Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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9. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to promote the Office of Public Works' heritage sites in counties which are along the Wild Atlantic Way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40402/15]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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This question relates to the asset base under the control of the Minister's Department for the Office of Public Works in terms of national monuments and heritage sites. I refer, in particular, to those located in counties along the Wild Atlantic Way and Ireland's Ancient East, and how they can best contribute to the tourism industry, given the investment that has been made by the Minister's Department.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I thank the Deputy for his question. The Wild Atlantic Way brand has successfully grabbed the imagination of many visitors to Ireland and proved to be a very popular proposition for attract tourists. The OPW manages in excess of 716 national monument and heritage sites, a significant number of which are located on the route to which the Deputy referred. We are all familiar with sites such as Newgrange which attract large numbers and where the OPW provides a range of visitor services. However, on many more sites in State care these services are not provided and the majority of the monuments are in their natural state in the Irish countryside, a significant proportion of which are to be found on the route of the Wild Atlantic Way.

Understanding that a large proportion of visitors who come to Ireland want to experience cultural and heritage sites, the relevant agencies involved, namely, Fáilte Ireland, the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the OPW, are working actively together on a plan to better promote the Wild Atlantic Way. This project has as its objective the better promotion of the Wild Atlantic Way's heritage sites and will seek to promote them coherently within each of the six Fáilte Ireland zones which have been created for the purposes of marketing this important route.

The three agencies are working to examine all of the Wild Atlantic Way sites to establish what is available for visitors at the locations concerned and how the sites might be made more attractive to tourists. In broad terms, what is emerging through the study is that there is a series of "bundles" or "clusters" of sites which represent possibilities to enrich the visitor or tourist experience, drawing them into less visited parts of the country and keeping them there longer, with consequent benefits for local economies.

These offerings will be promoted internationally in targeted markets by Fáilte Ireland and its sister organisation, Tourism Ireland. The project is being actively pursued by the three organisations involved in an ongoing process that will continually be updated and redeveloped.

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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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.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I agree entirely with the Deputy on the need to ensure visitors are informed about what there is to see in this country. The success of the Wild Atlantic Way took all of us, even Fáilte Ireland, by surprise. It was a good idea which was marketed very well. In the aftermath of The Gathering, it was a question of finding the next big idea and that big idea has been extraordinarily successful. We now need to consider how we can capitalise on it. Identification, notification, postering and proper preparation of sites are all essential and that work is ongoing, as I indicated. I would welcome suggestions the Deputy might have in this regard and will pass them on to the OPW.

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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As I said, the staff of the Minister's Department, through the Office of Public Works, do a fantastic job with heritage sites. They have seen increases in the number of visitors, including in my area. Staff have told me that one issue the office could look at is that of new technologies. For many visitors arriving in the country, one of the first things they want to do is download an app showing local visitor attractions. The provision of that type of application might be a more cost-effective way to go than riddling the country with more signs. Having said that, the Wild Atlantic Way initiative has, as I said, been innovative in its use of road signs from County Cork to County Donegal. That could be very easily enhanced by the OPW. There is a great willingness on the part of local authorities which will all be knocking on the Minister's door to seek an increased allocation from the local government fund to become involved in these initiatives. There is a great deal of potential in the case of the Ireland's Ancient East region which includes the Minister's county. Having used the Wild Atlantic Way route through County Donegal during the summer and having spoken to people there, it clearly has made a massive difference o a lot of local communities that heretofore did not have the benefit of this type of tourism product. I realise Newgrange, Dublin Castle and places like them are at the pinnacle of the OPW's portfolio, but there are hundreds of fantastic sites around the country with excellent guides who are only waiting to greet visitors on behalf of the OPW.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I take the Deputy's point. Ensuring there is proper road-sign planning and signage and developing a sophisticated app are not mutually exclusive endeavours. We need to do both. Some people like to plan their tourism route in detail, in which case an app would be very useful. Others are more opportunistic, will see a sign and decide to visit a place. We do not want people to sail past particular locations because they do not know there is a monument or heritage site of some significance on that route. If people have a spare hour or half an hour, they might decide to have a look and could well discover a gem.

I thank the Deputy for mentioning the Ireland's Ancient East initiative. It is less developed as a concept than the Wild Atlantic Way and more work needs to be done on it. It is a little higgledy-piggledy in terms of its connectivity, for instance, but I am confident that tourists will embrace it. Ireland's unique selling point is its heritage, culture and tradition which one cannot find in some sun destinations and other places with which we are competing for the holiday euro or dollar.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Question No. 10 cannot be taken as the Deputy who tabled it is not present.