Fairy tale or Scary-tale? Making ends meet at The Irish National Heritage Park … - OpenArch...

The Irish National Heritage Park, Wexford ,Ireland.

Fairy-tale or scary- tale making ends meet.

A not for profit organisation.

The “history” of the park. The Irish National Heritage Park opened

its doors in June 1987 after 2 years of building and grant sourcing.

The concept of the park as a tourist, education and experiential attraction was the brain child of a group of like minded professionals, county manager, local historians and local councillors.

Lets break it down. At the park we have 3 departments

1. Admissions-

2. Restaurant-

3. Retail-

Admissions. The Park has a varied market base :

Domestic, English, Europeans and the Americas

Our visitor numbers for 2014 were 51,872 and 2013 had 50,200 visitors.

Our numbers are increasing year on year.

Restaurant. The Fulacht Fiadh Restaurant opens 362

days of the year ,as does the park ,and is a continued source of income during the winter months.

The restaurant also opens after normal park hours for private functions, corporate events, weddings, book launches etc.

Retail. The Irish National Heritage park gift

shop host a vast array of products to suit all tastes.

Products range from traditional Irish crafts to modern chic fashions.

Local products are also showcased within the shop.

Workshops. We host/organise many varied

workshops/courses such as bow, arrow, walking stick, Viking shield making,

flint knapping to name but a few. Summer camps for adults and children. Bush craft skills courses. Row your own coracle boat. Traditional archery. These courses open up a new customer base

and revenue stream.

Annual events.

Easter egg hunt.

Viking festival.

Park after dark.(Halloween)

Santa in the crannog.

Our mascot. After a redevelopment at the park we

adopted our mascot Tuan Mc Carroll. He is a fun representative for the park

and really appeals to children . He appears on all of our signs around

the park and he has “The trials of Tuan.” He also is the voice of our audio guide.

The trials of Tuan-Interactives around the park. Throughout the park there are Tuans

trials including :1. panning for gold.

2. Rock art.3. Wattle your own house.

4. Push the boulder.5. Colouring in the scriptorium.

Ringfort stay over ,Crannog feast and The Big Dig. The Ringfort stay over has generated a

new revenue stream for the park. Crannog feasts are to be launched in

July of this year. The Big Dig is an interactive

archaeological dig.

How we make ends meet-a conclusion. At The Irish National Heritage park we

offer people so much value for money. We provide many services all under one

roof. Our customers have choice and can stay

for 2 hours or a whole day! Finally we strive to have a high standard

of customer care which makes for a successful business and repeat customer.

Open invitation.Cead mile failte! All at the Irish National Heritage Park

would like to invite you to visit us at LEAST once in your lifetime.

Looking forward to seeing you sometime.

Thank you for listening.