Visit Connemara

At a packed-out Station House Theatre in Clifden, Connemara last Saturday afternoon (25th November 2023), the Connemara community paid tribute to the man who has driven the Clifden Arts Festival (the longest running community arts festival in the country) into its 47th year. The two-hour event, organised and hosted by Connemara Chamber of Commerce included local music, dance and a series of speakers from different aspects of Connemara life, from education, business, religious, arts and music. Dr. Flynn received several presentations during the event which includes a framed letter from the president of Ireland, a specially commissioned sculpture, and a framed photo of the overwhelming words of thanks from the community. The main presentation was a piece of sculpture specially commissioned by Connemara Chamber of Commerce for Dr. Flynn. The bronze piece was created renowned sculpture John Behan. A letter was read out from President Michael D. Higgins praising Dr. Flynn’s ‘exemplary contributions to the educational, cultural, and economic vitality of Connemara’. After a standing ovation from all in attendance, refreshments were enjoyed afterwards in the Clifden Station House Hotel. Event images https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9c1rsqite6m48d5djltlq/h?rlkey=ksergl4s8hn2aqdoxaiv4g38g&dl=0  Aoife Herriott Photography Letter from President Michael D Higgins https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/f56y5c0xo2v81vv5lsi6m/h?rlkey=yjozm1zwxeyl59da5plg1ltp3&dl=0 Event video https://www.facebook.com/connemarachamberofcommerce/videos/3691814114440901 ———————————- ends   Connemara […]

Clifden Regeneration – 1st Round of Feedback – Connemara Chamber of Commerce Letter and related documents to Galway County Council   Connemara Chamber Commence Platform 6, Galway Road, Clifden, Connemara, Co. Galway, H71 VH51   Mr Ciaran Wynne – [email protected] Galway County Council, Aras an Chontae, Prospect Hill, Galway   26th July 2023   Re: First round of public feedback on the Clifden Regeneration Plans Dear Ciaran, On Thursday 7th July 2022, Connemara Chamber of Commerce hosted a Clifden town meeting regarding the concept plans for Clifden. The purpose of the meeting was to both present the current design concepts and to engage in a discussion regarding the same. The meeting was independently chaired by Dr. Kevin Heanue, Chairperson of Connemara West. Presentation We made a short presentation on the Clifden Regeneration plans covering the Clifden Harbour Park, The Beach Road Quay Area and Clifden Town Centre. In-person Survey At the end of the meeting, a short survey was carried out to get feedback from the towns people. Please find attached/enclosed the results of the survey. Sentiment The overall sentiment of the meeting is that the Clifden Regeneration Project is hugely welcomed and is a once in a lifetime opportunity […]

Connemara Chamber of Commerce welcomes the recent announcement (December 2021) and allocation of €3,050,000 towards the development of the Connemara Greenway. Connemara Greenway funding announced by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII): Clifden to Recess:  €1,900,000 Derrigimlagh – Clifden – Kylemore Abbey:  €550,000 Galway to Moycullen: €600,000 The Chamber has for many years focused on getting a safe off-road walking and cycling path from Clifden to The Signature Discovery Point at the Marconi radio station at Derrigimlagh. The Marconi Station itself now receives over 30,000 (visitors and locals alike) per annum – all mainly by car. The recent allocation of €550,000 for this Connemara Greenway extension will bring even more visitors but by foot and bike. The support of landowners has been invaluable in providing access to their property that allowed us to identify a satisfactory solution and following lengthy discussions, an in principle agreement has been reached with the National Parks and Wildlife Service to permit the development that will involve a raised boardwalk on a special area of conservation. We have concluded environmental assessments and are awaiting a pre planning meeting with Galway County Council before submitting a planning application. We would like to thank all of the landowners for their support […]

A new logo and brand name for Connemara and islands was launched today online. The logo exciting refresh of the older ‘Connemara – Wild at Heart’. The brand name encompasses Connemara and all the inhabited and uninhabited islands off the coast under one unified brand name. The project was managed by Galway County Council, in association with Cósta Gaelach Chonamara agus Árann and the Connemara and Aran Islands Tourism Network (CAITN). As a member of CAITN, Connemara Chamber of Commerce welcomes this new (and refreshed!) brand and website as it compliments all the great efforts that preceded it including the great work by Connemara Tourism Ltd. many moons ago. #connemara #conamara #connemaraandtheislands #wildatlanticway #galway #discovergalway Key points: New brand name: Connemara and the Islands A totally refreshed logo encompassing Connemara’s unique selling points A totally refreshed website: https://connemara.ie/ Promotional video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQ7pna8DgVk Marketing package – content calendar, social media campaign to follow. Watch the Launch Back: The launch event was recorded so that all participants can access the information in their own time. See Zoom Recording here  

Every year Leenane play’s host to the Conemara’s Mountain Walking Festival – now they reached their 10th birthday and its still going strong. This May Bank Holiday will see Connemara Mountain Walking Festival, formerly Leenane Mountain Walking Festival, celebrate it’s 10th anniversary. Each year the organisers offer stunning walks to suit all abilities and like the name states, they bring people to the summit of the local mountains. Leenane is situated in a unique region of Ireland, where the mountains roll down to the see and where they have an abundance of mountain ranges to choice from. Each day there is a choice of at least 3 walks from Strenuous to low level and this year, to celebrate their anniversary, they plan to add an extra night or dawn walk as part of the schedule. The 2018 programme includes Mweelrea, Connachts highest mountain, Benbaun, Galways highest mountain, Maumtrasna and the Sheefry range. Each walk is guided by qualified, experienced guides and covered by public insurance. Another unique element of the festival is that the local farmers get involved with guiding the walks and share their vast knowledge, folklore and history of the land. The organisers plan to celebrate the 10 […]

From September to mid October 2017 €500k to be spent on marketing the west of Ireland to the domestic Irish Market. Announcement from Fáilte Ireland Embrace the Wild Atlantic Way of Life. From this week television and radio ads encouraging Irish people to get away from it all and explore Ireland’s west coast will be broadcast across national channels such as RTE, TV3, Sky and Channel 4 as Fáilte Ireland’s latest home holiday campaign for the Wild Atlantic Way begins. The €500k campaign focusses on bolstering Ireland’s off-season period and will run from the end of August through to mid-October reaching an estimated 3.3million Irish adults. Building on the ‘Embrace the Wild Atlantic Way of Life’ campaign which was launched earlier this year, the campaign highlights a variety of experiences to be had along the coastal route which give visitors a chance to relax and reconnect with friends, family and loved ones. As well as featuring on national TV the campaign will be carried across national and local radio, as well as through our ‘always on’ online and social media channels. It is expected that 94% of adults will be exposed to the campaign over the 8 week period. View the Wild Atlantic Way TV ad here [https://youtu.be/kDfnkmo43OU]. […]

Fáilte Ireland have recently invited local tourism businesses, individuals, tourism and community group members, and all other interested parties to be part of the creation of a ‘Connemara / Aran Islands Visitor Experience Development Plan’. This new Experience Development Plan aims to help ensure continued growth in visitor numbers to the region and will also help to extend the season and spread business to our smaller nearby villages. The assist they have been receiving from the Chamber of Commerce and other community groups and representatives has been to: Identify the ‘Hero’ (or unique) Experiences that set the Connemara Coast & Aran Islands apart from other places; Discover how your business or interest in tourism connects with the Wild Atlantic Way; Gain a better understanding of the barriers to successfully develop tourism in Connemara and the Aran Islands; Define a list of new products and packages to deliver the Hero Experiences and; How you might define your own ‘signature experience’ and to maximise the opportunities presented by the Wild Atlantic Way experience brand. A full schedule of workshops and “drop ins” were conducted. We now await the publication of the plan.