Co. Clare's Scattery Island was among 18 European destinations to be officially presented with their EDEN (European Destination of Excellence) Award at a gala ceremony in Brussels last weekend.
The Irish winner of the 2017 EDEN Award was officially announced last October by Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin TD, in recognition of Scattery Island being the destination in Ireland which has best used its local tangible cultural assets to grow visitor numbers.
The EDEN competition, which is staged every two years in each EU country along a specific shared theme, is managed in Ireland by Fáilte Ireland and is designed to encourage and promote a more sustainable form of tourism development. Scattery Island was the outright winner under the theme "Tangible Cultural Destination". The two runner-up destinations were Ceide Coast, Co. Mayo, and The Norman Way, Co. Wexford.
Accepting the award, Irene Hamilton of the Scattery Island Heritage and Development Group said, "The award will bring international recognition to Scattery Island, enhancing its profile and increasing awareness. This in turn will springboard Scattery Island and the greater area of Kilrush and West Clare as a family friendly tourist destination, providing us locally with the opportunity to manage the product in a sustainable manner, creating jobs and enhancing the development of the local economy.”
Scattery Island was chosen as the winning destination following on-site assessments by a panel of adjudicators who were looking for a destination that could provide examples of good practice, opportunities to improve the visitors’ cultural experience, a platform for the development and promotion of cultural tourism, an understanding of the challenges faced in the development of such tourism and a forum for networks to share knowledge.
