1. THE FUTURE OF RURAL AREAS TO 2031 TOURISM
AND RECREATION
Revised 20/12/2010
A RESPONSE TO THE PAPER PREPARED BY TONY
LENEHAN – FAILTE IRELAND
SLIDE 1
I am a Director of Environment and Natural Resources
within URS Scott Wilson Ltd. I am a Landscape
Architect by profession who over the last 30 years has
worked on a wide range of Tourism Projects and
Studies throughout the UK and Ireland. I certainly do
not consider myself to be an expert, but hopefully have
a practical commonsense approach to to-days tourism
and recreation challenges.
I am not a complete stranger to the Ballyhoura area, in
2003 I was involved in the Ballyhoura Development
Strategy - Attraction Clusters for Recreation and
Heritage.
My response to-day sets out to challenge and question
some of the assumptions in Tony’s paper and I hope it
provides you with some thought provoking ideas that will
help stimulate our discussions later.
Some of the comments that I will make are based on my
own professional experience, some from my own
experiences as a Tourist and others from my business
background and what I have heard to-day.

2. THE STRUCTURE OF THE RESPONSE
SLIDE 2
Tony’s paper is indeed very comprehensive and I
have not attempted to comment on every aspect
of it. Within the given time limits I have chosen to
comment on three particular aspects of the paper.
• The Market - Risks
• Destination Determinants
• Tourism Products
This does not imply that other aspects such as
Product Services & Delivery of a Quality Rural
Tourism Experience are any less important.

3. HOW CERTAIN IS THE MARKET
SLIDE 3
I am a firm supporter of market led development. However,
at this time of real economic uncertainty should we not be
taking a step back and undertaking a review of what the
market really is going to be like in the next 5 years? There
are I believe many risks to be considered all of which could
impact on rural areas.
How many businesses, indeed governments anticipated the
current global economic crisis in their forward plans? Is this
a blip or are there going to be fundamental changes to the
Tourist Market. Is the projected growth really sustainable?
Will rural Ireland benefit from growth in India, China and the
Americas?
How many airlines had anticipated the disruption
associated with the Icelandic Ash Cloud? What other major
environmental events are around the corner?
We know the impact the 9/11 bombings had on global
travel and tourism industry. The threat of major repeat
events remains severe.
A pandemic health issue remains a constant possibility.
The recent foot and mouth outbreak had a huge impact on
rural tourism in GB.
We live in more uncertain times. Should we be reviewing
the market with these issues in mind, or is it sufficiently
robust not to impact on rural Ireland. We perhaps need to
go back to the near future (5 years).

4. CAN WE RELY ON DEMOGRAPHIC
PROJECTIONS LINKED TO PARTICULAR
BEHAVIOURAL PATTERNS TO PLAN OUR
FUTURE
SLIDE 4
We know people are living longer and are in
general more active, but will they have the
disposable income necessary to travel more
frequently, stay in hotels and take part in
expensive activities such as golf?
The pension issue has the greatest potential to
change our whole outlook in terms of expenditure.
We will all have to save more and spend less. This
issue is likely to have the most significant impact
on rural areas as it is the older age groups that
have been identified as the main market group.
Increased costs of education and healthcare will
also impact on disposable income.
I will be 79 in 2031 and I have been thinking hard
about whether I will be able to afford to visit
Ballyhoura for an autumn activity break with my
wife and extended family!
Finally, will the Irish population actually grow as
projected, growth being based on higher birth
rates and inward migration?

5. SLIDES 5 & 6 – Climate Change
Since there is so much uncertainty as to what is likely to
happen, planning a future on Ireland having a
Mediterranean climate is high risk indeed.
One of the national newspapers recently prepared a
rather tongue in cheek manifesto for government. It had
as a top priority - Global Warming. It identified the
benefits of us having a warmer climate and suggested
tax breaks for owners of 4x4’s and new taxes on cycling
helmets and lycra. Other impacts such as rising sea
levels, food shortages and social unrest were
discounted.
I would argue that we should in the Tourism Industry,
have environmental sustainability at the core of our
strategy going forward.
This should consider, transport energy, locally sourced
food, recycling, and environmental enhancement and
more sustainable use of our natural resources.
At present green products are considered to be
expensive, however I would suggest that in time there
will be competition between services providers as to
who is the greenest.

6. INTERNAL COMPETITION
SLIDE 7
This issue is not raised by Tony in his paper
however it is one I think is worth considering to-
day. It seems to me that there is too much internal
competition and not enough strategic sharing.
Counties compete with counties, sub-regions with
sub-regions. Often it appears they are competing
to provide the same products to the same visitors.
Surely it is all part of Ireland Inc.
Visitors, I suspect, don’t recognise administrative
and other boundaries.
We need to do more to co-ordinate tourism
products across Ireland and focus on the market
needs. The alternative is a fragment
uncoordinated product offer.

7. WHAT SHOULD THE RESPONSE BE TO THESE
RISKS
SLIDE 8
We must not sit back, cross our fingers and hope things
will return to normality.
It is recognised that some of the best businesses have
emerged from recessionary times in the past.
Innovation is really the ability to change and challenges
as an opportunity.
I am suggesting that we need to really re examine the
market, is it real, is it changing? What new ideas and
innovation can we introduce to bring some certainty
back?
At this time we should I think also be assessing the
capacity of the community environment and infra-
structure to accommodate visitors and making and
planning to make appropriate changes (such as
training).
We should be planning a new truly sustainable future
based on sound social economic and environmental
principles.
Eco Tourism products are the saleable part of
sustainable tourism. What new ideas are out there.

8. DESTINATION DETERMINANTS
Are we really as friendly as we think we are
SLIDE 9
I want to take a few moments to focus on the top two
destination determinants people and landscape.
Does our friendliness still come naturally or are we
going to have to work at it?
Do we know enough about our cultural heritage and
environment to properly inform and advise our
visitors?
Are we relying on direction signs, interpretative
panels and centres too much?
Do we want technology to take over?
The best experience surely comes from well informed
local people who know more than the topic in
question.
(I would like to take a few moments to tell you about
my experience at Slieve League, Co Donegal.)
Remember the earlier measure that 83% of Ireland’s
wealth is human and social capital. We mustn’t
forget this, but we also must work to develop it.

9. DESTINATION DETERMINANTS
Is our scenery as good as others suggest and
are we really looking after it
SLIDE 10
Are we looking after and protecting our landscape
as well as we should? Is it at risk?
We have recently completed some work in the
Shannon Region, assess the Vulnerability of the
Landscape to change and I would suggest that
this is an exercise rural areas such as Ballyhoura
should undertake. It involves recording and
mapping Visual Quality, Ecology and Archaeology,
the combined information determining the most
vulnerable areas. This information can be used to
inform decisions regarding the type, location and
form of new developments.
We must reconcile the clear demands and
opportunities for renewable energy with a wide
range of social economic and environment issues,
in particular protection of the asset that visitor
value – the landscape.

10. ARE THERE NEW DESTINATION DETERMINANTS
OUT THERE
SLIDE 11
As Tony points out in his paper, Ireland in general is
perceived as a rural destination, but so also are
Scotland and Wales.
I would like to put forward three new potential
Destination Determinants for consideration, that
might help set our rural areas apart.
1. “Value for Time”
Integrated or joined up visitor experiences.
Products grouped together by one service
provider based in a rural context.
2. “Green Perception”
Sustainability embedded in every aspect of the
visitors experience, travel, energy, food,
buildings, and environment.
I am also suggesting a third new measure based
on what I have heard this morning.
3. “Happy Planet Index” which should focus on a
measure of the visitors’ interaction and
evaluation of the well being of the community.

11. TOURISM PRODUCTS
Can we make more of what we have
SLIDE 12
Food
Failte Ireland have successfully focused attention on the importance of
food in the visitors experience and particularly locally sourced produce.
Food Harvest 2020 includes key objectives related to Thinking Green –
sustainability; biodiversity; umbrella brand and environmental credentials.
In rural areas the experience could be further extended by providing
visitors with the opportunity to participate in food production on our farms
Might these farms be organic?
Farmers need to be more innovative.
This approach is about the experience of what I have done, as opposed to
what I have bought.
Environment
Do we make enough of the coast beaches inland waters mountains and
recognise their importance to tourism? Facilities information and things to
do are often not provided.
There are very few places in Ireland where the visitor can have a quality
wildlife experience in the countryside.
Many other countries have very strong wildlife tourism offerings as either a
main reason for the visit or an enhancement of a wider holiday.
Our landscape consists of many layers, the underlying geology, the
geomorphology, the impact of man through the various ages. Could we do
more to reveal this?
Could we get visitors involved in research including real archaeological
digs. Again what I have done as opposed to what I have bought.

12. TOURISM PRODUCT
Can we make more of what we have
SLIDE 13
Walking
What are the opportunities for long distance routes? Croagh
Patrick to Downpatrick.
Are shorter day loop walks more beneficial to the rural
community?
Cycling
In the UK the National Cycle Network is a fantastic asset and the
tourism industry is benefiting from designated routes such as
C2C and the Way of the Roses. Can Ireland compete with this?
Key issues are the lack of off road cycle ways and of course the
danger of cycling on main roads. In Ireland, can we develop long
distance cycle routes such as S2S (Source to Sea) along the
Shannon, or should we focus on local looped routes using minor
roads?
Cycling to be shared by visitors and the community.
Extreme Sports
I would sub-divide extreme sports into self propelled and
motorised
Do we really want noisy machines disturbing the peace and
tranquillity of our rural environment?
Self propelled activities – white water rafting, canoeing, zip lines,
adventure parks rely on the natural environment and the energy
of the participant.
Zoning or banning?
Ballyhoura needs to build on its mountain bike product with other
non motorised extreme sports e.g. “Zip lines”.

13. TOURISM PRODUCTS GATEWAY
SLIDE 14
Recent work on the Gobbins Cliff Path Project in
Co Antrim identified the opportunity to develop a
visitor centre that did much more than service the
Cliff Path.
• The visitor centre will not be situated at the site
but rather in the nearby village.
• It will function as both as a visitor and a
community centre – shared and sustainable.
• Locally recruited guides will take visitors around
the site.
• Local businesses will run the bus service, the
café and shop.
• Information and booking facilities for other
products in the area will be a central feature.
• Is this a model for rural areas? A means of
capturing the independent travelling visitor?

14. CONCLUSIONS
SLIDE 15
2031 is a long way away.
• Plan the future in an integrated sustainable way. Food, Energy,
Services and Tourism joined up as a single product.
• Review the risks associated with changes in the market.
• Examine the capacity of the community, facilities and
infrastructure to accommodate visitors. Address deficits such as
training (Knowledge of the area).
• Undertake a vulnerable landscape study in order to protect the
asset but also give direction to new development.
• Be friendlier and better informed hosts. Seek to score highly on
the “Happy Planet Index”.
• Share products and experiences outwith the region and county
boundaries.
• Provide a range of activities and experiences in a coherent
joined up product offer – value for time.
• Embrace sustainability in every aspect of the rural community
and environment. Including buildings transport energy bio-
diversity and recycling. Green perception. Make this a
destination determinant.
• Identify a gateway project that links visitors with the wider area
and community. Share facilities and services with visitors.
• Use the current market uncertainty to develop new innovative
products and services.
I trust that this response will help contribute to the debate and
ultimately help Ballyhoura Development achieve its mission and
help guide investors, businesses, farmers, individuals and
communities.