The national tourism development authority, Fáilte Ireland and leading ecotourism organisation, Greenbox, published Ireland’s first Ecotourism Handbook in Sligo today.
Written by noted green-travel writer, Catherine Mack, and supported by Fáilte Ireland with additional support from the Border Action agency, the ‘Ecotourism Handbook for Ireland’ is aimed at people working in tourism and is a concise guide to help tourism businesses operate in a green environment.
The Ecotourism Handbook will be distributed to over 3,000 tourism businesses by Fáilte Ireland as well as at ecotourism awareness seminars, as a part of the tourism development authority’s commitment to promoting environmentally sustainable tourism.
Martin Cullen TD, Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, welcomed the launch of the Ecotourism Handbook, and said –
“The physical environment is a vital part of the unique and distinctive character which Ireland offers the visitor and, as such, a key source of our competitive advantage. This handbook shows in a clear, practical manner, the great opportunities ecotourism offers to develop and enhance business, making the most of that character while safeguarding the green, clean image for which Ireland is renowned. Not only that, but the sustainable approach to, for example, managing energy costs and waste can also make a real difference to the competitiveness of individual operators - which is so critical at this time.”
Speaking at the launch, Paul Keeley, Director of Business Development and Investment at Fáilte Ireland emphasised -
“Sound management of our core tourism asset, our environment, is not only an ethical choice but also a business necessity. As a nation, we sell ourselves as a “green” country. Visitor expectations of unspoilt landscapes and a green environment are part of the attraction that lures many to our shores. However, it is not just a matter of image. An environmental approach has the potential to yield cost-savings for tourism businesses – an important consideration given the challenges we face in the year ahead.”
Amongst other things, the ‘Ecotourism Handbook for Ireland’ provides a wealth of detail including:
• information on the ecotourism market;
• how to certify a green business;
• how to find ‘green’ funding;
• and how to market your ecotourism business.
Mary Mulvey, CEO of Greenbox, today stressed -
“I truly believe to create a strong ecotourism product will only come about through education and training at all levels of the industry from government, trade and industry partners in tourism to host communities, media and the consumers of tourism. Ireland has the potential to develop a quality ecotourism experience and this book will be a big help for any business where to get started.”
The usefulness of an Ecotourism Handbook for Ireland arose out of the success of Greenbox which was Ireland’s first ecotourism destination. As Martina Bromley, General Manager for Fáilte Ireland in the North West, pointed out -
“The success of the Greenbox Ecotourism Destination in the North-West has demonstrated to other tourism destinations the potential that exists within the ecotourism market for rest of the country.
The handbook draws heavily on the experience of ecotourism providers in the North-West and will provide practical assistance to interested tourism businesses throughout Ireland who are thinking of making the transition to ecotourism so that they too can tap into this emerging and growing market”.
According to the International Ecotourism Society, the ecotourism market has been growing since the 1990’s at a rate of between 20-34% every year. Although this varies from destination to destination, the average figure is still three times the growth rate of the industry as a whole.
The author of today’s handbook, Catherine Mack expressed her hopes that the publication would demystify the whole area of eco-tourism and encourage more operators to look at the benefits to be reaped –
“Sometimes I think that people working in tourism are afraid of the ‘eco’ word. There is a lot of confusion out there about what it means to be ethical, green, sustainable, eco, or responsible, call it what you will. People think it’s going to cost more, alienate their clientele, or put them in some sort of ‘green’ box. In writing this book, I hope to take away some of this fear, and show that it is the only way to move forward in tourism.”
The Ecotourism Handbook for Ireland is available online and can be accessed at www.failteireland.ie/Research—Policy/Policy-Analysis/Environment
For the first time in years the weather proved kind to the country on St Patricks Day. The 2009 St. Patrick’s Day Parade saw over 675,000 people lining the sun drenched Dublin city streets to enjoy one of the best St. Patrick’s Day Parades ever. Thousands of performers and characters joined together in a carnival of dancing and music as they wowed on-lookers with uniquely commissioned original pageants accompanied by marching bands from Ireland and across the globe.
The Winner of 2009 Best Pageant was awarded to CITY FUSION with The Conference of Birds. The award for Best Marching Band in the Parade went to German band, SIMSEGRÄBSLER from Hofstetten, Black Forest, South West Germany.
A bit of info that I thought you might find interesting about a friend of mine who runs a Bear Workshop in County Cavan.
Bear Essentials are taking bookings now for any age groups who like to experience one of our 5 Tour offers for 2009 :Teddy Bear History Tour, Bear Trail, Wildlife Track, Clay In The Geopark or Recycling Is Our Future.
Here are some of their set dates for children’s workshops age 6 to 16.
Easter Workshop (sewing, cooking, baking, decorating) on the 7th of April 10am - 4pm
Craft & Cookery Summer School ( wood work, recycling, toy making, cooking) 6th-9th of July 10am -1pm
Teddy Bear Design Summer School 17th - 20th of August 10am -1pm
More information on our website www.bearessentials.ie
St Patricks day is celebrated all over Ireland from the small village parades to the largest of towns having week long celebrations.
If you are in Cork at this time then they are having a great festival including a Barrys Tea Food Market, Street Entertainers and as always a great St Patricks Day Parade. More info can be found at their website.
St. Patrick’s Festival brings The National Lottery Skyfest to the Waterford City Quays on Saturday 14th March for an explosive night of fireworks, music agus craic. The National Lottery Skyfest, one of the largest and most spectacular events in the Irish outdoor event calendar, will see the Waterford City Quays bathed in spectacular style. Last year the Skyfest moved from Dublin for the first time and was held at the spectacular Rock of Cashel in County Tipperary. This year’s event promises to be even better and the fact that it is in a large city and on a river setting will ensure big crowds and a wonderful atmosphere.
Festivities begin at 6.30pm with a performance from Kìla, who are renowned for their uniquely energetic performances. Joining them on the night is local Waterford percussion group Torann, who will treat crowds to a feast of drums and beats. Don’t worry if you can’t make it to the south-east, the show, hosted by Laura Woods and Derek Mooney, will be broadcast live on RTÉ 1 on Saturday 14th March followed by a special National Lottery Lotto draw live from the quays. For further details visit www.stpatricksfestival.ie
Planning for this special event has taken almost a year to design and produce. It will take a crew of 26 over 6 days to set up 2.69 tonnes of fireworks with over 4,000 shots and all will be supported by 130 volunteers to produce a 20 minute explosive show that is the National Lottery Skyfest in partnership with St. Patrick’s Festival.
The National Lottery Skyfest in Waterford is just one of the many other amazing events and activities taking place from Thursday 12th to Tuesday 17th March. St. Patrick’s Festival celebrations and programme is literally bursting at the seams with street theatre, traditional and contemporary Irish music, dance, spectacles, comedy, film, a treasure hunt, GaelSpraoi Irish language events, family fun and of course the best St. Patrick’s Day Parade in the world. So, make a date to come out and make the Festival yours!
Access Information
All access streets to Waterford City centre will be closed (except for local access) from 6.00pm on Saturday, 14th March and all spectators planning on viewing Skyfest should arrive in the city by 6.00pm. The public viewing area is set up on South Quays and will be the best vantage point for viewing the spectacular show which will be “fired” from the pontoons on the river and North Quays. Spectators are advised to use public transport where possible, arrive early and plan to be in the city by 6.00pm. Disabled access viewing will be available in designated areas, please refer to www.stpatricksfestival.ie for maps and further information to plan your journey. We strongly recommend the use of public transport to access and depart the city. Regular traffic updates and alerts will be available on AA Roadwatch and 2FM.
Stand back for an explosion of entertainment and a chemical reaction of fun at St. Patrick’s Festival 2009. The six-day Festival of performance, spectacle and participation is set to bring a formula for some much needed music and mirth to the streets and the country as we celebrate our national holiday. Although times and purse strings are getting tighter no one knows better than the Irish how to have a great time for free and this year’s Festival programme promises to make FREE FUN the order of the day for the six-day Festival.
The theme for the festival Parade 2009 is ‘The Sky’s the Limit!’ a mantra that encompasses St. Patrick’s Festival celebrations and the programme is literally bursting at the seams with street theatre, traditional and contemporary Irish music, dance, spectacles, comedy, film, a treasure hunt, Irish language events, family fun and of course the best St. Patrick’s Day Parade in the world.
The much anticipated annual favourite, the festival Parade, features newly commissioned, highly original and inventive street theatre troupes, artists, giant puppetry, dancers and marching bands from Ireland and across the globe. Thousands are anticipated to be cheering on the city streets and many millions more tuning in to the RTE 1 broadcast on TV and live streaming on-line. The Parade pageants are all joined on the day by marching bands from Ireland, the USA, Germany and Italy. Pageant companies coming from the four corners of the country; Inishowen in Donegal, Spraoi in Waterford, Buí Bolg in Wexford and City Fusion in Dublin to name but a few, have been designing, building and choreographing their pieces in the last months in preparation for the big day on Tuesday 17th March. To celebrate the GAA’s 125th anniversary celebrations a specially commissioned GAA pageant, entitled Monumental Moments, will lead the St. Patricks Festival Parade this year. Festival parade producers and artist Francis Morgan have devised a unique representation of all the GAA has been to the people of Ireland and beyond for the past 125 years. Crowds in excess of 500,000 are anticipated to attend so fingers and toes crossed that the weather is kind to us once more on St. Patrick’s Day.
City Fusion one of the largest pageants in the Parade celebrates the diversity of Dublin City’s cultural landscape. The project is an inter-cultural collaboration produced by St Patrick’s Festival in association with Dublin City Council’s Office for Integration. Established in 2007 City Fusion is currently an annual feature of the St Patrick’s Festival programme. Immigration is relatively new to Ireland and issues of integration and our relationship with each other, regardless of nationality, have become more important than ever. Now in its third year, City Fusion brings together Irish and inter-cultural groups to create an artistic presentation for St Patrick’s Festival Parade.
A premiere festival event in 2009 is The Spheres @ Docklands in partnership with Dublin Docklands Authority and presented by Strange Fruit, a Melbourne-based company which will bring their distinct spectacle performance style to stage a performance in this years St. Patrick’s Festival. The Spheres fuse theatre, dance and circus in to a spectacle that sees 7 performers on giant illuminated spheres, which are perched on top of 4-metre high flexible poles. With two performances scheduled each night on Friday 13th & Saturday 14th at 6.30pm for a family performance and 8.00pm for those a little older who would like to come view the performance and enjoy the later vibe of the Docklands.
A major annual event and festival highlight The National Lottery Skyfest will this year travel to the sunny southeast city of Waterford. Skyfest, which was a triumph last year in Cashel is set to bring the “Deise” alive with an awe inspiring demonstration of fireworks over the River Suir, accompanied by music and other street entertainment. Musical accompaniment will be provided by well known Irish contemporary group Kíla with support from local Waterford band Torann. One of the largest and most spectacular events in the Irish outdoor event calendar, this is the second time for The National Lottery Skyfest to be held outside of Dublin and will see the Waterford City Quays bathed in spectacular style. If you can’t make it to the south east, the show will be broadcast live on RTE 1 from 7.30pm on Saturday 14th March followed by a special National Lottery outside Lotto draw.
One thing that keeps thousands of people coming back to enjoy Festival events each year are the ever popular and action packed Denny Treasure Hunt and Denny Big Day Out at Merrion Square. Festivities at Denny Big Day Out will feature 10 jam-packed family fun zones from Urban Zone to Performance Zone and back to Science Zone – a great day out for all the family! Denny Treasure Hunt is a truly unique event and opportunity to explore your city in a fun and novel way – to register check out www.stpatricksfestival.ie
GaelSpraoi in association with Foras na Gaeilge is back again this year with an exciting series of events taking place throughout the festival promoting the use of the Irish language amongst visitors and residents, and most importantly all abilities! Some of the highlights include: Cabaret Craiceáilte – as authentic a Gaeltacht experience as you will get in the city, with sean- nós and nua- nós singing. Other events include a Céilí Bhéalspraoi, with live band and callers, it’s a Céilí crash-course for starters, city tours, social evening, treasure hunt, music, art workshops, film workshops and even an Irish language rapper Muipeid and Bubba Shakespeare! So bain triall as, bain Spraoi as, or give it a go and you might just have fun!
A diverse programme of film, comedy and music will run throughout the six days of the Festival. The Irish Film Archive will present Disney’s Darby O’Gill and the Little People with renowned Irish Film director Jim Sheridan explaining why this boisterous romp, set in the kingdom of the leprechauns, remains one of his all time favourite “Irish” films. Also at the IFI, as part of GaelSpraoi New York-based professional filmmaker Donal O’Céilleachair, whose work has been presented at international festivals, will also host film workshops ‘as gaeilge’.
2009 music programme kicks off with Kíla & special guests at Vicar Street on Thursday 12th March as part of SONAS, a night of music as part of GaelSpraoi. At the National Concert Hall on the evening of Monday 17th March, Seàn Keane and a selection Ireland’s best traditional musicians and dancers present Seàn Keane : The Irish Scattering a musical journey through time, in a celebration of the experiences of the Irish abroad. With a standing ovation at each performance to date, this promises to be a feast of song, music, dance and readings. Other performances at The National Concert Hall over the festival weekend include Céili House Live in Concert on Saturday 14th March, and celebrating their centenary 100 years in the business, the Kilfenora Céilí Band will be celebrating on Monday 16th March. Tickets are available from NCH at www.nch.ie or Tickets www.nch.ie Tel: 01 417 0000.
Irelands Top 5 comedians taken from a poll by Laugher Lounge customers will present the comedy at this year’s Festival. These 5 comics will appear together for 3 nights only over the St Patrick’s Festival weekend in Best at the Fest at the Laughter Lounge in Dublin. Contact Details Box Office 1800 COMEDY (266339) (Overseas +353 1 878 3003) boxoffice@laughterlounge.com
“How Irish is Ireland?” is the question we will be posing in conjunction with The Dubliner magazine. On St. Patrick’s Day eve, Monday 16th March, St. Patrick’s Festival and The Dubliner magazine presents the opportunity to enjoy lively discussion with a panel of prominent and outspoken Irish personalities. An entertaining examination of what it means to be Irish today and the people, ideas and traditions that we should celebrate each St. Patrick’s Day. How do our opinions on Irish identity match up with the reality of modern Ireland? A limited amount of free tickets will be available for this unique gathering by registering on The Dubliner magazine’s website at www.thedubliner.ie
There truly is something for all ages and pockets and best of all most of the Festival is FREE. Despite the doom and gloom of recent months the time is right to come together and show ourselves and the world how great it is to be Irish and be proud of who we are and what we can achieve. The programme is there, whatever way you mix it up it’s the perfect formula for FUN for all ages - All we ask is that you wrap up, bring your friends and prepare yourself to have lots of FUN!
No one knows how to celebrate quite like the Irish, so be sure to join in and show the world how great it is to be Irish if even for just one day! Have the most memorable St. Patrick’s Festival ever – see www.stpatricksfestival.ie for the full festival programme and how you can be a part of St. Patrick’s Festival 2009!
Pixie the Irish photo sharing website will facilitate the largest attempt to document St. Patrick’s Festival in Ireland ever so all are encouraged to upload imagery on to the site in an attempt to create a remarkable memory of our national festival for Ireland and the world, more information on www.stpatricksfestival.ie
Hi There,
Sorry for the long time since writing…
We are in the process of redesigning the website and we hope that you find the new design more easy to navigate.
We are adding new features such as allowing you to add your images of Ireland and stating why these places are your favourite.
Other sections will include a forum for discussions etc and also we intend to run a series of competitions.
We hope you like the redesign, everything should be finished over the next two weeks, let us know what you think
John
February 27th, 2009 in
Travel Related | tags:
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Feb 13, 2009 – Speaking in Dublin today, Seamus McGowan, Director of Travelodge in Ireland said:
“Tough economic times mean that companies the world over are becoming more budget conscious and are no longer willing to pay exorbitantly high prices for unnecessary frills. Over the course of the last 6 months Travelodge has seen a surge in corporate bookings which now account for 25% of our business. We anticipate that these numbers will grow to 45% by June of this year and it is to accommodate this demand that we have decided to launch this department.”
“Our corporate department is designed to make the booking process straightforward and hassle free for our business customers. Users will be assigned a fixed year-round corporate rate guaranteeing them considerable savings. Customers will also have the advantage of a direct corporate booking e-mail address (corporatereservations@travelodge.ie) and phone line (01 852 4537) eliminating the need to contact each hotel reception individually. “
“In addition, we have added a number of features to our corporate package such as a corporate breakfast, Wi-Fi access, free car parking in all of our Republic of Ireland hotels and a facility which allows transfers and cancellations up to 12 noon on the day of arrival.”
“Many of the corporates who have joined us recently would have previously paid twice as much for full service hotels they had no real need for. There is no longer any excuse for wasting money when Travelodge guarantees a good night’s sleep in a clean and comfortable room at a competitive price in 10 locations around Ireland.”
Travelodge Ireland is Ireland’s leading provider of Budget Hotels with ten hotels in Ireland located in Ballymun, Castleknock, Swords, Rathmines, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford, Belfast & Derry. Rooms start from €49 per night.
February 16th, 2009 in
Travel Related |
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Apologies if you get annoyed with the pop ups on my website for the next couple of days. I am trying to get some feedback on the website and am asking visitors to fill in the online survey.
From the results I will add more of the content that viewers would like to see.
February 6th, 2009 in
Uncategorized |
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One of my favourite websites is Outdoor Photographer I love looking at the fabulous scenery from all over the world.
I submitted an image of Malin Head, Donegal and yesterday it was accepted in their online gallery of favourite places. You can view it online at this link
Malin Head is Ireland’s most northerly point and I would have to say the Donegal is my favourite county as it has fantastic wild and rugged scenery.
Take a virtual tour on my website Map of Donegal
