‘Heartening’ to see visitors return to Fermanagh

Mr Frank McHugh, Vice Chairman of Fermanagh Lakeland Tourism, welcomed everyone to the recent Annual General Meeting of Fermanagh Lakeland Tourism, which took place virtually for the second year running.

The Vice Chairman commented on how the industry continued to operate throughout a period of significant change over the past year, “both globally and locally".

"We have all had to adapt our businesses in the face of great challenges. However, in the face of great adversity, it was heartening to see visitors return to the region as restrictions lifted and indeed the area welcomed many first time visitors, especially from the ROI market as visitors decided to staycation and discover what would available within the island of Ireland.

"Ironically, the rurality, wide open spaces and lack of mass tourism worked in our favour as we were viewed as a safe and family friendly destination. Many accommodation establishments recorded their best ever occupancy during the last two summers and were able to secure good rates as supply outweighed demand,” he said.

Mr McHugh thanked the Board Members for their individual contributions and for their support for the organisation. He also passed on the apologies of the Board Chairman, Cllr Thomas O’Reilly who was unable to attend.

New experiences

Tanya Cathcart, Marketing Manager then gave a presentation on the review of activity during last season, which showed a range of advertising, PR stories and the various virtual trade shows and exhibitions which were attended during the year.

The presentation included details of the new products and experiences which are now available in the region, followed by details of the marketing campaigns which were undertaken throughout the year.

Mrs Cathcart commented on the difficult year that the tourism industry has had, and the effect that decreased contributions has had on marketing budgets and the ability to undertake additional activity. She did acknowledge the additional funding that the organisation was able to avail of through Tourism Northern Ireland and the continuing financial support of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council.

Mrs Cathcart went on to talk about the positive outcomes seen in the past year.

“There have been good news stories in the last year, we have all embraced the ethos of experience development and the offerings in Fermanagh are continuing to rise. Everyone felt the buzz around the Island Town and the rest of the county during the summer.”

Mrs Cathcart finally thanked the staff of FLT, the members, colleagues within FODC and the Board of Directors, making a special mention to Frank McHugh for his contribution as he was now stepping down and his position will be filled by Mrs Theresa O’Loughlin from Think 6 Marketing. The private sector directors for the forthcoming year were then confirmed – they include Mr David Morrison, Mr Dwaine Haughian, Mrs Bridie Gormley, Mr Cathal O’Dolan, Mr Mark Edwards, Mr Marshall Coalter.