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Shock closure of Buncrana Tourist
Office
12.02.08
Story: Inishowen Independent
VISITORS to Inishowen will be left scratching their
heads in despair in their search for information
about the peninsula’s attractions in the weeks
ahead, because even though the holiday season is
just around the corner, Buncrana’s tourist office
lies shut and there are currently no plans to
re-open it.
Fáilte Ireland provides a limited service and
maintains a part-time presence, but for the past
year Buncrana Chamber of Commerce administrator
Deirdre Bradley has manned the office and dealt with
thousands of tourists. |
However, Bradley has
left the Chamber to take up a new job and there are
no plans to replace her with the result that
tourists coming to Buncrana will find little more
than a ‘closed until further notice’ sign at the
tourist office on the Derry Road.
On one day last week more than 20 tourists called
into the office and up to 120 tourists use the
office daily |
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at the height of the
summer season.
“By moving there we have proven that a group can
take the tourist office over and make it work all
year round,” Chamber president Paddy McLaughlin
said. “It’s now time for the tourist authorities to
step up to the mark.”
“It’s Fáilte Ireland’s responsibility,” said
independent town councillor Nicholas Crossan. “The
Town Council provided the site, the Chamber provided
the staff, what more do they want? It seems that the
further north you go, the less evidence there is of
Fáilte Ireland on the ground.”
The matter is to be discussed at tomorrow night’s
Town Council meeting where the development of
tourism projects for Buncrana and environs will be
discussed.
The Chamber has approached Inishowen Tourism with a
view to the latter relocating one of its four staff
members to Buncrana. “It’s an invaluable facility
and it’s vital that it’s kept open,” Inishowen
Tourism chairman John (Henry) McLaughlin said.
“We’ll be hoping to assist in getting the office
open again.”
“We got a big increase in visitors since Deirdre
Bradley moved into the Buncrana Tourist Office,”
said Pat Doherty of the Doagh Island Famine Village.
“She will be badly missed. The tourist office and
the Swilly and Foyle ferries are very important to
Inishowen tourism. We may as well give up if they
don’t invest in this.
“Tourism is the only outside money that’s coming
into Inishowen,” Willie Grant, proprietor of
Westbrook House, a B&B in the town said. “Every
tourist coming here is a bonus for Inishowen and
it’s vital that we keep the office open.”
Fáilte Ireland North West did not seem to be aware
that the office was closed but were unavailable for
comment despite several attempts to contact them
yesterday. |
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