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Displaying items by tag: swansea

2nd February 2012

Fastnet Line Closes For Good

#FERRY NEWS - The Fastnet Line ferry service between Cork and Swansea is to close with the loss of 78 jobs.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the operator had been in examinership since last November, and a restructured business plan had been submitted with a view to resuming high-season service in April.

However, in a statement the owners of the Fastnet Line said they had been unable to raise the €1m-plus investment required and that the examinership had "failed".

All 78 jobs will be lost as the company is set to be placed in receivership or liquidation later today.

The Fastnet Line - which was worth around €30 million to Cork in tourist spending - made its maiden voyage from Swansea to Cork in 2010, and was the only direct passenger and freight link between Wales and the south coast of Ireland.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Published in Ferry
The Cork-Swansea route service has smashed 2010 targets with over 80,000 passengers using the service, which reopened in March according to a report on NewsWales.co.uk.

The passenger figure represents four-times the capacity of the Liberty Stadium, Swansea which is to host the rugby Heineken Cup clash between Swansea Neath Ospreys and Munster on Saturday 18 December.

The 10-hour ferry service operated by Fastnet Line also carried 31,000 vehicles and statistics suggest a significant boost for the Swansea Bay economy with about 40% of all passengers so far travelling from Cork to the south Wales region. The route is served by the MV Julia which had been sailing in the Baltic. The 1982 built vessel is capable of carrying more than 1,800 passengers and 400 cars.

Fastnet Line will run all-year-round in 2011 and has set a revised target of 120,000 passengers.

On a seasonal note, Christmas gift vouchers are available from Fastnet Line, for more information logon HERE

Published in Ports & Shipping
11th September 2010

Welsh Coastguard Evacuate Walkers

At twenty minutes past one this afternoon, Swansea Coastguard received a call from ambulance control requesting assistance to the aid of an injured walker.

The lady had called 999 and requested the Welsh ambulance service, after they had taken the call they assessed that they would need Coastguard assistance to extract the lady from where she was. She had fallen in woods near to the Irish Sea coast and had sustained a broken ankle.

The Llantwit Major Coastguard rescue team was called out. They located the lady and placed her in their rescue stretcher and carried her out to the waiting air ambulance who then evacuated her to hospital.

Earlier in the day Swansea Coastguard received a call for assistance from the Welsh ambulance service, when a 51 year old male, part of a group of 800 coastal walkers on a fundraising walk for charity, fell and dislocated his elbow.

Rhossili Coastguard rescue team was called out and located the man. Due to the extreme pain this man was experiencing, a doctor who was attending requested that the best way to evacuate was by helicopter. A rescue helicopter was requested. The Rhosilli http://www.afloat.ie/resources/organisations/irish-coast-guard/ team cleared an area for the helicopter to work safely in the evacuation of this man.

Dai Jones, Watch Manager at Swansea said:

Our Coastguard rescue teams train for this type of recovery and we were pleased that we could assist in the rescue of these two walkers.

Coastal cliff paths are often uneven and can present a problem when walking them.

Always ensure that you are equipped for the activity you are undertaking and ensure that you are wearing adequate footwear.

Published in Coastguard

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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