‘Go left for Louth’ campaign should launch at Dublin airport as new tourism strategy adopted
A lack of hotel accommodation in Louth is the major challenge facing the newly adopted Tourism Strategy 2026-2031, councillors have warned.
The strategy was presented at the May meeting of Louth County Council, which heard that 9% of all workers across the country work in the tourism industry, and 70% of those jobs are outside the Dublin area.
Councillors were told the strategy aims to develop on Louth’s unique visitor offerings, and position the county as a sustainable destination aligned with the Ireland’s Ancient East campaign and the Boyne Valley region.
Some of the key areas for development over the next five years include food and drink tourism along with activities, festivals and events which will draw visitors to the county.
Officials acknowledged the challenges in providing accommodation to support a growing tourism industry.
“We know there is a problem there, and we want to expand and deliver more accommodation across the county,” said a council spokeswoman. She said it was an issue across the country, and not just a challenge in Louth.
The local authority confirmed it will monitor progress by reviewing the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) each year.
Cllr. Marianne Butler highlighted the growth in motorhome and camper van tourism, and noted the new strategy aims to provide three sites across the county by 2030. She added that the council would need to be identifying potential sites soon.
“We need to put in place an operator for those sites as well,” said Cllr. Butler, and asked what progress has been made in finding suitable sites.
Cllr. Emma Coffey described the strategy as “very ambitious” and highlighted one of the key challenges remains accommodation, particularly in the south of the county.
“If we have a strategic festival such as the Lu Festival or Boyne Valley Festival, how are we going to support that with accommodation?”
She asked why the Tain Festival in north Louth was not included in the strategy.
Cllr. Maeve Yore said the Brigid festival was a huge event “rooted in Louth’s identity,” adding that the Poc Fada is a one day event that is “unique to Louth.”
“There is huge interest from people who attend this in exploring Dundalk and north Louth.”
She said there was “huge potential” for developing motorhome and camper van tourism, both in town centres and seaside locations. She also called for the council to work on attracting some of the major national conferences to Louth.
Greenore and Drogheda Port are coastal locations which should be explored as part of wider calls to bring cruise ship visitors to Louth, she added.
Cllr. Michelle Hall said Drogheda councillors were “so disappointed” to learn that the contract was being renewed at the D Hotel to continued as an IPAS centre.
“We were so disappointed because we were already very disadvantaged in bringing tourism to the Drogheda area.” She added that the lack of accommodation in south Louth was “very glaring” before hotel became a dispersal centre.
Cllr. Hall said the importance of ‘Greenway tourism’ had really emerged from the tourism strategy, and asked the council to work with Meath County Council in developing the Boyne Greenway.
Work on developing Louth as a camper van destination was “really important”, she added, highlighting Annagassan as one of the busiest spots for campers.
Cllr. Robert Nash added that the county should work on a campaign targeting tourists arriving at Dublin airport with a potential “Go left for Louth’ slogan.
He added that the national US President’s Trail initiative should incorporate Louth, given the historic visits of President Bill Clinton and Joe Biden.
Cllr. Sionnain McCann added that the county could really benefit from sightseeing bus tours which attract tourists across the world as they are “a really easy way” to explore.
Councillors also called for sporting events to be included in the strategy, and religious tourism to be explored, given the wealth of shrines across the county.
The new strategy was adopted with unanimous support from across the council chamber.