All-Ireland boost lives on
Tipperary people are continuing to enjoy the boost of last summer’s All-Ireland hurling win and the county’s tourism providers should also be able to take advantage, a local authority meeting has heard.
Cllr Séamie Morris said the victory put people in good mood and encouraged spending more freely. He suggested that Tipperary Co Council should try to assess the boost to the local economy.
He said the All-Ireland win also focused attention on Tipperary’s GAA clubs, which people come from all over the world to watch in championship matches. But Cllr Morris said these and the county’s sports clubs in general have a tourism potential that is not being tapped into. Speaking during a presentation on Tipperary Tourism and the draft Tipperary Tourism Roadmap 2025-2030, he regretted that there was no mention of sports tourism. Cllr Morris said clubs like the snooker, tennis and pitch & putt clubs of Nenagh organise tournaments and attract visitors from all over the world.
“Sports clubs are the greatest ambassadors we have in this county,” he commented. “They are the strongest brand we have.” Cllr Morris called on the council to work more closely with sports clubs and help them avail of grants so as to maximise their potential.
HOTEL IPAS CENTRES
A number of speakers agreed that lack of accommodation is an issue for Tipperary tourism, especially where hotel and B&B rooms are used for accommodating IPAs or refugees from the war in Ukraine. Cllr Liam Browne sought a breakdown of how many tourism beds have been lost to these uses, while Cllr Andy Moloney said more accommodation needs to be found for “our home market”.
“We can drive our county on to greater things, but not without the accommodation,” he remarked.
Cllr Jim Ryan did not think that hotels should be used as IPAS centres. Loss of accommodation should be a concern for any tourism body and he wanted the matter referred to in the Tipperary Tourism report.
Cllr Joe Hannigan also spoke of a need for taking back tourism accommodation and returning it to its originally intended purpose. He spoke of an opportunity he had to bring a large group of people to Tipperary but they went to a different county because they could not get accommodation here.
CAMPER VANS
Cllr Hannigan was one of several speakers to seek a more widespread provision of camper van parking sites in Tipperary. He said Dromineer and Terryglass are two areas that would really benefit.
He also supported calls for greater integration with national tourism projects such as Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands, as well as with the diaspora overseas.
Cllr Phyll Bugler described Irish Hidden Heartlands as the “flagship” for the Lough Derg area, but “we don’t seem to be getting the same traction”, she said of the marketing initiative. Cllr Bugler called for a meeting of all tourism providers to explore new ideas for promoting the lake.
Cllr Michael O’Meara wanted to enhance the inter-county approach to tourism. In his own area, this would involve greater connection between Birr, Lorrha and Portumna, and their ecclesiastical heritage.
Cllr O’Meara also mentioned the Beara-Breifne Way, which he said could do with more support in the Lower Ormond area. The area’s callow contained rich biodiversity that people come from all over the world to see and this too offers potential, he said.
‘SLOW TOURISM’
Councillors welcomed a greater emphasis on ‘slow tourism’ as one of the strategic objectives of the five-year plan. The concept involves visitors staying longer and enjoying a more authentic and sustainable cultural experience. Cllr Morris said slow tourism has been talked about but needs to be encouraged.
Also welcomed was a ‘Visitor in Your Own County Day’, wherein local communities would be encouraged to discover the range of visitor experiences in Tipperary. Cllr Mark Fitzgerald said there are many parts of the county he has not seen; he recently came from his home area of Carrick-on-Suir to visit Dromineer and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. He joined Cllr Máirín McGrath in calling for greater Local Link transport connectivity with rural parts of the county.
Helen King, Chair of Tipperary Tourism Company Board, agreed that inter-county representation is key to successful promotion of tourism. The company does have plans to work with Fáilte Ireland on clustering towns as tourism destinations.
Ms King described camper van site provision as an “immediate priority” for Tipperary Tourism and mentioned that the company would be carrying out a feasibility study to that end.