The Minister for Tourism, Catherine Martin, and Fáilte Ireland have announced a €19m investment to develop state-of-the-art facilities for outdoor water-based activities. 22 locations will be developed around Ireland.

This comes as the country has seen a significant increase in people enjoying outdoor water-based activities such as kayaking, surfing, paddle-boarding and open water swimming. Those numbers are expected to continue to grow year on year, and not just during the summer months. This means all-weather changing facilities, secure storage, and bathrooms at beaches and inland water spots will be in huge demand, according to Fáilte Ireland.

The €19m funding will be used to build world-class facility centres at 22 locations across the country where water-based activities are a key visitor attraction.

Each centre will provide hot showers, changing and toilet facilities, secure storage, induction spaces, equipment washdown and orientation points.

They will be fully wheelchair accessible and built using sustainability best practices such as solar heating panels.

“Ireland is world-class when it comes to providing water-based activities which are enjoyed by local communities and visitors along our stunning coastline, rivers and lakes,” says Martin. “We’ve seen a significant upward trend in people enjoying outdoor water activities over the last year and we know the appeal of the outdoors will continue to grow post Covid-19 so we must ensure the Irish experience meets and exceeds visitor expectations.

“The scale of the investment I am announcing today with Fáilte Ireland will have a key role in Ireland’s recovery. It will support the local economy and the outdoor water-based activity sector by significantly improving the overall visitor experience, providing new business and job opportunities in local communities, particularly in rural areas, and allowing for an extension of the traditional tourism season beyond the summer months. It is also important to note that the facility centres will be sustainable, accessible and integrate into the natural environment of their locations.”

Image courtesy of Tourism Ireland.