Tourism bodies 'delighted' with Ladies Irish Open

Fáilte Ireland is delighted with the turnout and reaction to last week's Ladies Irish Open at Killeen Castle in Dunsany, which saw an estimated attendance of 35,000. The biggest golfing event ever to take place in Meath proved to provide an excellent platform on which to showcase the Boyne Valley to visitors. Fáilte Ireland, along with Meath and Louth County Councils, provided visitors to the golfing tournament with a 'Boyne Valley Experience' giving them a taste of the vast heritage and vibrant festival programme of the region. Kevin Kidney, head of operations for Fáilte Ireland in the East and Midlands, highlighted the importance of the Boyne Valley as a heritage destination and explained the partnership with the Ladies Irish Open. "The Boyne Valley area is particularly rich in important heritage sites and combined with the proximity to Dublin means there is considerable potential to benefit from the volumes of visitors, both domestic and international, who travel through the capital. We have been working closely with local tourism providers and Meath and Louth County Councils to develop the Boyne Valley as a destination and this weekend marks a fantastic opportunity to showcase the heritage and festivals offering in the region to encourage visitors to the area and to stay longer." Visitors to the Boyne Valley tented village at killeen Castle relaxed in the 'Boyne Valley Experience Cinema' marquee and watched many short films on the heritage and cultural attractions that make up the Boyne Valley as a tourist destination. The cinema was extremely popular, attracting both young and old. The most popular short films were those featuring The Battle of the Boyne site at Oldbridge, where re-enactments of the Battle of the Boyne in the 17th century were showcased. Also of great interest was the short film about the World Heritage site at Bru na Boinne (Newgrange). The Boyne Valley Festival and Events stage hosted a range of local festival and event performers who entertained the thousands for the entire weekend. The acts represented many festivals from across the Boyne Valley region. Two big Navan festivals were showcased at the weekend including Navan Live taking place on September 17th and 18th this year with big names, Sharon Shannon and The Saw Doctors and were represented by Saramai and the Swords and Liam Gilsenan and the Navan Choral Festival, which attracts choirs from all over the country, was represented by Smokey Nights. Further festivals included the Kells Market Day where the Kells Musical Society showcased the heritage of Kells through a pageant. The Kells Market Day took place for the first time in July this year closing off the streets to attract thousands of visitors to enjoy face painting, old time waltzing and family entertainment. Local Dunsany performer Ann Harrington kicked off the Sunday's entertainment with relaxing jazz music and the Trim Festival group was represented by Catherin and Dino. The Scurlogstown Haymaking Festival was showcased at the Boyne Valley Festivals and Events Stage by local set dancers and The Ardee Baroque Festival showed its musical flair with renowned harpist Michael O'Neill. Drogheda was well represented by SJ McArdle who played for the Drogheda Arts Festival which takes place each May bank holiday. While the National Guitar Festival which is a guitar player's heaven and takes place each April was represented by Maria Butterly. The Spirits of Meath Halloween Festival and Samhain Sounds Navan Busking Festival finished up the entertainment with the PW Sessions keeping the crowds entertained all afternoon. Also there was Mary Rose Mulvany, local historian, who has published a book on the history of Killeen Castle, and was available to any of the visitors to explain the history of the castle and estate. Michele Whelan, tourism development officer, Meath County Council was delighted with the interest in the Boyne Valley experience, "There was a big interest in the heritage of the Boyne Valley, with many visitors having travelled long distances to the event and expressing an interest in return to holiday in the region. We were delighted with the turnout and hope that the tourism providers, who worked so hard with us on the event, will reap the rewards." Up to five million TV viewers across the US will see Killeen Castle on CBS in early 2011. A CBS crew spent a couple of days in Dunsany last week, filming presenter David Camp as he played the course. The visit was arranged by Tourism Ireland and facilitated by Fáilte Ireland. The 30-minute programme will preview the Solheim Cup, to be held next year at Killeen Castle, as well as featuring some of the other, top golf courses around Ireland. This show will air in the spring and will also be repeated by CBS in various US cities throughout 2011. Joe Byrne, Tourism Ireland's executive vice president United States and Canada, said: "We are delighted that CBS has chosen to feature Killeen Castle, the host of the Solheim Cup in 2011. It is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the superb golf and tourism product of Ireland; the footage shot by the crew in Meath will be seen by millions of Americans, encouraging more of them to consider a golfing vacation here. "The US is a key tourism market for the island of Ireland and we have a strong and comprehensive promotional programme under way. We are placing significant emphasis on all value for money offers including great golf deals, to drive home to US golfers our message about the superb range of offers available in Ireland."