This article is from page 31 of the 2008-04-15 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 31 JPG
A WEBSITE, linking those involved in the tourism sector in Shannon, 1s being set up, in an effort to ensure the town benefits more from the in- flux of visitors to the region.
The website is the brainchild of the mayor of Shannon, Councillor Sean McLoughlin (FG), who included the project as one of his aims when he was elected mayor last year.
He feels that tourists coming in to Shannon should spend longer peri- ods of time in the town. He believes that if the incentive was there, tour- ists would spend more than just one night in the town, after they fly into
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He said that positive feedback was generated from a meeting on the is- sue earlier this year.
“There was a good response. We are setting up a dedicated website for Shannon, so that people can stay in Shannon. The idea is to keep peo- ple in Shannon for longer than one night,” he said.
“I feel that people who use the airport generally stay in Shannon for one night. They fly in and are gone the following morning. Shan- non hasn’t been getting its fair share of the trade. We need to let people know we have a town here and nice facilities.
“Shannon is well located. People could take bus and coach tours to places such as the Cliffs of Moher, Ailwee Caves or St John’s Castle in Limerick. Shannon 1s just a half hour drive from those places. It is a good place to base yourself for a couple of days,” he added.
“We are hoping to tie up with all the other agencies in the county. If we can get all the agencies working together, we can all link together,’ he said.
He said the ultimate aim is that the Shannon area will benefit from the establishment of the website.
‘We hope to be able to attract more people into Shannon and that they
can stay longer,’ he stressed.
Among the services he hopes to link through the website include bed and breakfasts, hotels, restaurants, coach and car hire firms and taxis, in Shannon and surrounding areas.
So how will the website work, once it is up and running?
“Anybody involved in tourism in the area is invited to take space on the website,’ he said.
Councillor McLoughlin and Paddy Halton — who was the grand mar- shall at the St Patrick’s Day parade in Shannon last month — have been working on the website and will an- nounce details of its launch within weeks.