Donegal gets a welcome boost in Canada
With tourism slowly recovering in the county , the south and west of the county got a welcome boost with an exceptional "write-up" in one of Toronto's top newspapers - The Toronto Star.
For many years the North American market was one of the biggest performers into Ireland -post 9/11 this declined dramatically but in spite of the present financial climate more North American are making their way to the county.
Perhaps they may not be as noticeable as they were in the past - these are the more adventurous - the FIT market as that are referred to in tourism circles - Free Independent Travellers.
Canada has always been a target of Failte Ireland and even more so at present as it is one of the countries that have been least affected by the recession.
The article in The Toronto Star should increase the interest in Donegal and indeed bolster tourism figures to the south and the west.
The travel editor wrote as follows: “I’m exploring the lonely coast of north-west Ireland when I pull into the lovely, seaside town of Killybegs. I park my car across from a small, perfect pub called The Wee Bar and start chatting with a fishmonger named Billy Furey. I ask for directions to Slieve League, the highest sea cliffs in Europe.
“Take the coastal road,” Furey advises. “Just head out past the Blue Haven and take the road to Kilcar. It’s a narrow road but not bad.”
“The road is perhaps eight feet wide, but it’s drop-dead gorgeous country, with wild beaches lapped by deep blue, peaceful waters, lonely bed and breakfasts and sharp, green headlands dotted with thousands of white sheep.
“A minute or two later, I stop to admire the view and chat with a man mending his fences.
“Everything in tourism in Ireland is geared to a line between Galway and Dublin,” says Sean McGinley, who leads the occasional tour of the area.
“I think they’re still thinking of The Troubles and maybe they’re reluctant to bring tourists up here. But I’ve taken groups around Donegal and this area, and they all say they’ve never seen anything nicer.”
“A few minutes later, after stopping for directions, I find myself at the entrance to Slieve League and I’m overcome by the display of what our planet earth is capable of creating over a couple good eons.
“I stand atop a towering set of cliffs and stare over to my right at a towering rock face; a jagged and sharp and sloping set of brown, red and white rock that slashes its way 900 metres down to the surging Atlantic. Birds fly and swoop hundreds of metres below my feet, and the blue water echoes and thunders into various coves of exposed rock.
“Here you will find spectacular scenery and little but the sound of wind and waves slicing over the Atlantic and bouncing up the cliffs. On a drop-dead gorgeous day in mid-April, I spotted perhaps a dozen visitors in a 90-minute visit.
“After a stop at Nancy’s Pub in nearby Ardara, where they serve a remarkably tasty chowder and a salmon-and-toasted cheese sandwich called a Louis Armstrong “because it’s all jazzed up,” the owner explains, a couple from Dublin that I’d spotted at the cliffs explain they had gone to Slieve League on a whim.
“You can travel all over Ireland in the summer and find miles of empty beaches,” a local explains, shaking his head. “Folks around here go to Portugal and Spain for the beach. They don’t stay home and enjoy what we have.”
“Donegal Town makes a fine base for exploring the area. The town has a decent castle and some nice pubs, as well as cheerful takeout spot called Donegal’s Famous Chipper where they’ll sell you a piece of cod the size of a skateboard and a sizeable bag of decent chips for about €9.
“The area doesn’t get a lot of overseas tourists, but there are signs that this could change.
“Local business folks spent a fortune restoring an old castle and turned into a sparkling 5 * resort called Solis Lough Eske, just a couple of kilometres from Donegal on the edge of a small but pretty lake.”
Very complimentary words indeed for Donegal and what is really pleasing, they offer a totally independent and unsolicited view of the county.
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Weather for Donegal
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Heavy rain
Temperature: 5 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: South
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Temperature: 6 C to 9 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
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