The winners of the 2016 Irish Responsible Tourism Awards were announced on Thursday 6 October at an awards ceremony at the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Golden Lane, in Dublin. They are part of a growing family of worldwide responsible tourism awards that are all linked to the World Responsible Tourism Awards, founded by responsibletravel.com. Winners of each of the categories will automatically be longlisted for the World Responsible Tourism Awards.
The shortlist for the awards, which attracted entries from almost every county in Ireland, was announced in early September following assessment by a panel of industry experts chaired by international responsible tourism expert Professor Harold Goodwin.
The award categories and the winners of the Silver & Gold awards are:
Best for Natural Heritage Tourism
- GOLD: Doolin Cave (Co. Clare)
- SILVER: Burren Nature Sanctuary (Co. Galway)
- SILVER: Sea Synergy Marine Awareness & Activity Centre (Co. Kerry)
Best for Accessible & Inclusive Tourism
- GOLD: Gleneagle Hotel Group (Co. Kerry)
- SILVER: Mobility Mojo
Best Local Authority Initiative for Responsible Tourism
- GOLD: Lough Muckno – Monaghan County Council
- SILVER: Westport Smarter Travel Bike Buffet – Mayo County Council
Best Tourism Accommodation for Local Sourcing
- GOLD (joint): Sea View House (Co. Clare) and Fuchsia Lane Farm Holiday Cottages (Co. Tipperary)
- SILVER: Hotel Doolin (Co. Clare)
Best Destination for Responsible Tourism
- GOLD: Mulranny (Co. Mayo)
- SILVER: Inishbofin Island (Co. Galway)
- SILVER: Sheep’s Head Way (Co. Cork)
Best Innovation in Responsible Tourism
- GOLD: The Blackfriary Community Heritage and Archaeology Project (Co. Meath)
- SILVER: Great Lighthouses of Ireland
Overall Winner: Mulranny (Co. Mayo)
Judges for the awards include:
- Catherine Mack (responsibletravel.com)
- Kevin Griffin (DIT tourism lecturer and former-EDEN awards judge)
- Paddy Mathews (Fáilte Ireland)
- Annabel Fitzgerald (Irish Water & formerly Coastal Programmes Manager An Taisce)
- Mark Henry (Central Marketing Director, Tourism Ireland)
- Cyril McAree (Managing Director, Hotel & Restaurant Times)
“A more environmentally conscious and community-centred approach to developing tourism in Ireland is becoming more and more mainstream… And so it should. It results in more genuine and authentic experiences for all our visitors.” Fáilte Ireland’s Head Investment & Innovation, Paddy Matthews
