Business is flying at Aerohaven
MEET THE FINALISTS: BEST TOURISM BUSINESS
Situated on the lake shore in Killeshandra, a five-minute walk from the village, Aerohaven Glamping has brought something truly unique to County Cavan.
With the assistance of a company in Leitrim, Fiona Phair and her father, Austin Masterson had an idea of turning sections of old airplanes into fully functional glamping pods. And so they landed them on Austin’s back garden facing out onto the lake.
“It was my dad’s idea,” Fiona explained. “He had the big garden, and the nice view.
“He was thinking about a glamping pod and asked me to come on board. With Covid, things were slow, but we wanted to do something different- glamping wise.
“Dad came across a site showing old aircraft being used as offices, school hubs, and different things.
“We went to see them and asked if they could convert them into glamping pods, with a shower, and a kitchenette. It went from there.”
Aerohaven Glamping opened a month later, with visitors coming from all over to stay in their deluxe pod, or one of their standard pods.
“It has been quite the journey. We’ve been very busy because it is so new to us all,” says Fiona.
“We had to figure out how to run it. My husband told me he could be the labour, and I could be the brains,” she laughed.
“Between bookings, social media, keeping in contact with customers we’re busy all the time. During the summer we were even busy mid-week.
“We are still constantly looking at working and improving. I’m constantly looking at how we can make changes and do things better.”
Killeshandra has certainly seen the benefits of Aerohaven, with a large increase in the number of visitors to the village.
According to Fiona, there have been upwards of 1,500 visitors to the site since they opened.
“A lot of people go up the town. They go to Fika 33, or Lough Bawn. Some get food delivered to the pub or visit the local pubs and shops.
“People have said, ‘You must have been busy over the weekend, we had so many people in’.
“It has been good for the town. It is bringing people in, they’re seeing the town and how lovely it is.”
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FULL LIST OF FINALISTS
Read about the other three finalists in this category by visiting the stories below.
On track at Belturbet Railway Station