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Displaying items by tag: Seaweed Walk

#SEASIDE FESTIVAL – The popular and scenic fishing harbour of Dunmore East is to host a Festival of Food, Fish & Fun running from 22-24th June.

The first day of the festival on Friday, officially starts at 6pm with a marquee located in the town's park where there will be live music with Waterfords' Gypsi Swing. During the evening refreshments will be provided by local restaurants. Among the activities of the festival's opening night, there will be a Ready, Steady Fish Final sponsored by Flanagans Fish Merchants.

On the Saturday, Tony Kellys Fish Shop will be open all day in the Break Supermarket. The shop will have a large selection of fresh fish and assistance will be on hand to help you recognise the various species, talk about how the different fish are caught, the issue of sustainability, cooking advice and recipe leaflets.

At 2.30 pm Bruce McDonald will talk and teach about seaweeds. His foraging walk on the beach will guide you in the identification of our local seaweeds. The walk taking one-hour is to give you a new perspective on how we perceive the sea, the next time you take a seaside stroll.

An another all-day event is the The Annual Angling Competition. Registration is required the day before or in the morning in Powers Bar. For information call: 087 2576191. The weigh-in and competition results will be announced at the sailing club at 5.30pm.

Another fishing related event is the fish filleting and cookery demonstration, to be presented by Joan Power of The Lemon Tree cafe, which will take place at the harbour pier.

Views of Dunmore East through a 'Now & Then' photo exhibition will be on display, where photos taken up to 50 years ago and in more recent years by Lisa Walsh will be available to buy.

On the final day of the festival, there will be an Arts & Crafts fair held in the Fisherman's Hall. A fundraising 'Garden Party' hosted by The Friends of the Fisherman's Hall will be held in the community garden behind the Fisherman's Hall. The fundraiser will have advice on planting and vegetable seedlings for your garden.

Also that Sunday will be the 'The Blessing of the Boats' and a RNLI Open Day. For more action, there's The Adventure Centre which has a 12-metre rock climbing wall located on the harbour, where there will be a charge.

To view the full festival programme of events, times and locations over the three day festival click HERE.

Published in Maritime Festivals

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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