Offaly to take centre stage on RTE's Nationwide this evening

Offaly’s tourist attractions will be featured in the much-loved RTÉ Nationwide programme this evening, Monday, July 27 at 7pm on RTE One.

The show is dedicated entirely to tourism in Offaly and features many of Offaly’s main sites and attractions and a few of our ‘Hidden Gems’.

The film crew shot the programme over two days at locations in Kinnitty, Tullamore, Lough Boora, Banagher and Clonmacnoise.

The programme featured interviews with a number of key personnel involved in promoting tourism in the county.

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Organised by Offaly County Council’s tourism team in conjunction with Offaly Tourism Marketing, Offaly’s Tourism Officer, Olive Farrelly said: "With a viewership of close to 350,000 it is a great opportunity to showcase just some of our world-class sites and attractions.

"It will create great awareness nationally and inform the viewers that Offaly is a very attractive tourist destination for a staycation this Summer."

Olive also added: "It’s being a particularly difficult year so far for the tourism and hospitality sector. Recent consumer sentiment reports suggest that following the easing of restrictions, consumers are beginning to move again and travel domestically for short breaks and day trips. Planning for short trips/stays is spontaneous. As such, maintaining a local media presence will be vital to capture demand."

The programme is just one of many steps that Offaly Tourism has undertaken in recent weeks in an effort to promote Offaly as a destination this year.

Offaly has featured in radio campaigns on Today FM and Newstalk and has collaborated with neighbours Laois and Westmeath to promote the Midlands counties to Midland natives themselves. The three counties ran a four-week radio campaign on Midlands 103 in June and July, encouraging locals to explore the wonder of the ‘Magical Midlands’ this summer.

Olive concluding by saying: "It’s more important than ever to support our local businesses in these uncertain times. The tourism and hospitality trade has been working extremely hard over the last few weeks and months in order to reopen
their doors to customers. They have ensured that the relevant safety measures are in place and visitors can rest assured that they will receive a warm welcome in a safe environment in Offaly."

For more information on tourism in Offaly, visit the website www.visitoffaly.ie or email the team at info@visitoffaly.ie.