Members of the public are being encouraged to become a tourist for the day in County Clare through a new tourism promotion initiative offering free and half-price admission to popular local visitor attractions and sites on Sunday, 23rd April.
The Tourism Department of Clare County Council, working in partnership with the Clare Tourism Advisory Forum and local tourism attractions, says ‘Be a Tourist in Your Own County Clare’ is aimed at promoting the quality tourism product available in Clare to the domestic market ahead of the peak tourism season.
Clare is home to some of Ireland’s best known visitor attractions including the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience, Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, Aillwee Burren Experience, Killaloe River Cruises, Doolin Cave, Craggaunowen, Burren Smokehouse & Taste the Atlantic – the Salmon Experience, and OPW Ennis Friary, all of which feature in the promotion.
Other participating attractions include Wilde Irish Chocolates, The Flying Alpaca, Doolin Ferry, Caherconnell Fort & Sheepdog Demonstrations, Vandeleur Walled Gardens, Loop Head Lighthouse, Moher Hill Open Farm, Lahinch Leisure Centre, and the Michael Cusack Centre.
Cllr Tony O’Brien, Cathaoirleach, Clare County Council, says the pre-season timing of the promotion is important as it targets local consumers, so they are aware of what is on offer in County Clare.
Cllr O’Brien said: “Clare has a compelling array of adventure activities and remarkable experiences for both locals and visitors to the county to enjoy, and we are looking forward to a busy season in 2023. I would like to commend the local tourism businesses on embracing this initiative and I encourage everyone, particularly families, to take advantage of the half-price and free admission offers that are listed on VisitClare.ie and to come out and enjoy the best our county has to offer.”
Pat Dowling, Chief Executive, Clare County Council, said: “2023 will be another challenging year for tourism businesses for many global reasons and this is one of a number of responses taken by the Clare Tourism Advisory Forum to provide much needed support pre-season to the sectors like attractions and activity providers.”
Sean Lally, Chair of the Clare Tourism Advisory Forum, commented: “Tourism operators across Clare are delighted to row in behind this initiative which promotes the best of what our county has to offer locals and visitors alike from the world-famous Cliffs of Moher and Bunratty Castle to Europe’s largest stalactite at Doolin Cave and the lighthouse perched above the cliffs at Loop Head. We are looking forward to a successful tourist season and building on the growth experienced in the domestic tourist market in 2022.”
Deirdre O’Shea, Head of Tourism, Clare County Council, said: “We are inviting the public to go explore, eat out, enjoy an activity, or visit an attraction on Sunday, 23rd April, and for locals within County Clare to become ambassadors for our own county.”
She added: “We know from our extensive consumer research conducted in 2022 that the one thing that visitors loved most about County Clare, is the people. Local people engage with visitors and are in a position to influence or guide them by suggesting places to go and things to do. This initiative is all about making local people more aware of the tourism product on their own doorstep.”
Visit www.visitclare.ie/wow for more on ‘Be a Tourist in Your Own County Clare’ and for details of the offers available on Sunday, 23rd April.
