€158,741.03 funding under the Rural Development Programme approved for the renovation and conservation of Clock Gate Tower in Youghal

Phil Hogan, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, announced today (16/11/12) that he has given sanction to South & East Cork Area Development Ltd. to approve funding of €158,741.03 to Youghal Socio-Economic Development Group for the renovation and conservation of the Clock Gate Tower Building in Youghal. The funding is being provided under the Village Renewal and Development measure of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013.

Announcing the funding Minister Hogan said:

“I am delighted that the Rural Development Programme is in a position to support the refurbishment of this heritage building which stands vacant and occupies a prominent position over Main Street in the town. The Clock Gate Tower is an iconic building in Youghal and there is no similar building in the town or in the general South and East Cork area. In bringing the building back to its original character, the conservation and renovation work will preserve the building for future generations and add to the heritage product in South and East Cork.”
The LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme currently offer, and will continue to offer, significant financial resources to communities all over Ireland. With a budget of €96 million for 2012, it is critically important that communities continue to come up with ideas that will reinvigorate their localities and avail of the resources available to develop all aspects of their communities into the future.

The Minister added: “This project will now go back to the Board of South & East Cork Area Development Ltd. for final approval. This is in line with the EU’s ‘’bottom-up’’ approach to rural development.”

16/11/12

‘Ring of Cork’, a new brand to boost tourism in the south and east of Ireland’s largest county has been launched today.

The ‘Ring of Cork’ includes Cobh, Midleton, Youghal, Carrigaline, and Ballincollig and their surrounding areas. The initiative is being supported by the South and East Cork Area Development organisation (SECAD), as well as the town councils of Cobh, Midleton and Youghal.

Minister for Agriculture, Food & Marine, Simon Coveney TD, welcomed the brand’s introduction.

“This is a very positive development for the south and east Cork area, and will serve to attract national and international visitors to this region, which has so much to offer,” he said.  The Ring of Cork is particularly important as it encourages visitors to explore this ring of Cork from wonderful sites of cultural importance, marine activities, scenic trips, festivals and family activities, to great food and fun.”

“Not only will the Ring of Cork promote the many wonderful tourism sites, attractions, festivals, food and craft fairs of the South and East Cork region, but it also provides a brand which links the whole area,” said Ryan Howard, CEO of SECAD.  “This will benefit all the towns, and encourage tourism across this region.  The Titanic Experience, Fota Wildlife Park, Ballymaloe, Trabolgan Holiday Village and may other well-known attractions have joined the Ring of Cork.

“Much work has already been done by South and East Cork Tourism, and by the wonderful attractions, hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and hospitality and leisure facilities in this area.  The Ring of Cork will continue to support these organisations, by delivering marketing campaigns, financial assistance and development grants to tourist related organisations in the region”.

The new Ring of Cork website will promote the area online, while the 100 Festivals will be the first initiative funded by the Ring of Cork to attract visitors to the area in the coming months.

www.businessandleadership.com

27.06.2012
Grainne Rothery

Youghal (English pronunciation; Irish: Eochaill, meaning “yew wood”) is a seaside resort town in County Cork, Ireland. Sitting on the estuary of the River Blackwater, in the past it was militarily and economically important. Being built on the edge of a steep riverbank, the town has a distinctive long and narrow layout. At the 2002 census the population was 6,597, but the population of its catchment area is about 10,000.

An impression of Youghal Uploaded by 24drudge on Aug 12, 2011

 

Cruise tour bus operator pledges support for Youghal tourism. - By Christy Parker

YOUGHAL’S untapped potential as a significant coach tour town and a general tourist resort has been forcibly underlined in a visit to the Youghal 4 All group by a leading cruise liner coach operator.

Derry Cronin of Cronin’s Coach Tours proved to be a warm and enthusiastic guest when he spoke to a gathering in the Red Store last week. In a 25-minute address the Cork businessman expressed “great respect” for the efforts being undertaken by the voluntary movement and pledged to “do whatever I can” to enhance their aspirations in a town that he held in high regard.

Due attention was paid to a man who could very justifiably be described as having his finger on the pulse of Irish tourism. Outlining his approach to the trade generally, Mr Cronin said the business was based on hard work, reinvesting profits in the business and treating people fairly.

The guest explained how he grew up in tourism after his father initiated a family business in 1957. The company now operates over 50 coaches from offices in Dublin and Cork along with a business outlet in America and employs a workforce of 65. Most recently he had been attracted to Youghal through a friend who advised him of the efforts being undertaken by the group formerly known as Youghal Concerned Citizens. He had travelled to meet its representatives Norman MacDonald and Cliff Winser and was made more aware of the group’s hopes to entice cruise traffic to the town.

Build gradually

He personally admired the group’s sub-committee structure towards achieving goals. Congratulating the concept of a Moby Dick festival, he advised nonetheless that when establishing a festival culture it was best to do so, “bite by bite, like (appropriately) eating a whale. Start one festival at a time and build on it with an eye to local tourism particularly,” he urged.

Youghal, he proceeded, must adhere to the ‘can do’ attitude thus far exhibited by Youghal 4 All. That logic was reinforced in his assertion that the tourism industry was unique in its capacity to “go out and find customers.” Yet, he advised, while searching abroad for custom, it was no less advisable to attract visitors from home, as they will inform others of their experiences and are more likely to return frequently. Either way, “it’s very, very important to take care of people, with due regard to going that extra mile with small gestures like a smile and a few words of welcome,” he stressed.

Recalling a recent car journey through west Waterford with his father, he said ‘Sunday spin’ tourism was now reviving and he urged the group to consider Youghal, with its beaches, scenery and restaurants as “definitely a key area” for that genre.

Toilets

Cruise ship tours were “a valuable and growing industry” he averred and because of the effort made by Youghal 4 All and the confidence he had in their capability, he was happy to divert some coaches from Kinsale to the town last year. He recalled a number of coinciding factors that, combined, decided him to pursue that option. He applied much credit to the persuasive powers of Mary Gibbons, Youghal-born courier on Cronin’s coaches and to Norman MacDonald while revealing that simultaneously his coaches were having problems accessing public toilets in Kinsale. “Crucially,” he said, “Youghal tourist office ensured that the toilets were open early in the morning.”

Heritage and holidays

Mr. Cronin’s most repeated and accentuated argument was the need to establish a tourism culture from the grassroots up, i.e. amongst retailers, general public, etc. He described an initiative in Chicago called “We’re Glad You’re Here,” in which that sentiment is uttered or displayed persistently on stickers and literature throughout the city. “The point is, you must enhance their experience by being welcoming and friendly. Never underestimate ‘power of the smile’ which costs nothing,” he explained.

Alongside that approach, Youghal, elaborated Mr. Cronin, already had the physical requirement to make a very positive impression through its beaches and scenery and its status as one of only two heritage towns in Cork. “Tourists crave authentic experience nowadays,” he proceeded. “Parents are keen to open their minds and that of their children with historical details. For example, Youghal being the resting place of the fourth Earl of Cork Richard Boyle is just one major enticement. Whether from Cork or America, visitors would immerse themselves in that fact. They will remember it well along with their walk on the beach, the lovely restaurant, the local friendliness, etc., that comprised their Youghal experience.”

Nearby

Further analysing Youghal’s unique potential, he said that while places like Killarney had the high profile, Youghal had a marketing strength in that it was within short distance from Cork and Cobh. The trick was to construct, methodically a tourism culture that grows from a base of 500 cruise visitors spending 45 minutes in Youghal over a season to multiple times that number spending half a day here. Assisting that aim, he explained that there were only a few tour operators operating through Cobh and only two major cruise lines. Additionally, there were a lot of UK coach tour operators entering through Rosslare that held immense   potential. “What you are trying to do is difficult and demands not just a lot of hard work but while volunteers are inspiring they are also the first to become dismayed so the co-operation of other agencies and organisations is vital as well,” he advised.

From his own perspective it was essential for him to have confidence that the passengers he dispatched to Youghal rather than Kinsale were well received and accommodated. The early signs, from last year’s initial forays, his confidence had been reassured.

Town centres

On a cautionary note, he warned that the town must protect its central identity, amidst the increasing trend towards the ‘Wallmart’ syndrome, whereby major retail organisations were sucking the economic life and all that it inspires from town centres. “Visitors love our unique street structures but small towns are under threat,” he said. “So take care of your visitors and build from the ground up.”

Concluding his address, Mr Cronin said he hoped Youghal would thrive and prosper as a major tourist centre in the years and generations to come. He repeated his commitment to assisting towards that objective in whatever ways practical.

The talk ended on the positive note from Norman McDonald who revealed that after 10 years absence, Ulster buses would again be stopping at the Walter Raleigh, commencing with a four-day visit from April 22nd.

The Bus Stops Here! – US VISITORS TO YOUGHAL are set to dramatically increase in 2012 and 2013 following negotiations undertaken by Youghal Chamber of Tourism & Development, The Youghal Socio-Economic Development Group (YSEDG) with CIE Tours International.

A guided tour of Youghal’s Heritage Trail is set to form part of the company’s group tour itineraries in 2012 and a selection of tour series in 2013, using the Kerry to Waterford routes and vice versa. CIE Tours International is the largest tour operator in the US driving vacation business to Ireland.  Last year they handled 35,000 visitors to the island of Ireland.

In mid October, Senior Vice President of CIE Tours International, Dennis Savage, who is based in Morristown New Jersey paid a visit to Youghal on a US staff education trip and expressed a major interest in including ‘Youghal’s Heritage Trail’ on a number of routes to the region.   This was the culmination of a number of years of work undertaken by Youghal Chamber at various coach and tourism workshops selling Youghal’s tourism product offering.  Speaking about his visit and the prospect of including Youghal on their itineraries, Mr. Savage commented: “Youghal is a very photogenic town and adding a walking tour would ensure our coach tours routing from Kerry to Waterford would be compelled to slow-down, with a diversion from the local motorway and learn firsthand the local history.  I believe that walking tours enhance the coach tour experience and are an important ingredient in our continued market share growth.  I have noticed that too often historic towns are being bypassed by coach crews and in doing so an integral part of the real Ireland experience is being lost. For the Killarney/Cork/Waterford route, Youghal is the perfect mid morning or afternoon comfort or photo-stop.” Said Mr. Savage.

Following on from Mr. Savage’s familiarisation trip,  a delegation from Youghal Chamber of Tourism & Development (Eileen Quill) and The Youghal Socio-Economic Development Group (Aileen Murray) met with senior representatives from CIE Tours in Dublin to discuss the details of various package options.

Aileen Murray (YSEDG) pointed to the fact that Youghal was finally starting to be recognised for its efforts and investment in Heritage by some of the main tour operators.  “The fact that the major decision makers of CIE Tours are now including Youghal on their routes is testament to the years of investment through Youghal’s Heritage-Led Regeneration Strategy by Youghal Town Council – in the Town Walls, St.Mary’s Collegiate Church and heritage signage for example; together with the marketing efforts of The Youghal Chamber of Tourism & Development in attracting coach tour business over the years.   Once CIE Tours as the market leaders come on board, it is only a matter of time before other operators begin to take notice of Youghal too.” said Aileen.

Commenting on the opportunity, President of Youghal Chamber of Tourism and Development, Mary O’ Donnell said: “This is a great opportunity for Youghal and I am delighted with the positive outcome to last Thursdays meeting with Conor Wall and Senior representatives of CIE bus tours in Dublin.  We will work hard on completing the requirements requested to become a CIE Tour destination.

Mary went on to thank Sal Tivy-Vice President for researching contacts for the meeting with CIE Tours and also Eileen Quill – Chamber Director and Aileen Murray- YSEDG for attending the Dublin meeting and presenting our wonderful town and all it has to offer as a very attractive stop over and tourist destination.

“I welcome all prospects for potential tourism generation for our town and locality”, said Mary. “We are delighted to secure CIE tour excursions to Youghal for 2012 and being placed on a full programme for CIE tours for the 2013 season.  This will increase business and employment and bring a very welcome boost to our local economy.”

CIE Escorted Tours operate from March each year on a weekly basis through to November.  The Company is also considering various packages which the Chamber of Tourism & Development has compiled, including a number of tour and lunch options.

Issued by: Youghal Chamber of Tourism & Development &

Youghal Socio-Economic Development Group (YSEDG)

Contact:

Ø  Mary O’Donnell: (Pres. Youghal Chamber): T: 024-20200 E: mary@clearviewproperties.ie

Ø  Aileen Murray (YSEDG): T: 024-81814  E: tourism@youghal.ie

Aileen Murray,

Manager, Youghal Socio-Economic Development Group,

7-10 Enterprise Youghal,

Emmet Place,

Youghal,

Co. Cork.

Tel: 00 353 24 81814

E: tourism@youghal.ie

W: www.youghal.ie

F:www.facebook.com/youghal.ie

YOUGHAL IS, perhaps, best known for its five miles of uncluttered beaches.  The beaches, however, even though a huge part of our town, are not the only attraction which the town of Youghal can boast.   The history of the town, which is the second oldest town in Ireland next to Kinsale, is amazing and among the different historical buildings is the Benedictine Priory, Tyntes Castle, and the Alms Houses.  Coupled with these, Youghal is home to the most wonderful docks and old warehouses which bear witness to Youghal’s maritime past.   The Town Walls are situated high about the town and one can visualise what Youghal must have looked like back in the 13th century when places such as Raheen Park, Sarsfield Terrace and all the housing beyond for miles were mere fields.  Just below the walls, St Mary’s Collegiate Church has the most extensive medieval gardens, and right next door is Myrtle Grove which is the former home of Walter Raleigh.  Denise FitzGerald Reports/Photo Michael Hussey www.youghalonline.com

Coupled with this historic panorama, the town of Youghal itself is a modern, interesting and unusual town with colourful shops, pubs and restaurants with old lanes leading from the Main Street in both directions – one side leading to the sea and the river Blackwater,  and the other climbing high from the street, at the top of which are the most wonderful views of the Bay and River.

Approximately seven years ago, a group of dedicated people from the Youghal area, who share a passion for the wealth of our heritage, formed a voluntary committee with a view to showcasing the wonderful gem which is Youghal.   In 2002 a meeting was arranged  with  Dr, Dagmar Ui Riain – Raedel of Dept.of History ,UCC and a decision was taken to hold a week of events culminating in a conference and field trip.   One of the results of the field trip was that it exposed the international importance of nearby Molana Abbey, and this attracted many people and several Oxford University scholars.    The Conference was so successful that it was decided to continue on for the following year at least.   The Group were delighted and honoured that Dagmar joined the Committee and is now Conference Director.

On Thursday night last in the Mall Arts Centre, Youghal Celebrates History launched  their 7th Conference, which will take place from September 25th to September 27th inclusive at the Mall Arts Centre and the theme for 2009 is “The River Blackwater, Historic Houses and Landscapes”.   Attendees will be treated to thought provoking and entertaining lectures by eminent speakers who will share their knowledge and insights into the role of the Blackwater in Irish history, past, present and future.  The conference Dinner will be held on Saturday night, September 26th at the Red Store, North Main Street,  and numbers are limited.  The Conference will culminate with a river trip on the Blackwater to Dromana House.   The Youghal Ceoltas Group will entertain during lunch on the day.

The attendance on Thursday night last was large and enthusiastic, and excitement was high in anticipation of the event.   Dr. Dagmar Ui Riain – Raedel, who was introduced by John Kelly, spoke eloquently on Youghal Celebrates History, and was loud in her praise of the tremendous work of the committee, which is made up of Seamus Lantry, David Kelly, Sheelagh Morehan, Helen Keane, Claire Hynes, Deirdre Kelly, Tom Mc Carthy, Breeda Phillips, Sheila Loughnan, Mary O Callaghan and Helen Keane, all of whom work together with efficiency and enjoyment.   There can be no doubt that, in the seven years of their existence, these people have contributed hugely towards the Bord Fáilte designation of Youghal as a Heritage town, and the Youghal Town Atlas, and congratulations are extended to each one.

Thanks are extended to sponsors over the years for their generosity. We are particularly indebted to Youghal Town Council and the people of Youghal for their continued support and generosity. Special thanks this year to Maróg and Sally O’Brien, and Kay Harte of Farm Gate, Midleton and Cork, who provide the superb food, and to Ken Brookes of SuperValu Youghal for the fine wine.
All are welcome at the Conference, and early booking is advisable.

Web ; youghalcelebrateshistory.com
Email : ytta@eircom.net
Phone : (00353) 087 9666554
or write : Youghal Celebrates History, St Mary’s College, Emmet Place, Youghal Co.Cork

Click on image to see the launch of the 7th annual Youghal Celebrates History at the Mall Arts Centre – Photo Michael Hussey www.youghalonline.com

Photo Captions:

74 Breeda Phillips with her son John and daughter Siobhan at the launch

75 Helen Mackessy, Michael Beecher and Sheila Moreham
77 Sally O’Brien
78 Frankie Mills, Noel Cronin and Sean Noonan
80 Michelle Hennessy and Mayor Sandra McLellan
81 Tom McCarthy, Barbara Murray and Cliff Winser
82 Catherine Kelly and Rhiannon Carey Bates from the Youghal heritage committee
87 Marian O’Halloran and Catherine Desmond
88 89 Rhiannon Carey Bates, Catherine Desmond, Mayor Sandra McLellan and Marian O’Halloran
91 Mervyn Scott with Margaret and Eoin Crowley
93 Dagmar O’Riain and Kay Donnelly
95 Micheal and Helen de Buitleir
98 Seamus Langtry and Sheila Moreham

202
209 John Kelly
210 Dagmar O’Riain
218 Catryn Power and Kay Donnelly
220 Kathleen McSweeney, Helen Mackessy and Stacy Quillivan
223 Tom McCarthy, Emily Villier Stuart, Dagmar O’Riain and John Kelly
234 Tony Gallagher and Helen Keane

By Jenny Regan | Photo: Ed Guiry and Michael Hussey (YoughalOnline.com)

The magnificent fireworks display seen from The Pier Head Youghal

One of the most highly anticipated events to ever come to Youghal, the Thundercat European Beach Challenge hit our beautiful shores on Friday evening. Thousands of visitors from home and abroad arrived for this spectacular power-boating extravaganza and the excitement around the town was palpabale.

Thousands of people turned out to watch the Fireworks

The festivities commenced with a fantastic welcoming reception at the Mall Arts Centre where the guests were greeted by the newly elected Mayor Olly Casey. Visitors, supporters and organisers of the event milled around taking in the celebratory atmosphere and enjoying the scrumptious canapes and finger food generously provided by Le Gourmet. Some of the most prominent figures involved in organising and supporting the Thundercat European Beach challenge were there to see the Read more