Submission by Crann to Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport on Tourism Product Development, as part of the 2013 Tourism Review Starting Point.
This submission addresses two topics from within Question 3 on page 16 of the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport’s issues paper of August 2013 – namely:
- What are Ireland’s main areas of comparative advantage?
- Where and how can we innovate and improve? Should there be a shift in spending towards product development?
Crann’s suggestions on these questions
Crann suggests that:
- Ireland’s scenery, rural infra-structure & low population density are huge assets of comparative advantage for the development of tourism around sight seeing, walking and cycling, and that:
- This product could be significantly enhanced and developed through investment in tree planting in national parks and along highways, streets and Greenways [see next page for examples] via a ‘Trees for Tourism’ sub-policy and at minimal cost to the State via:
- Local Community involvement
- Partnerships with environmental organisations – for video of example of Crann-Coillte partnership see below.
- Funding from the public via schemes such as that for Oak Glen, based on sponsorship of GPS referenced trees and certificates of sponsorship.
- Some seed funding for major projects – possible examples being:-
- A linear ‘arborway’ along the Grand or Royal canals.
- Planting to achieve New England like autumn colours along motorways.
- Street trees training programme for Tidy Towns Groups.
- A ‘Trees for All’ Tidy Towns programme, using the successful Shankill [Co Dublin] model developed by Crann, in which a town or village plants under expert guidance the equivalent number of appropriate trees to equal the population of that town.
- One or more groves of Giant Redwoods – previously native to Ireland.