West Mayo town in line for positive tourism boost
MAYO'S new geopark will present business opportunities for the tourist town of Westport.
Another significant tourism project is the development of a marina in Westport, with funding being sought on progressing it to the shovel ready stage.
And the arrival of the Western Rail Corridor and the connectivity it will provide will be a significant boost for tourism in Westport and Mayo, the annual general meeting of Westport Tourism Organisation heard.
Michael Hegarty is manager of the UNESCO Joyce Country & Western Lakes Geopark, one of 229 geoparks in the world, five of which are in Ireland. Straddling south Mayo and Galway, the geopark will be ratified in spring.
Mr. Hegarty explained how 60 million visitors visit all the geoparks so there is potential for this new geopark - within easy distance of Westport - to present business opportunities for tourism businesses in the town.
Damien Cashin of the Westport Marina Development Group updated members on the project, with its inclusion in the Westport Local Development Plan hailed a great milestone.
The group is currently seeking around €500,000 for the regulatory project preparation report, to be completed by Gavin Doherty Geo Solutions, who won the tender for the work. This report will outline the work to get the site at the harbour shovel ready.
As there is no fisheries in Westport, funding cannot come from the Department of the Marine. There is currently no funding for marine leisure either, but one is due to be developed, which is a positive.
The group hope to access funding through Fáilte Ireland in 2026 and are in regular contact with Mayo County Council about the project, which will cost between €5 million and €10 million to complete.
In his presentation, Colmán Ó Raghallaigh, West On Track, paid tribute to Fr. Micheál MacGréil and Professor John Bradley, two Westport residents who were stalwarts of the Western Rail Corridor campaign. Fr. MacGréil also produced a number of significant tourist reports for Westport Tourism Organisation over the years.
Mr. Ó Raghallaigh explained how 1.7 million people visited Galway last year, but only 300,000 of them ventured north to Westport. Europeans want to travel by train.
With the section of the Western Rail Corridor from Tuam to Claremorris granted funding under the National Development Plan, it is expected this rail link will proceed to completion relatively quickly, and ultimately run to Sligo.
Guest speaker was Minister of State Alan Dillon who highlighted many positives for tourism in Westport: Westport House Estate received the biggest single investment in the State by Failte Ireland; the Grace O’Malley Experience and Wild Realm Garden will be first class experiences; the proposed rail links to include Knock Airport, which has growing passenger numbers, while the Knock Airport Strategic Development Zone will generate many new jobs; and investment in watersport and leisure activities at Westport Harbour will materialise in the coming years.
Tourism, he said, is very important for job creation in the west and it needs to be a career of choice to attract a world class workforce.
In an open forum, matters raised included the Clew Bay Biosphere. Fionnán Nestor of Fáilte Ireland said a scoping survey was completed in 2024 and can be seen on clewbaytourismnetwork.com. A core working group is working towards a submission.
Pedestrianisation of Bridge Street (even seasonally or on select days) would be a very positive development, the meeting heard.