Ms Fiona Monaghan:

All three Deputies raised the issue of attracting repeat visitors. Given the scale of the Wild Atlantic Way, we do not anticipate that any visitor will complete the route in one go. Therefore, the objective is to give them reasons to return time and again and do a chunk of it at a time. In a similar way to the Camino de Santiago, we are looking at a passport initiative and how people can get this passport stamped having completed a section of the Wild Atlantic Way. In regard to lengthening or extending the season, some initiatives, particularly along the Wild Atlantic Way, such as whale and dolphin watching, are at their best from October until March. That provides an opportunity to attract landscape and wildlife enthusiasts or bird watchers. We are looking at experiences, themes and products that will attract people out of season so that we are not dependent on the core season.

On publicity and an initiative similar to the "Top Gear" initiative, we currently have the chief executive and European director of the Adventure Travel Trade Association, the most prominent industry grouping for adventure and activity providers, in Ireland. They arrived yesterday and are travelling the Wild Atlantic Way by Harley-Davidson. They are leaving Kinsale this morning and heading west and up along the coast. They have a huge social media campaign around this visit, tweeting to their members about Ireland, activity, adventure and the Wild Atlantic Way. We will also host their annual summit in Killarney in October, for the first time ever, which will attract 600 media representatives and buyers of activity and adventure products.