While the Wild Atlantic Way has helped put the Loop Head peninsula on the tourist map, what’s also been critical is a well-organised, community-led, hard-working bunch of people who have great plans for the place they call home.

Ian Glendinning is chair of Loop Head Tourism Ltd (LHTL) and he says over the past eight years tourism has been re-energised along the peninsula, with Lonely Planet including the peninsula in the top 100 destinations in the world for responsible tourism. And not just any kind of tourism, here the emphasis is on sustainable and responsible tourism, with a collective community aspect.

LHTL works with the three parishes and has representatives on its board so that everyone has ownership of the projects it is working on.

LEADER funding paid for an animator who brought the local businesses together. There are now 55 businesses in the network and their membership fees pay for marketing Loop Head peninsula as a destination.

More bed nights needed

More than 27,000 people visited the Loop Head lighthouse last year but Ian reckons that’s only about a quarter of the people who used the lighthouse car park.

The group’s latest project is to have Loop Head designated as a ‘‘dark sky reserve’’ because of how little light pollution there is.

“For us, it’s not so much about increasing the number of tourists, but increasing their spend and the length of time they stay. Big numbers are not sustainable and of no benefit to the local community.”

Weaknesses

Saying that, one of the biggest weaknesses faced by LHTL is a lack of bed nights. The peninsula has a population of 800 in winter but that expands to 7,000 in summer. “We have nothing like enough bed nights and we need Kilkee to be a prime bed night provider for the area.

“Last year, about 1.4m people visited the Burren but only 60,000 stayed in Clare on the night of their visit. That is not what we want for the Loop Head Peninsula.”