Beacons for our Destinations & Communities

Over 40 tourism representatives from all over the island of Ireland travelled to beautiful Co. Clare this week (October 4th) to explore how tourism projects like our lighthouses can benefit rural communities as engines of economic and social progress. 

Loop Head Lighthouse Experience and the wider peninsula was the epicentre of the annual Great Lighthouses of Ireland networking event, ‘Beacons for our Destinations and Communities’, hosted this year by Clare County Council. 

Lighthouses are the invaluable guardians of our coasts and we are passionate about supporting them as heritage locations accessible to the public. Opening up the lighthouses means that everyone can experience the rich heritage and history that stems from them and from vibrant the communities around them. 

Coastal communities

With Great Lighthouses of Ireland offering 20 visitor experiences and with more than 155,000 visitors visiting or staying at a lighthouse annually, we know just how inviting these beacons are. This great success is down to the combined effort of a dedicated community of people, locally and nationally, who have worked together to develop a unique visitor experience at each site, one true to the identity of their own locality. 

As well as workshops and information-sharing sessions on sustainability and local tourism development with experts such as travel writer Pól Ó Conghaile, attendees at the October 2022 Loop Head gathering enjoyed the best of Co. Clare with Scattery Island boat tours, Cliffs of Moher explorations and a trip to Loop Head Lighthouse Visitor Experience.

The networking event also demonstrated how investment in tourism infrastructure, such as Loop Head Lighthouse, bears fruit for the surrounding communities like the Loop Head Peninsula’s in terms of destination profile and the local economy too.

Thinking of visiting Loop Head Lighthouse or one of the many other beautiful beacons on our coasts? Start planning your visit or stay!