By
Brian Gabriel
On Friday June 10th 1988, Blarney was the sixth town in the Cork area to have an official tourist information point which was officially declared open for business by the Minister of State for Tourism, Mr. Denis Lyons T.D. He congratulated the Blarney Tourism committee, chaired by Mrs. Anne O’Callaghan, for their dedicated commitment to the development of local tourism. Anne thanked all concerned and especially the local Blarney Community Association who staffed the office throughout the Social Employment Scheme. Mr. Jerry O’Connor of Blarney Park Hotel said “We got together and we have the Tourist Office open.” The Office, once the home of Mr. & Mrs. Joseph O’Mahony and also later of Mr. Paddy O’Connell, was located in the Gate Lodge at the main entrance of Blarney Woollen Mills. It was part of a new spirit of enterprise sweeping through Blarney which regularly draws tourists from all over the globe. It was set up by the local voluntary Blarney Tourism and offered a unique service to the locality. Leased by Blarney Tourism from Blarney Woollen Mills, it remained in its original condition until the need for a bigger office became evident and the office was moved to a temporary premises in the village while refurbishment and enlargement took place. This newly extended centre was a marvellous improvement on the original lodge.
Cork/Kerry Tourism then leased the lodge from Blarney Woollen Mills at a very reasonable rate with funding from the European Development Fund and Bord Failte. The refurbishment and extension of the premises, was overseen by Architect Peter Murphy and Builder Brendan O Sullivan and developed jointly by Cork/Kerry and Blarney Tourism. It certainly enhanced the appearance of the village and blended in with the existing architecture.
Blarney’s new Tourist Information Office was officially opened on Monday 21st July 1995 by the Minister of State at the Department of Tourism and Trade, Mr. Toddy O’Sullivan T.D. He was thanked by Cllr. Michael Frawley, Chairman of Cork/Kerry Tourism, for officially opening the new office and also expressed appreciation for the E.U and Bord Fáilte funding. Regional Tourism Manager, Mr. Con O’Conaill paid tribute to Blarney Tourism for operating the office for a number of years, providing a quality service. The opening was attended by Blarney native, Lord Mayor Joe O’Callaghan, Blarney Woollen Mills C.E.O. Marian O’Gorman, Irish Hotels Federation President Mr. Jerry O’Connor, Blarney Tourism Chairman, Mr. Dan Quill, Mrs. Eileen O’Connell and many other guests. Minister O’Sullivan said that “Blarney had become synonymous with being Irish and was instantly recognisable the world over. Blarney Tourism recognised the potential for a tourist office and it did a magnificent job for the past seven years. The opening of a new tourist office was a significant development which had started off as a voluntary effort by local people.” He also pointed out that “in 1994, the 3.86 million visitors that came to Ireland outnumbered the population for the first time.”
And so, it lasted until Bord Fáilte, cutting funding to the Information Point, ‘pulled the rug’ from under the enterprise in late 2011 and decided to officially close the Blarney Tourist Office saying that they were highly unlikely to review their decision. A spokesman said Bord Failte engaged in consolidation focusing on ‘getaway locations’ to provide a better return on investment, and that the evolution of digital technology had seen demand on Bord Fáilte services fall, also saying it does not see any change in that environment in the foreseeable future given the ongoing development in smartphone technology, but that it does support community and information points. (!)
Following this disastrous announcement by Fáilte Ireland, Kate Durrant and John Henchion and the Blarney Chamber of Commerce were allowed to run the Tourist Office under licence while Freda Hayes of Blarney Woollen Mills let them have the unit for a peppercorn rent, all for the good of the community. Kate said, “It would be run for another six years by the goodwill and volunteerism of Mary Twohig who attended every day for those six years, managing students and workers who were made available through community employment schemes to keep it going. Using Government initiatives and the involvement of people like P.J. Lynch and Deirdre Healy enabled the office to stay open for so long. There is a great community spirit here but sometimes it is very hard to be allowed to do things.”
A statement on Facebook announced that it “is a great loss to the village” that the Tourist Office had closed having been run for years on goodwill. It continued, “All good things come to an end and it’s sad to see Blarney Tourist Office close its doors.” Blarney, one of Ireland’s most visited attractions shut the doors of its Tourist Information Point for the last time on Friday 23rd February 2018 after Blarney and District Chamber of Commerce found itself unable to meet the running costs for 2018.
The building reopened for a relatively short period on 13th June 2018 as a Retro-shop or Vintage Shop named Jenny Feather selling pre-loved and vintage clothing, collectables, accessories, antiques and other items from by-gone days until it too closed its doors on 30th June 2019. It has remained closed and boarded-up until the Autumn of 2023 when the main window was put to use as a display window for a clothing range from Blarney Woollen Mills.
Many of the tourists who visit Blarney and for what-ever reason are unable to make the climb to the top of the castle can be seen wandering aimlessly, despondent, looking lost and bored around the village whilst waiting to board their tour-coach to head off to Killarney or elsewhere. When Blarney became part of Cork city in recent years it was felt that Cork City Council would concentrate on a Blarney promotion drive to highlight its lures and charms such as the walk to Waterloo along the historic River Martin, Clogheenmilcon Fen, the local Golf Clubs and the local traditional music pubs to mention just a few items. Nobody major appears to be promoting Blarney but a tourist office could, at least, tell our visitors what is available (or not) to them in the locality. Sadly, Blarney Tourism is also defunct.
Initially, Blarney Tourism was set up by the enterprising owners of local Guest Houses, B&Bs, Farmhouse Holidays and Hoteliers with a view to self-promoting their businesses to visiting tourists to Blarney, encouraging them to stay in the area for extra days. Such was their success, Cork/Kerry Tourism and Bord Fáilte came on board for a period, further promoting the venture. Unfortunately, over time, things changed and stay-at-home holidays became less popular on account of cheap flights to sunnier climes and business dwindled, resulting in the closing down of a great many of the family run holiday businesses.
Presently (August 2023) Blarney and District has neither Blarney Tourism or a Blarney Tourist Information Point.
A limited number of back issues of ‘Old Blarney’ Journals and ‘Old Blarney’ Photo-Journals are still available by contacting 087 2153216. Please check www.blarneyhistory.ie for information