Fáilte Ireland have announced an investment of €150 million to develop major new visitor attractions as part of its Grants Scheme for Large Tourism Projects.
The grants of €2.5 million and upwards are aimed at ‘platforms’ or projects that have the greatest potential to boost tourism growth and meet changing visitors’ expectations.
Innovation, interactivity, immersion and sustainability
These large scale attractions should have the potential to boost visitation in the local area and drive innovation, interactivity, immersion and sustainability. The first of the ‘platforms’ launched is to develop Immersive Heritage and Cultural Attractions.
Fáilte Ireland’s CEO Paul Kelly said,“Driving growth in the regions through tourism is a core focus of our work at Fáilte Ireland and having top-class visitor attractions and experiences is an integral part of this. At Fáilte Ireland, we are currently working on over 50 large capital projects throughout Ireland that will significantly enhance the Irish tourism offering as they open in the coming four years.
“Platforms for Growth builds on this work and takes a new approach to investment, as it will specifically seek out projects of scale that tap into exactly what overseas visitors are looking for. Creating a more regional spread of visitors is central to our capital investment strategy and through Platforms for Growth new attractions across the country will be developed and existing ones transformed.”
The ‘Immersive Heritage and Cultural Attractions’ Platform is open for EOI until 17 July: www.failteireland.ie/platformsforgrowth.
Image: Guinness Storehouse