Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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54. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the steps her Department is taking to promote Sliabh na Calliagh at Loughcrew, County Meath, as a tourism destination. [46930/22]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The Ancient Destination Experience Development Plan (DEDP), which was launched in May 2021 by Fáilte Ireland, is a five-year destination development plan. It is designed to be a roadmap for enhancing the existing visitor proposition to achieve the objectives of addressing seasonality, increasing visitor numbers, improving dwell time and visitor dispersion across the destination.

Two of the strategic Development Pillars in the Ancient DEDP involve unlocking the heritage assets and revealing the natural assets of the Boyne Valley. To do this, the DEDP aims to develop the portfolio of accessible heritage assets that will deliver best-in-class experiences, benefiting an area with UNESCO status and creating a collection of visitor experiences linking the heritage story through the natural assets of the area.

A catalyst project in the implementation of the Ancient DEDP is to review and re-imagine the Boyne Valley Drive. The project roadmap for this is now completed and it includes a delivery action plan. Timelines for the project are currently under consideration but it is hoped it will be initiated in 2023 and completed by 2025. The project extends across Meath and south Louth.

“Developing clusters” and “Connecting the Region” are the headings under which the Boyne Valley Drive will be re-imagined. This has involved the identification, prioritisation, and development of a range of strategic complementary projects within each identified cluster using time as the conduit that roots the visitor in the destination creating a consistent sense of place.

Loughcrew Cairns and Slieve na Calliagh collectively comprise the highest point in County Meath. This, along with the importance of the cairns, offers visitors an important connection to the landscape and the 5000-years of history. Protecting the monuments and managing visitors’ experience of this elevated landscape is key to any development of this cluster.

Fáilte Ireland aims to capitalise on the potential of existing sites like Slieve na Calliagh. In this context, specific to Loughcrew Cairns and Slieve na Calliagh, DEDP project 2, in partnership with the Office of Public Works (OPW), will:

- Undertake an examination of existing site review documents to establish areas of prioritisation in addressing visitor management requirements for the site and future inclusion in strategic projects between OPW and Fáilte Ireland.

- Provide experience development support for the identification of a range of management options for the site, accounting for the current archaeological management requirements of the site.