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Displaying items by tag: Sail West

#Marinas - Minister of State Joe McHugh will officially open the new €1.3 million Bunagee Marine Development on the Inishowen Peninsula tomorrow afternoon (Friday 9 June).

The new safe haven for coastal cruisers, including a breakwater and pontoons to accommodate 15 vessels, was developed by Donegal County Council as part of the major cross-border project Sail West.

It also forms part of a county-wide strategy to grow Donegal’s necklace of coastal tourism infrastructure and promote the county as a top marine destination in Europe, under the MalinWaters brand shared with Sligo, Northern Ireland’s maritime counties and Western Scotland.

Ahead of the marina's official opening, Donegal County Council Cathaoirleach Terence Slowey said: “We have a wonderful marine tourism product here in Donegal and the new Bunagee Marine Development is a great addition to our existing infrastructure.

“Situated close to the beautiful village of Culdaff, Bunagee is an ideal base that will give visitors the opportunity to explore the Inishowen Peninsula and the county.”

Minister McHugh will attend the official opening at Culdaff on Friday 9 June at 2.30pm.

The project was funded by the European Union’s INTERREG IVA Cross-border Programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body. It was constructed by Deane Public Works, and Doran Consulting was awarded the contract as the consultant engineers.

Published in Irish Marinas

#MARINAS - The new shore block at Stranraer Marina is the latest project to benefit from the Sail West initiative across western Scotland, Northern Ireland and the northwest coast of Ireland.

As the Galloway Gazette reports, the new waterfront building comprises a permanent harbour office, coastguard base, showers and toilets, as well as a community education room.

“The ongoing development of the marina is key to branding Stranraer as a marine leisure destination," said local councillor Roberta Tuckfield.

"Plans to add more pontoons and another breakwater should bring in additional pleasure craft, increasing tourism numbers benefiting the whole town.”

The marina improvements have been made with the goals of boosting the number of marine leisure users in Stranraer, fitting in with Sail West and its cross-border MalinWaters marine tourism brand across the channel.

Sail West is an international scheme, headed by Donegal County Council and Larne Borough Council, which aims to encourage mariners to enjoy the North Channel coastlines of Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Other projects recently supported under the rubric of the Sail West initiative include the new coastal marina facility at Ballycastle Harbour in north Antrim and this summer's Clipper Festival in Derry.

The Galloway Gazette has more on the story HERE.

Published in Irish Marinas

#PORTRUSH – A study of Portrush harbour in County Antrim is being carried out to investigate the feasibility of creating a marina facility of up to 200 berths in the Northern port.  The study is sponsored by the Sail West project which aims to promote sailing tourism between the west of Scotland and Northern Ireland and Donegal. The small harbour at Portrush is usually busy with small pleasure and fishing boats in the summer season. The nearest marina to Portrush is the 74-berth Ballycastle marina, 17 kms away, that is in full use by local fisherman and yachtsmen alike.


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Published in Irish Marinas
#AQUATIC TOURISM - Scotland looks to Ireland for inspiration in growing its sailing tourism industry, a new report shows.
Tourism Intelligence Scotland's comprehensive Sailing Tourism in Scotland guide outlines opportunities for businesses already involved in sailing, as well as those willing to dip a toe into an area with much potential for growth.
Among various case studies, the guide points to the Sail West initiative headed by Donegal County Council, which aims to link the coastlines of Northern Ireland, north west Ireland and Scotland and develop the tourism infrastructure between the regions.
It also notes the initiative's MalinWaters brand, which aims to support tourism businesses with information on the latest products and services, and provide opportunities to share knowledge and best practices.
The Sailing Tourism in Scotland guide is available as a PDF to read or download HERE.

#AQUATIC TOURISM - Scotland looks to Ireland for inspiration in growing its sailing tourism industry, a new report shows.

Tourism Intelligence Scotland's comprehensive Sailing Tourism in Scotland guide outlines opportunities for businesses already involved in sailing, as well as those willing to dip a toe into an area with much potential for growth.

Among various case studies, the guide points to the Sail West initiative headed by Donegal County Council, which aims to link the coastlines of Northern Ireland, north west Ireland and Scotland and develop the tourism infrastructure between the regions. 

It also notes the initiative's MalinWaters brand, which aims to support tourism businesses with information on the latest products and services, and provide opportunities to share knowledge and best practices.

The Sailing Tourism in Scotland guide is available as a PDF to read or download HERE.

Published in Aquatic Tourism

Marine Leisure & Aquatic Tourism

Domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million.

Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips.

While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. 

According to the National University of Galway (NUIG) research the average expenditure per coastal day trip in 2018 was calculated at €95. The equivalent for coastal overnight trips was €310. The estimated water-based activity expenditure per person per trip across the sample was €56 rising to €73 for the subsample that actually undertake waterbased activities on their coastal visits. The results also indicate that domestic tourists undertake the majority of their marine activities on the West and South coasts of Ireland and that there are notable differences in participation rates across age groupings, social classes and by family makeup.

A domestic tourist is defined in this report as a person who spends at least one night away from home on their trip. Total expenditure by domestic tourists in coastal areas was estimated to be €698 million in 2018, which represents 35% of the total expenditure by domestic tourists (using the broader Fáilte Ireland measure for domestic tourists that includes business trips equating to 10.92 million in total trips and €2,006 million in total revenue).

The marine-related activity expenditure, or what might truly be referred to as domestic marine tourism, is estimated to generate revenue of €381 million with €172 million being spent on water-based activities. Marine tourism makes up an estimated 19% of total domestic tourism expenditure.

Marine Leisure Tourism - FAQ

Coastal tourism refers to land-based and water-based tourism activities taking place on the coast for which the proximity to the sea is a condition including also their respective services. Coastal and Marine Tourism & Leisure are seen as one of the Blue Economy (BE) sectors that can help unlock the potential of multi-use of space at sea by engaging with Blue Growth (BG) sectors such as Aquaculture and Marine Renewable Energy among others.

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

NUI Galway carried out a survey of domestic residents in Ireland in 2019 as part of a survey entitled "Valuing and understanding the dynamics of Ireland's Ocean Economy". The purpose of the household survey was to profile the domestic market for single-day trips (leisure) and overnight trips (tourism) for coastal and marine-related activities in Ireland. The results of the survey are also used to estimate what proportion of an Irish resident's total domestic tourism expenditure is in coastal areas (coastal tourism) and what proportion is spent on undertaking marine-related activities (marine tourism).

The NUI results highlight the important contribution that Ireland's marine and coastal resources make to the leisure experiences of the general population and the importance of the domestic tourism market to local coastal economies. The analysis indicates that domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million. Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips. While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. Satisfaction with the available marine-related leisure facilities was also found to be very high across all activities.

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