49 Italian senior citizens visited The Upper Shannon Erne Region, comprising of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford and Roscommon from September 20th to 23rd as part of an EU LAKtive Tourism project.
The aim of the project was to design and develop a specific tourism product focused on senior target groups travelling in low/medium seasons towards small towns along the waterways.
The tour group visited a number of key attractions during their stay such as Arigna Mining Experience, Lough Key Forest Park, Cavan Burren Park and Corlea Trackway Visitor Centre. They also had an opportunity to cycle or walk a section of the Shannon Blueway. In terms of entertainment the group were treated to a fantastic display of traditional Irish music and dance from Sean Nós Ar An tSionann. Age Friendly Ireland, in conjunction with local senior citizen groups from across the region, also came together as part of this project and organised a social night for the Italian group which was very enjoyable. Overall the tourism package was carefully designed to incorporate activities from each of the four Upper Shannon Erne counties of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford and Roscommon. The Italian group thoroughly enjoyed their trip to Ireland and have stated that they would be happy to recommend the Upper Shannon Erne Region to others as an age friendly destination for senior citizens in off peak seasons.
The LAKtive Tourism project
The project is funded under the COSME Programme, which is the EU programme for the Competitiveness of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises running from 2014 to 2020. The LAKtive Tourism project partners include Italy, Ireland, Macedonia, Spain & Slovenia. The Upper Shannon Erne Future Economy (USEFE) project partners were the Irish partners on this project. They saw the merit of getting involved as they recognised the benefits it could have on tourism in the region. USEFE was founded in 2013 and is a joint initiative, between the Local Authorities of Cavan, Leitrim, Longford and Roscommon, Bord Na Mona and the ESB.
The purpose of this initiative is to show how business led regional development can lead to economic growth and job creation across Cavan, Leitrim, Longford and Roscommon.