haddock to haircuts.

"Go west to Gower and you can find something you wouldn't necessarily associate with Wales: a prime spot for surfing. The astonishingly beautiful combination of beach and hills is quintessentially Welsh, something you can also see further afield in Pembrokeshire – though Swansea is much more accessible than west Wales, and boasts a Premier League football team.

"Swansea is truly an exciting place to visit these days, as well as being home to some of the friendliest people on Earth."

Top football writer Oliver Holt, of the Daily Mirror, was in Swansea for the Newcastle game. During some down time, he posted on Twitter to over 100,000 followers that Rhossili Bay and Worm's Head are among the most beautiful pieces of coastline in the UK.

Steve Hopkins, Swansea Council's Tourism and Marketing Manager, said: "It's great news that leading football magazines and journalists have been so glowing in their praise for Swansea as a visitor destination. It shows the city is scoring both on and off the field of play because of Premier League status and the worldwide exposure it brings.

"We've been running intensive campaigns all season to encourage football fans to Swansea Bay and the overwhelming majority of visitors have had nothing but positive things to say about Swansea Bay and the welcome they've received.

"This augurs well for return visits in future as the Swans make their final push towards guaranteeing lucrative Premier League status for at least another season."

Have a look at www.visitswanseabay.com/fanscorner to see a guide to Swansea Bay that's been put together for visiting Premier League fans.