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Displaying items by tag: Atlantic Alliance

#atlanticalliance – The ATLANTIC ALLIANCE is a marketing project of 18 ports along Europe's West coast between Hamburg and Lisbon, including Britain and now an Irish port. The project highlights to cruise companies that there is in Europe an attractive alternative to the Mediterranean and Baltic. The multifaceted character and diversity of the Atlantic Alliance members offer a versatile portfolio of cruise content for the cruise companies.

Hamburg, 23rd of September 2013. The Atlantic Alliance is delighted to welcome the Port of Cork to the association. With the addition of Cork, the first Irish port to join the Alliance, the marketing project now covers in total eight countries. "The Alliance is proud to extend the region by aiming towards establishing a Euro-Atlantic destination on its own", says Nadine Palatz, Manager Atlantic Alliance.

Cork represents a key strategic member in terms of the implementation of the new EU sulphur directive which is due to come into effect in 2015. Within a North Sea context, this gives Cork an advantage for future cruise calls.

Port of Cork is on the South Coast of Ireland and makes the Euro-Atlantic picture more complete, as marketed by the Atlantic Alliance.

"Cork is home to some of Ireland's most famous tourist attractions such as Blarney Castle and Jameson Whiskey Distillery and also serves as a convenient gateway for visiting the many picturesque towns and sights of West Cork, Waterford and Killarney. We are delighted to be joining Atlantic Alliance in promoting Cork as a 'must see' destination on Ireland's south coast" commented Captain Michael McCarthy, Commercial Manager, Port of Cork Company.

The Port of Cork is home to Ireland's only dedicated cruise berth in Cobh and will have welcomed a total of 61 cruise vessels carrying over 100,000 passengers and crew by the end of the 2013 season. This is up from 35 calls in 2005 and the Port of Cork has ambitions to grow the number of cruise calls to 80 over the next five years and to increase turn-around calls and overnight stays.

All cruise vessels that call to Cork are given a very special welcome courtesy of Cork Cruise, providing tourist representatives who go on board each vessel, a display of traditional Irish dancing for passengers and a fond farewell on the quayside with a performance by a local brass band. These efforts do not go unnoticed by the passengers and the cruise lines and in 2011 the Port of Cork was awarded two Cruise Insight Awards for 'Best Shore Side Welcome' and 'Best Tour Guides'.

Published in Cruise Liners

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

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.

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

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).

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.

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