Canolfan Tryweryn Charging Policy

Canoe Wales is acutely aware of the strength of feeling around charges at Canolfan Tryweryn and the importance of striking the right balance between promoting access on rivers and the commercial interest at the Centre. Our formal position is set out below, expanding slightly on the item published in "The Cost of Access?" article in the June 2018 issue of Ceufad:

“Canoe Wales understands that there is evidence of a Public Right of Navigation on rivers in Wales and that it is therefore inappropriate for landowners to require permission or to charge paddlers for navigating along rivers. However, we acknowledge that a Public Right of Navigation does not convey the right to cross land to gain access to or from a river, nor the right to “occupy” sections of river. We recognise that there can be a cost to landowners in providing and maintaining access to or from rivers; and providing and maintaining facilities used by paddlers (including car parks and toilets). We therefore accept that it may sometimes be appropriate for landowners to charge a fee for paddlers to cross their land and/or use their facilities while accessing or egressing rivers. However, such fees should be fair, reasonable and proportionate to the costs incurred by the landowner in providing and maintaining those facilities.

“We apply these principles directly at Canolfan Tryweryn, which is operated by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Canoe Wales with the primary purpose of providing opportunities for paddlesport on the River Tryweryn. The costs of maintaining the facility at Canolfan Tryweryn for the benefit of paddlers must be recovered, or it would simply cease to exist. We believe the most appropriate way to do this is to charge paddlers a fee, not for using the river, but for making use of our land to access the river and making use of the facilities that support this (including car parks, changing rooms, toilets and occasional shuttle transport). We do not believe it is necessary to impose a similar charge on other users of our land or facilities, who visit us for reasons incidental to our primary purpose but whom we welcome nonetheless (to walk in our woods, eat in our café, or enjoy watching the white-water action). We are aware that some paddlers consider this policy (and the general concept of “launch fees”) to be equivalent to “paying for use of the river” and to therefore contravene our position in campaigning for greater access to Welsh rivers. However, we believe that most paddlers will appreciate our approach as being both appropriate and welcome in offering easy access to a popular, world-class, white water river, while being wholly consistent with our wider policies on access.”