Assembly First Minister Rhodri Morgan enjoyed a taste of Tenby this week as part of a whistle-stop tour of Pembrokeshire.
Flying the flag for the Welsh tourism industry, Mr. Morgan visited Skomer Island and Carew Castle before landing up in Tenby to round off the day in traditional style with a speciality ice cream at Fecci's Ice Cream Parlour in St. George Street.
"With the Bank Holiday this weekend I think it's important for the public to realise that there is so much to do in West Wales," the First Minister told the Observer.
"Although last year's foot and mouth outbreak did not affect Pembrokeshire, it still cast a great cloud over the tourism industry and the message is 'the First Minister enjoys Pembrokeshire and you will too!'
"There are so many diverse things you can enjoy in the county, be it nature conservation, historical monuments, beaches and good food," Mr. Morgan continued.
"On our visit to Skomer we saw porpoise, puffins, guillemots and more, while we were very impressed with the way the local community has worked with Cadw and the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park to really bring Carew Castle to life.
"Of course, no visit to the area would be complete without a visit to Tenby.
"I've always enjoyed coming to Tenby with my children and grandchildren. It's a once seen, never forgotten place that you can't get enough of.
"I knew a Texan who worked for a big American firm in this country who thinks Tenby is out of this world, and it's important to have places like this to help attract inward investment from overseas.
"It is a beautifully conserved town, surrounded by wonderful beaches
"I've also given it the tastebud test and I'd say the quality and standard of pub, café and restaurant food here, like in the rest of Wales, has improved out of all recognition from 20 years ago!"
In addition to family holidays in the resort, Mr. Morgan recalled several visits to conferences in the town.
"One particularly memorable one was in 1976, the Wales TUC conference," he said. "I walked in to the De Valence Pavilion and there, standing next to me, was Cyril Ramaphosa from South Africa.
"He later went on to be a leading figure in Nelson Mandela's government, but at the time he was leader of a banned South African trade union and had been smuggled out of the country.
"Conferences in Tenby were big draws and the town should consider whether or not it wants to try and attract this market again or whether it is happy with the tourism industry it has.
"I don't think the De Valence would be a big enough venue anymore, because it hasn't got the space for 'fringe' stands and it's not an easy one to solve.
"However, if Tenby people had a mind to try and get things like Wales TUC, teachers unions and the like back for conferences, Tenby as a town would have no trouble in getting them back, it's without doubt one of the jewels in the crown of Welsh tourism."