Four New Watersport Facilities Part of Fáilte Ireland's 2025 Plan

Q: Give examples of marine leisure tourism?

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

Four New Watersport Facilities Part of Fáilte Ireland's 2025 Plan

6th February 2025

Afloat.ie Team

Dún Aonghasa, Inis Mór, Co Galway pictured, one of the 11 new €14.5million Fáilte Ireland capital investment projects due to be completed in 2025. The National Tourism Development Authority unveiled its 2025 plans at a unique virtual event for the tourism industry, which was opened by newly appointed Minister for Tourism Peter Burke TD and watched online by over 2,000 tourism operators, providers, and employers from across the sector Credit: Gareth McCormack

Fáilte Ireland aims to complete four new watersport facilities as part of its plan to “drive sustainable tourism development across Ireland”.

Redevelopment of the visitor centre at Dún Aonghasa on Inis Mór is among a number of coastal projects outlined at its annual industry briefing this week.

The special virtual event for the tourism industry was opened by newly appointed Minister for Tourism Peter Burke TD and watched online by over 2,000 tourism operators, providers, and employers from across the sector, it says.

The tourism authority said that the first four of 19 new water sports facilities will be completed in 2025.

The four are in Curracloe (Wexford), Ballycuggaran (Clare), Acres Lake (Leitrim), and Fenit (Kerry)and will “enhance Ireland’s status as a premier activity destination”, it says.

It says redevelopment of Dún Aonghasa, Inis Mór, Galway will “tell the compelling story of survival, focusing on climate change and the island's ancient inhabitants”.

“A series of satellite interpretation hubs will further enhance the visitor experience, “it says.

The tourism authority plans to strengthen the link between Carrowmore, Co Sligo and the Céide Fields in Co Mayo.

“This project will include a new immersive exhibition, positioning Carrowmore as a hub for Neolithic exploration in the region,” it says.

It plans a new farm trail at Connemara National Park, Co Galway, and it plans to transform a coastal signal tower at Bray Head, Co Kerry, with a new viewing platform for the Skellig islands.

Fáilte Ireland says it has invested just over €14.5million in 11 new tourism projects set to be completed in 2025.

It cites research showing that over 80% of businesses are expecting their visitor levels to be up or the same in 2025.

It says, that cost pressures continue to dominate tourism industry concerns, especially ‘energy’ (cited by 57%) and ‘payroll’ (56%)

Published in Aquatic Tourism, Connemara, Island News

Published in Aquatic Tourism

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Watersport

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Marine Leisure & Aquatic Tourism

Domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million.

Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips.

While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities.

According to the National University of Galway (NUIG) research the average expenditure per coastal day trip in 2018 was calculated at €95. The equivalent for coastal overnight trips was €310. The estimated water-based activity expenditure per person per trip across the sample was €56 rising to €73 for the subsample that actually undertake waterbased activities on their coastal visits. The results also indicate that domestic tourists undertake the majority of their marine activities on the West and South coasts of Ireland and that there are notable differences in participation rates across age groupings, social classes and by family makeup.

A domestic tourist is defined in this report as a person who spends at least one night away from home on their trip. Total expenditure by domestic tourists in coastal areas was estimated to be €698 million in 2018, which represents 35% of the total expenditure by domestic tourists (using the broader Fáilte Ireland measure for domestic tourists that includes business trips equating to 10.92 million in total trips and €2,006 million in total revenue).

The marine-related activity expenditure, or what might truly be referred to as domestic marine tourism, is estimated to generate revenue of €381 million with €172 million being spent on water-based activities. Marine tourism makes up an estimated 19% of total domestic tourism expenditure.

Marine Leisure Tourism - FAQ

What is marine leisure tourism?

Coastal tourism refers to land-based and water-based tourism activities taking place on the coast for which the proximity to the sea is a condition including also their respective services. Coastal and Marine Tourism & Leisure are seen as one of the Blue Economy (BE) sectors that can help unlock the potential of multi-use of space at sea by engaging with Blue Growth (BG) sectors such as Aquaculture and Marine Renewable Energy among others.

Give examples of marine leisure tourism?

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

What marine leisure tourism studies have been conducted in Ireland?

NUI Galway carried out a survey of domestic residents in Ireland in 2019 as part of a survey entitled "Valuing and understanding the dynamics of Ireland's Ocean Economy". The purpose of the household survey was to profile the domestic market for single-day trips (leisure) and overnight trips (tourism) for coastal and marine-related activities in Ireland. The results of the survey are also used to estimate what proportion of an Irish resident's total domestic tourism expenditure is in coastal areas (coastal tourism) and what proportion is spent on undertaking marine-related activities (marine tourism).

What were the results of the NUI marine leisure tourism study?

The NUI results highlight the important contribution that Ireland's marine and coastal resources make to the leisure experiences of the general population and the importance of the domestic tourism market to local coastal economies. The analysis indicates that domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million. Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips. While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. Satisfaction with the available marine-related leisure facilities was also found to be very high across all activities.