Expectations for tourism around Solheim Cup 'must be realistic’

With less than a year to go to the holding of the Solheim Cup golfing event at Killeen Castle, and the staging of the Junior Solheim at Knightsbrook, Trim, Meath County Council claims it will be pushing out the boat in helping to attract visitors to the county so it can exploit spin-off economic benefits. However, the county council's director of economic development and innovation Kevin Stewart said that it was important not to either oversell or undersell the impact of the event. He told councillors there would be opportunities for people to attract some business that week but “expectations must be realisticâ€. He said: “What we really want is for those who come to go away thinking 'I had a great time and I intend to come back',†he said. Quoting from the Failte Ireland annual report for 2009, Mr Stewart told councillors at a recent meeting of the county council that, although the number of overseas visitors to Ireland, at 6.6 million, was down 12 per cent, and their spend was down 19 per cent, satisfaction ratings - at 94 per cent - were high. Of the 85 per cent of foreign visitors coming through Dublin - 5.6 million people - 46 per cent were interested in cultural and heritage pursits (2.6 million). “That's our target audience and it's only 20 minutes away,†he said. In the latest figures available for the number of visitors to the Boyne Valley (2008), there were a total of 140,000 overseas and 125,000 domestic visitors to this area. Louth got 91,000 visitors and 82,000 domestic visitors. The value to this region was worth approximately €160 million but this asset was not being exploited, the council official said. Describing the Failte Ireland strategy for the industry, he said it intended to develop up to 10 world-class tourism destinations, each having a critical mass of services, product and accommodation to provide a complete and memorable holiday experience - and the Boyne Valley would be one of these. According to Mr Stewart, the average tourist knew little or nothing about the geography of Ireland and just tended to follow their interests. Meath was oprimarily seeking the heritage tourist and trying to package this with other attractions, including golf, walking, fishing and festivals. “The vehicle for that is the Boyne Valley. That is where we must go with our product development and marketing strategy,†he said. Failte Ireland would primarily fund proposals that tied into its '10 destinations' strategy, and it would market and promote the 10 destinations at home and abroad. “We must react to that locally and restructure and refocus ourseles to fo the same.†This meant partnering with Louth County Council and Failte Ireland, both nationally and regionally, he said. “Put aside the county jersey and the county will benefit,†added Mr Stewart. Some of the potential Boyne Valley projects included the Books of Kells Heritage Centre, Trim Visitor Centre redesign, Boyne Valley Driving Route, Trim to Drogheda Cycle Route, Public Realm Improvements, Boyne Canal, and historic town trails in Kells, Trim and Slane. Cllr John Farrelly, who is also chairperson of Meath Tourism, said that the county should capitalise on the success of the Solheim Cup. The event was an important one “for people who are trying to keep their premises openâ€. Cllr Wayne Harding said the importance of the Meath tourism project could not be underestimated. The Boyne Valley got an extraordinary amount of tourist attention but it was important that people be persuaded to extend their stay in the area, rather than visit on day trips. Cllr Catherine Yore felt the tourism industry had the potential to create jobs in the country, and Cllr Bryan Reilly said that the Kells Road Races had brought 30,000 visitors to that area but there was a severe shortage of accommodation. Concerning the rebranding of the Kells Heritage Centre, he welcomed new co-operation with Trinity College, Dublin. “Well, they should be co-operating because they have our book!†he remarked. Cllr Jenny McHugh said that for so many foreign tourists coming through Dublin, Meath was ideally placed to capitalise on cultural and heritage aspects of their trips. Cllr Brian Fitzgerald said it was a pity the Killeen Castle hotel project had not gone ahead, as many of the Solheim Cup players and entourage would have stayed there, but now they had had to go elsewhere. Tourism was an area that could bring great benefits to Meath. “We have the basic product here,†he said. Cllr Bill Carey promoted the benefits of the Royal Canal Way. It was so easy for people in Dublin to get public transport from Dublin and do the 38-mile way in sections. “All you need is a bus fare,†he said. Cllr Noel Leonard said he believed the main aim should be to get tourists to make return visits to the county. Cllr Tommy Reilly said the success of the campaign to get the rail line back to Navan had been outstanding and a similar effort should now be put into getting the regional hospital to Navan.