Banbridge Newry & Mourne Plan 2015

Strategic Plan Framework: Tourism

Tourism is an important industry within the Plan Area. There are a great variety of places to visit including forest parks, historic houses and gardens, historic monuments and visitor centres. The Mournes, Carlingford Lough and the Ring of Gullion are recognised for their quality of landscape and offer opportunities for touring and recreational activities. A wide range of tourist accommodation is available across the Plan Area.

The Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) has overall responsibility for promoting tourism in the whole of Northern Ireland. Promotion and marketing of tourism within the Plan Area is primarily the responsibility of the District Councils. The Councils operate a range of local tourist facilities including tourist information centres, picnic sites and amenity sites. Both DARD and DOE provide additional facilities such as forest parks with specifically assigned tourist walks and access to monuments and sites in their care.

Regional Policy Context

The RDS emphasises the need to balance tourism development opportunities within Northern Ireland with conserving its natural, built and cultural assets. It provides the following SPGs:

• to strengthen and extend European and world-wide linkages (SPG-SRC 1) by:
  • strengthening the position of Northern Ireland on the world tourist map (SPG-SRC 1.2);
• to increase links with neighbouring regions and capitalise on trans-regional development opportunities (SPG-SRC 2);
• to promote a sustainable approach to the provision of tourism infrastructure (SPG-ECON 7);
• to establish a world-wide image for Northern Ireland, based on positive images of progress, and attractive places to visit (SPG-ECON 8);
• to protect and enhance a varied range of tourism development opportunities (SPG-ECON 9);
• identify Major Tourism Development Opportunities for the Private Sector to Develop 'Destination Resort' complexes in Northern Ireland, based on Distinctive Tourism Themes (SPG-ECON 10); and
• to promote the region as a centre for cultural, business and sports tourism (SPG-ECON 11).

The RDS promotes the strengthening and diversification of the tourism and leisure roles of traditional seaside resorts including Warrenpoint. The RDS highlights to potential to reopen disused canals to create a regional network of waterways including the Newry Canal which links Carlingford Lough to Lough Neagh.

The RDS identifies the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Gullion as Major Tourism Development Opportunities related to Strategic Natural Resources. The Mourne Mountains opportunity relates to the major walking and mountaineering activities associated with the mountains, forest parks and coastal setting of the Kingdom of Mourne. The Slieve Gullion opportunity relates to the high scenic qualities and outdoor leisure opportunities of an attractive hill environment close to the gateway city of Newry and convenient to Carlingford Lough.

The RDS promotes the 'destination resort' concept to encourage development of a cluster of activities led largely by private sector initiatives. It states that to achieve an optimum sustainable outcome any such multi-purpose complex should be sensitively located both in relation to a Strategic Natural Resource and a local tourism gateway town, as well as to public transport services.

Regional planning policy for tourism development, the protection of tourist assets, the provision of tourist accommodation and sites for caravan and camping and advance directional signs are set out in PSRNI. Development proposals will be assessed in accordance with prevailing regional policies.

Northern Ireland Tourist Board

The NITB has prepared 'Tourism in Northern Ireland - A Strategic Framework for Action 2004 -2007'. This document concentrates on identifying the most effective response to the challenge of attracting visitors, increasing the competitiveness of tourism businesses and stimulating effective communication within the tourism industry. The framework identifies five 'signature projects', two of which impact on the Plan Area.

The Christian Heritage / Saint Patrick Project, plans to capitalise on the strength of the Christian Heritage product by concentrating on Armagh and Downpatrick and linking them through a high quality touring trail that will include Newry City and Dromore. The Mournes National Park Project aims to take advantage of the potential designation of the area as a National Park and the tourism benefits it may bring.

The signature projects have been identified for their potential to deliver world class excellence drawing visitors from home and overseas. They are investment intensive but will also require softer support through visitor servicing, a willingness of the local population to engage with visitors and opportunities for the development of local businesses on the back of the project including private sector, community and social economy enterprises. This also applies to the development of NITB's Winning Themes approach which targets the development of Short Breaks, Excellent Events, Business Tourism, Activity Tourism and Culture and Heritage Tourism.

The NITB Visitor Servicing Strategy for Northern Ireland includes information on the visitor signage strategy. It details the type and nature of interpretation and signage required for tourism products including conservation and archaeological sites. The Strategy also makes reference to the visitor servicing requirements within Newry City.

A growing tourism sector depends on a quality host environment but its growth must provide quality tourist facilities and accommodation, which contributes to a sustainable industry, as set out in the NITB publication "Tourism in Northern Ireland - A Sustainable Approach (1993)".

South East Regional Tourism Partnership

Banbridge District Council, Newry and Mourne District Council and other neighbouring Councils have recently formed the South East Regional Tourism Partnership to develop a tourism strategy and establish an appropriate delivery mechanism for the area. The Partnership is responsible for regional tourism development, visitor servicing, marketing, industry liaison, training and visitor research.

The Natural Rural Resource Tourism Initiative

The Natural Resource Rural Tourism Initiative (NRRTI) is a special initiative within the EU PEACE II Programme to help Northern Ireland's disadvantaged rural areas take advantage of the particular opportunities that are presented by their natural resources to develop their tourism potential in the context of greater political stability.

The NRRTI is jointly managed by DARD, EHS and NITB. South Armagh Tourism Initiative and Mourne Heritage Trust have been appointed to deliver the NRRTI within their respective areas.

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