Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister's reply. The Wild Atlantic Way route touches my county of Limerick, where we have OPW sites in the west of the county, in Askeaton, Adare and Newcastle West. On the other side of the county and in the context of the Ireland's Ancient East initiative, we have sites in Kilmallock and Lough Gur. Having holidayed at home this year, it seems the Wild Atlantic Way is really just a set of signposts, albeit an imaginative one. That signage has succeeded in drawing people into parts of country they might not otherwise visit. However, there are other sites close to roads used by hundreds of thousands of visitors, but these visitors may not even know they are there. We need to box clever in this regard by, for example, using new technologies. There is no doubt that when it comes to restoration and conservation, nobody does it like the Office of Public Works. It does a fantastic job. There remains a job to do, however, in telling people where particular sites are located and encouraging them to visit them. In many cases, they are free to enter and the visitor experience is fantastic. We must do more in the area of promotion. I encourage the Minister, through the OPW and in conjunction with the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, to avail of this massive opportunity, particularly in the counties through which the Ireland's Ancient East route will pass.

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