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Thursday evening’s tourism programme ‘Failte’ with Carmel Murray. Sponsored by The Country Shop, Letterfrack. Broadcast Thursday the 1st Of August 2024 https://www.connemarafm.com/audio-page/
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Thursday evening’s tourism programme ‘Failte’ with Carmel Murray. Sponsored by The Country Shop, Letterfrack. Broadcast Thursday the 1st Of August 2024 https://www.connemarafm.com/audio-page/
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Thursday evening’s tourism programme ‘Failte’ with Carmel Murray. Sponsored by The Country Shop, Letterfrack. Broadcast Thursday the 1st Of August 2024 https://www.connemarafm.com/audio-page/
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This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. This program is kindly sponsored by Letter Frack Country Shop, 095-418-50. Now, I have a patch program today. Now, my first guest is planned to be Lawrence Connealy. But, Lawrence, we don't have you yet. So, if you're outside or somewhere, get somebody to check your mobile and talk to us. Now, Lawrence will tell us all about the Festival of the Sea, which is taking place from the 2nd to the 11th of August. And that's an annual affair and a very successful one as well. So, hopefully, we'll be able to get Lawrence maybe before the end of the program. We'll go on to our next guest, which is Dermot Laffey. And Dermot is the organizing committee of the OMI races. And after much struggle and much persuasion by insurance companies or whatever, the OMI races are back. And they'll be on Sunday, the 4th of August. Then, next, I have Karen McLernan, who is a development officer for tourism and business with the Quilka Lakelands UNESCO Geopark. And she's going to tell us all about the Shannon Posh. And I won't tell you any more about that. You have to listen to her interview. It's very interesting what she's going to tell us about the Shannon Posh. And last, then, I have Trevor Cornan, who is the marketing manager with Shannon Airport. And he will tell us about the launch of a new app for travelers. Now, I spoke to him a few minutes ago. We'll bring you that interview towards the end of the program. But before we go into all of that, we'll have a bit of music while we're trying to get Lawrence. And, of course, we'd have to play an appropriate Clegane song because we're talking about the Clegane-Caddoff Festival of the Sea. So who better than the late, fantastic Clegane man, Bonnie Joyce, to sing Red is the Rose? Red is the rose, my dear darling. You choose the rose, love, and I'll make the vow. And I'll be your true love forever. Red is the rose that a younger girl grows. And fair is the lily of the valley. Clear is the water that flows from the pond. But my love is fairer than any. What's down by Killarney, green woods, that's what we pray. And the moon and the stars, they were shining. The moon shone its rays on her locks of golden hair. And she swore she'd be my love forever. Red is the rose that a younger girl grows. And fair is the lily of the valley. Clear is the water that flows from the pond. But my love is fairer than any. Red is the rose that a younger girl grows. And fair is the lily of the valley. Clear is the water that flows from the pond. But my love is fairer than any. But my love is fairer than any. Well, that was Bonnie Joyce, the late, great, fantastic singer, Bonnie Joyce, singing that lovely song, Red is the Rose. Now, joining me on the line, as always, is our reliable friend, Dermot Lassie. Good evening, Dermot. How are you doing? Not too bad, that was all on yourself. That's good. I'm not too bad, no. I'm still up on you. I'm still here. That's good. That's good. Yeah. I had a birthday last week, you see, so it kind of reminds me that I'm lucky to be here, you know? Oh, that's good. Well, the ladies, happy birthday. Thank you. Thank you, Dermot. Now, Dermot, the OMI races, we're all delighted. I mean, everybody all year long, we're waiting to see what progress you'd be able to make, but you have good news for us. I have fairly good news now, but we have a big problem coming the weekend, and that's the weather. Yeah, I heard, yeah. And it's not, it's not looking great at the minute, but we're just going to wait and see for another while to see what's going to be the result. Yeah. Everything here gets ruined by the flipping weather, doesn't it? It does. It does. And, like, safety, you see, is priority, so we just have to keep an eye on things. But is the tide right, like, is it, you know? Yes, the tide is no problem. We have that all sorted. We're starting at 12. Twelve. And we'll be finished about half three, 20 to four. Oh, yeah, I see. And how many races will you finish? We have six races at the minute. My God, that's a lot in that length of time. Yep, six races in the minute. Yeah, okay. So the weather is not looking, not looking good at all, but that often changes. Yeah. So we want to keep an eye out. Well, you know something? Yeah, I always hear the forecast, and it's only given for Dublin and the hinterland, so, you know, it's never really accurate for us. No, but we just have to be careful, Carmel, because... I know. ...the last thing we want is an accident or things like that. Yeah, of course, of course. I know, yeah, this issue. Like, there's an awful lot of interest, good interest. Yeah. Everything is, everything is with us at the minute. Yeah, which is good. Except, except the weather. Yeah, well, sure, look, if it doesn't, if it doesn't suit, there's nothing you can do about it. Well, they won't be called up, they would only be postponed. Definitely they wouldn't be called up, they'd be just postponed to another date. To another date. Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, so definitely they'd be going ahead within the next few weeks, but we just have to keep an eye on things. Yeah, well, you see... Like, it's given a serious doldrum rain for Sunday and wind. Is there? Yeah. Yeah. The wind to be the worst. The wind to be the worst, the wind to be the worst, because when you're on the beach... Yeah. It's an awful lot worse. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, that's it. So you still have Sunday the 4th, well, you have the 11th and the 18th at least, you know, before... Oh, we have, we have, we have a few weeks. Yeah, we have to watch the tides down and all that after this again. Yeah, I know. So when will you let the people know, Dermot? I'll see if they put it out there tomorrow. Tomorrow? Tomorrow, tomorrow afternoon, we'll be putting it out there tomorrow. Because... Because on every airwave going. Yeah, because this program will be repeated tomorrow, so, you know, it needs to change after that. Yeah, well, we'll put it out there, of course, and we'll let the radios know, and you do it at Galway Bay and yourselves. Just, just in case, yeah. It'll go out there, hopefully it'll go ahead. Yeah. Hopeful, but... Yeah, I was coming out from Galway the other day and I saw the signs were as far down as my colon on this side, and I thought, you know, brilliant, you know? Oh, the effort goes into it, definitely the effort goes into it. Yeah, we know that. Well, I just mentioned at the top of the program there about the amount of volunteers for all of these events, you know, and really, they're not half appreciated. Oh, I know the volunteers, the volunteers we have are 100%, I can go there every time we have a race, they're all there with a high level ready for action. Great, yeah, yeah, brilliant. Now, Dermot, I was just saying that I've only two euros left to put on a bet today on whatever races in Galway today, so I need to make some money on that, so tell us where we'll make money on Sunday on the beach, if it happens this Sunday. If you're in there, come in and come up to me and we might have a word in somebody's ear. Would you? Yeah. Yeah. In the horse's ear or someone... In the horse's ear, surely one of them will be talking. No, you'll see everyone in the bookie's ears anyway because they don't listen, but it's great fun, isn't it? No, you see, that's why we have to be careful with the bookies and the way they are set up and wind will blow down their stuff, so we just have to be careful. That's true, yeah, and have you the usual number of bookies coming? Yeah, yeah, they'll be coming out from the Galway race. Yeah, isn't it great stuff? It's such a lovely venue, like, that you'd hate to think that it might have to be cancelled, you know. Postponed, we won't take cancel, we'll stay postponed. Postponed, and that's the best. And hopefully we won't have to, but things will change. Yeah, well, that's true, you see, that's the thing, you know, it's just a hard look if everybody who's looking forward to it, you know... Jeremys, while I have you online, I wanted to put you on the spot, are you doing any bingo on the beach at all anymore? Yeah, we'll be doing a couple of them in August. Will you? We'll be doing two on the beach and we'll be doing one in Clifton. Oh, brilliant. Oh, that's great news, now, that's good. Yeah, but that's a secret at the minute, don't tell anyone. I won't. Hello, listeners, don't tell anybody but yourselves, but just remember that there will be... There will be, there will be two of them, yes. Ah, that's good. We're doing one for the Therapeutic Writing and we're doing one for the R&L Lodge. Oh, very good, that's great. And we'll do one in Clifton as well. Oh, that's good, sure, we don't care what you're doing them for as long as you're doing them right. It's only a bit of fun. It's brilliant, really interesting. Oh, there's a lot of people, a lot of people asking me, so I just said, right, we'll do three of them this year. Ah, brilliant, that's good. Well, you see, the other bringers are back, so I don't want to be... Oh, I know. ...annoying them either. Oh, I know, yeah, I know, but they have their regular clientele. They have, and you see, we'll be doing it on the Saturday afternoon, if we can. Oh, yeah, instead of the Sunday, yeah. Instead of the Sunday. It won't clash, it won't clash with anything, yeah, that's a great idea. So you'll come back on to us whenever you have the dates for that? As soon as I know, I'll be back. Yeah, great, okay. Yeah, I'll be back on. Yeah, so do you want to give your number, Dermot, for if people want to ring you or whatever... Yeah, no problem. ...for further information, okay? Yeah, 0834307551. 0834307551. Yeah. Dermot, thank you so much indeed. No bother, Carmen, thanks for the radio again. That's good, we are more than welcome, we're delighted to do it. We're trying to get Lawrence to tell us about the Festival of the Sea, so hopefully we'll get back to him for the end of the programme. But that's going to be a great week as well, won't it? It will be, it will be. There's a lot of people around at the minute, though. Yeah, that's great, yeah. There's plenty going on. Great. All right, Dermot, thank you so much for joining us today. Okay, Carmen, take care, thank you. God bless. Bye-bye. Okay, bye-bye. And we'll have another bit of music. James is on the desk there, he has lots of lovely music lined up for us. My young life is past, and it makes me feel dreary. For in exile I'm cast on the land of the prairie. Oh, to see the red man, the panther and the beaver. And to gaze back with pride on the boughs of shiny heather. In England for years they boasted of Madonna. And young Winnie the Pooh's ghost was Diana. But my two-year-old dog was maggy, quick and ready. I gave Victor his sway across the boughs of shiny heather. Oh, boys, oh, boys, be quick and get ready. By the light of the moon, go and meet Master Freddy. And when we got there, my fond heart was a-chicken. It was our last night coursing on the boughs of shiny heather. The horse was the ground, for the brooks were cruel and dead. Tears in every eye, tears in every eye. Tears in every bound, oh, the running, it was splendid. We put out that leopard ding to avoid the running river. And the next sight I saw was his dead, calm, shiny heather. The night Victor died, and his coursing day's over. I lay down and cried like a broken-hearted lover. I put Victor to his grave, and I let him there forever. Paid my passage to New York from the boughs of shiny heather. Oh, land of my birth, may I see thee now forever. For there's no place on earth I love with more fervor. And when Ireland is free, I'll come back again and greet her. I'll visit you to New York from my boughs of shiny heather. I'll visit you to New York from my boughs of shiny heather. I'll visit you to New York from my boughs of shiny heather. I'll visit you to New York from my boughs of shiny heather. Karen, sorry, Karen McLernan. Karen McLernan is a development officer with Quilka Lakelands UNESCO Geopark. Good evening, Karen, and you're very welcome to the tourism programme. Hello, Carmen, how are you doing? I'm good, thank you. Good. Stumbling and stuttering, but I'm good, otherwise. Right. Yeah, I had changed the names, the programme layout has changed, so that's why I just had it left out of my hand. Anyway, thank you indeed for joining us a little bit earlier than we had agreed, but it's good to have you. Now, you've got a lot of stuff going on in Cavan, and all of this, and of course in the Quilka Lakelands, the UNESCO Geopark there, whatever. But one thing we want to talk to you about today, and I'm going to start off by asking you about the Shannon Pot. Now, a lot of people would not know what the Shannon Pot is, so I'm going to ask you to tell us about it. Well, shame on them, Carmen, for not knowing what it is. I know. Yeah. Yeah, no, no, the Shannon Pot, I mean, I suppose it's an absolutely stunning, it's actually, it's very significant on this island. It is the surface source of the 90 Shannon River. Now, when you come to visit it, it's a really, I suppose the pot itself, it's about a 16-metre wide, 9-metre deep pool of water, essentially, in a very tranquil, very quiet part of the geopark up here. And to think that actually that that is the surface source of the Shannon River, you know, it is hard to kind of put it together, but that genuinely is where the river flows from, and it continues to flow right through the middle of the country, down through Ireland, Set and Heartland. So, yes, it's a very important location, and I suppose what the excitement at the minute is, obviously, we've had this fantastic investment from Falshire Ireland, and then with Calvin County Council investment as well, to build a visitor and interpretive site at the Shannon Pot, to really tell the story and the significance of what the Shannon Pot is, which is great. So, yeah. We all knew, everybody knew, everybody in the school knew, the Shannon rises in the Quaker Mountains and ended at the Shannon Estuary, and it was 213 miles long. But you're giving a different length to it in the press release. Someone said it's 224 miles long. Yeah, I know. Where did that come from? I'm not sure, and then you have to convert it into kilometres too, and then you might lose a few miles here or there. I suppose the thing as well is, as I said, this is the surface source. I suppose there's contributory rivers that actually feed even the surface source of the Shannon as well, so we have to allow for those rivers as well. I'm a Fermanagh woman working in Calvin, so we do have a few discussions around where actually is the source of the Shannon up in these parts of the world. You're not going to get the line of the surface source. It's in Calvin, and you cannot claim it in Fermanagh. I know, I know. As much as we try. Yeah, exactly. Now, the UNESCO Geopark, the whole United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation is a huge worldwide organisation, and it has great interest in the Shannon part and that area, doesn't it? Yeah, I suppose the designation here at the Geopark is really significant. It does set it as a global geopark, and to get that designation, you have to be doing a lot of work in our communities, our conservation, our biodiversity, and I suppose only last year we went through a revalidation to actually retain that designation. I suppose it's one of these things, it's not maybe like a World Heritage Site or something where you get the designation and you have it. You have to continue to evidence that you're doing the work every four years, which is huge work, but it's also the designation is so significant. I mean, it's globally recognised, you know, anywhere you go. They might not have heard of Culco Lakelands Geopark, but they've heard of UNESCO and they know the significance of that, so it's great. It just shows importance. But, of course, you're in Joyce Country, Western Lakes, which is an aspiring geopark. That's right. We're doing a lot of fantastic work down there as well to work towards getting that UNESCO designation. I don't think we have it yet, but I think it's getting there. No, not yet, but working towards it and getting closer to it, which is great to see the work that's going on there. It's going to be fantastic. Yeah, exactly. So, now, but in your own area, in this area, you also have the Cavern Burn Park and Treetop Walk. Now, that sounds very interesting. I mean, I can just imagine the views from there. You'd probably be looking down into the Shannon Pot from a place like that. Well, the Cavern Burn Park is just absolutely stunning. It's a funny thing, you know, Carmel, because obviously a lot of people come to the geopark area for the Culco Mountain Boardwalk and the Stairway to Heaven, as it's been called. And absolutely, there's stunning views up there, and I would never say anything different. But Cavern Burn Park is just something else. I mean, you can see five counties from there. You know, it's just, I mean, there's forest walks. And I suppose the development works at the Shannon Pot with the new interpretive and discovery centre, there will also be trail development and things at Cavern Burn Park, I suppose, to give it the status it deserves as well, because it really is. I mean, it's a very special place. So I'm delighted that it's going to be getting some upgrade work as well. And it's going to be open to the public. Yeah, I mean, Cavern Burn Park is currently open. The Shannon Pot, it'll be kind of intermittently closed. I mean, obviously, it's a very important place for local people as well, and people come to it regularly. So, you know, the contractor's going to try to keep it open where they can. Obviously, the Cavern Way comes through there, which kind of links Doura into Black Lion. So, you know, that will remain open right throughout the work. So I suppose the work will just enhance what's there already. Right. Well, you know, really, Karen, we don't do it justice by talking about it, because if you look at it, listeners, on the website and see the pictures of it, I mean, it's just a fantastic site. And it's so peaceful looking. I mean, you know, the tranquil feel, by just looking at it on the website, I can just imagine what it's like to be there and experience it, you know? Yeah, and I suppose the whole area is like that, and it really is. I mean, it's funny, we just say that kind of when people come. It's hard to get people here. You know, you have to work a bit harder to get to the northwest of Ireland. But when you're here, you will definitely come back again, because it's one of those places that just, you know, people are blown away by it, and they just love it. So if the rain comes and people can't get to the OMI races at the weekend, they can come on up here for a bit instead. Were you listening to us? Yes, I was. Yeah, yeah, good. Yeah, well, it would be such a shame if they're cancelled, you know, because it's an event that everybody just, you know, it's just one of these natural, open, you know, so traditional, like, for people to go to that, you know, whatever. But we'll send them up if they, you know, if there's too much rain here. It's one of the worst things, worst case scenario. I know, I don't think you get as much rain up there as we do anywhere, as we're getting this year, like, it just seems to be non-stop, you know? You know, I suppose, look, for us, yes, of course, we do like the rain, but, you know, the visitors that come here, they're not coming for the sun, they know we don't have it, so they're happy enough to put their coat on and get out and about and see the things, so. And it's a warm rain, you know. It's not, it's not. Sure, look at, yeah, silver linings. Yeah, exactly. We'll spend our time trying to justify it and saying, you know, well, look what you have, I mean, it's so warm, it's lovely, and I always tell guests and others, it's so good for your skin, you know, really and truly. Yeah. We'll get back to the Geopark, Karen, you know, and it stretches across Cavan and Fermanagh. Yes. Is that right? That's absolutely right, yes. So it goes right, kind of, from, I suppose, the northern shores of Lower Loch Erne, so right up, kind of, Bleak Castle, Caldwell, comes down by Castle Archdale, takes in, kind of, all of Enniskillen, all that area, Belkoo, Loch MacNeen, around Garrison, and then right down into, kind of, the northern part of County Cavan, so kind of the, you know, Cavan, Belfer, but MD as such, but really to the southern shores of Loch Uter, and I mean, Loch Uter is something else as well. Oh, lovely, yeah. I don't know if you're familiar with Loch Uter and Cavan. I was a fan of that trip, actually. I was at Gwynford. Ah, yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's just gorgeous. Oh, lovely. It's a cross-border, sorry, it's a cross-border Geopark, which is unique in itself, isn't it? Yeah, so it's the first cross-border Geopark in the world, actually. Oh, really? So it's quite significant. There's four or five more now, but here was the first one, which is fantastic. Yeah. And really it's brilliant. I suppose, look, a lot of people would look to hear for, actually, you know, that kind of cross-border governance and how it's working and the relationship between Cavan County Council and Fermanagh Noma District Council, which really are the funding and management bodies behind the Geopark, and we're very lucky to have that, you know, from the two councils, which is fantastic. Lovely. Now, while you talk about it, Karen, I'm just listening to you, and you speak in such glowing, loving terms about it, and in the press release you called it a sacred landscape. You know, why do you love it that much? I suppose, look, it really is... Fermanagh, Garleen, Cavan. I know. Well, look, I suppose, where I'm sitting in my office here in Blacklay and I'm looking over at my house in Delcoo in the hills there, so it's not... Oh, really? It really is. I mean, look at it. We're all connected here. We're small children. You're lovely. It's no different to yourselves down in that part of the world. But, you know, I suppose when we call it a sacred area, the Shannon Plot itself, I suppose, you know, it traces its name right back to kind of, you know, ancient Irish folklore and, you know, Finmacool and the Fianna and stuff like that. But I think it is that it really is kind of an untouched, undiscovered part of the world, but really still does have that, you know, sense of tranquillity and peacefulness and, you know, there's so many beautiful... I mean, the lakes in themselves, I mean, water gives you a sense of peace. It does. Do you know what I mean? I mean, we're surrounded by water. I suppose there's a saying about Fermanagh that half the year Fermanagh's in the lake lands and half the year the lake lands in Fermanagh. So, you know, it's... You know, we are surrounded by water both in Fermanagh and Cavan and I suppose it does give that very tranquil, very special place. So, yeah. Now, Paddy Matthews, who I've met a few times now, he's the head of operation for the Hidden Heartlands, which is your project in the Hidden Centre of Ireland. He is, well, very excited about this new visitor experience there in the Geopark Aria at the Shannon Pot. How much funding did you say Forge Ireland have given towards this? Yes. Which he's approving, of course. £7.4 million, Forge Ireland through Ireland's Hidden Heartlands, yeah, Ireland's Hidden Heartlands through Forge Ireland are putting into this, which has then been matched by €2.6 million from Cavan County Council. So, it is a very significant investment. It's a significant project. But again, look, I suppose the story of the Shannon is a very, you know, important story to tell and people... I think, you know, as we were talking there about what type of place this is, you know, there is such potential here for people to come and experience it and see it, and they've seen that. Well, according to Paddy Matthews, it's going to bring an extra 600,000 visitors in the first 10 years. Yeah. Is that realistic? Well, I mean, I suppose we kind of get those figures on an annual basis across the existing Geopark sites now. I mean, there's 50 Geopark sites, but on an annual basis, we would have those kind of figures visiting, you know, across the 50 different sites. So, over 10 years at that one site, that is an accurate ambition. Yeah, which is great. Yeah, it's good. Yeah, exactly. It would be lovely, and a good, you know, result for a lot of input, like you said, like yourself and everybody else who's in the tourism and business section there in Cavan. Yeah, absolutely. And I suppose, look, the whole idea is that, you know, there will be an economic spilloff for the local villages, for the local communities. And I think that's really one of the significant things about a Geopark is, while you become a Geopark because you've got, you know, geology of international significance, it's actually how you then work with your people and your communities is what makes you a Geopark. So, it's really important that we do have developments like this, which, you know, can bring benefits to the local community. So, it will be fantastic, and we're very excited to be moving with the project. So, now, I mentioned the website. Do you want to give the details of the website, Karen, where people can go and look and see what's there for themselves? Because I was fascinated when I actually did look and see what's happening there. So, what's the website? The website is pulchaleaklands.org. Pulchaleaklands? Yeah, pulchaleaklands.org. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. C-U-I-L-C-A-G-H. So you're always doing something new there, Trevor, and you're always improving services and that. But your latest invention, would you tell us about it? It's your new airport mobile app. Yes, absolutely. So we've just launched the new app, and we have a few different features that are kind of new to Ireland, and we think they're really going to help some of the customers' experience. Our whole aim, any time we try and do any initiatives, is to make things easier for customers and provide a choice that is really something that the customers can enjoy. Sometimes the thought of going to airports is quite stressful for some of the passengers. That's our number one goal, really, to make the process of going through the airport easier. There's some of the features that are in the app are designed to specifically address that before they even get to the airport, when they're at home packing their bags. It's very much about getting your flight notifications to your phone up to about 12 hours in advance to get to the airport. The phone will give you a little push notification any time the flight information changes, whether it's the airline changing the details or whether you're going to gate 1 or gate 5 or whatever, or on the reverse, when you're coming home, where you're going to be picking up your bags and all that sort of stuff. How does it differ from other airport apps? Some of the airports have them already, but this is a first of its kind. There's a few firsts of its kind in it. One of the key ones would be the SmartWatch app, so you don't even need to take the phone out of your pocket. You'll get a little push notification, a little haptic sort of vibration on your SmartWatch. You can do that whether it's Apple Watch or Android Wear Watch. That will give you an automatic notification to your watch. Also, on top of that, there's a thing called Pin My Car, which will allow you to put a little pin on a map when you're in the car park so it'll take you straight to where your car is when you get home. Regardless of the time of day, you'll know exactly where your car is when you leave your car. I'm sure there are a lot of people in Ireland like me who would be thrilled with that because the job is always to relocate the car when it comes back. It's a big problem. Well, that came about out of myself getting lost. Oh, really? You don't need to wander around the car park for half an hour going, where did I put the car, to realise it's a pain point. That was a shopping trip in Dundrum that went straight. Oh no, me too. The other one that comes out of me in terms of being a really cool feature, the one we think is cool, is the augmented reality sort of bag scanner. Yeah, tell us about that, Trevor. Augmented reality were two fairly hefty words. Well, yeah, it's a bit of a long mouthful, but in essence what it does is it overlays a box which is the equivalent to the space that each of the airlines give you for the overhead lock. So there's no more nasty surprises of getting to the airport and finding out your baggage. Yeah. So that will work for all airlines. And as we bring in new airlines, that will automatically be updated. So it doesn't matter what airline you're flying with, we have you covered. That's brilliant. That's absolutely brilliant. And it does baggage weight from that. Well, it will give you all the size dimensions. So you know the box that the airlines sometimes have by the gate where you've got to put your baggage? Oh, yeah. It's that shape. You make sure you can tell at a glance before you even leave home that there's not going to be any issues. No, that your bag will fit or whatever, yeah. Now, it's an app and it's from the Apple App Store. Can you download it free or is there a charge? Yeah, no, no, it's completely free. So it's on the Apple App Store. It's also on the Google Play Store. And then if you have a smartwatch, you can get your smartwatch version as well on Apple and on Android Wear with Google as well. That's brilliant. Now, another thing I saw in the press release was you can get exclusive discounts via the app. Absolutely. Can you tell us about that? Well, we want to try and encourage customers to use it because it's another way for us to connect with customers. So there will be some exclusives in there and, you know, there's going to be special offers that are going to be pushed out specifically to users. So anybody that uses the app, we're doing special offers and you'll get a little push notification, whether it's a little promo offer for duty-free or the executive lounges or the car parks, you know, to upgrade your car. There's going to be lots of different offers that we're going to be pushing throughout the year. So we're really trying to encourage customers to use it because we think they'll really get some benefit out of it. Yeah, to download it and use it. And I suppose especially smartwatch owners and users, it will be brilliant. Yeah, I mean, there's a whole host of simple features. So if you're a regular user and you've got Apple Pay or Google Pay on your phone, it means in two or three clicks you can book your car park and book your lounges because all that information is already on your phone. And it just makes things so much easier. You're not having to log in and all that sort of stuff the way you would maybe on some of the other websites. So all of your information is there and it recognizes who you are. So all of that stuff is stored because if you have your Apple Pay or Google Pay already on your phone, all of that work is immediately taken out of the process. It's just one or two clicks and you can book all your stuff. So when you book all that and have all that, you don't need to print it. Do you need to have a printer set? No, no. All of that will be stored on your phone. On your watch or your phone. You'll get a little QR code to your phone so that the new car park system will recognize the registration plate on the car. And you also have the backup of the little QR code stored in your Apple Wallet or your Google Wallet on your phone. So you just scan that. And, again, removing paper all the way from the process. You don't need to. Just as long as you have your phone on you. Good. Yeah. I'm just thinking of flights and all of that. Especially, look, if you're away on holidays, you don't want to be stuck with a pair of those on your phone. So always have a backup. A backup. Yeah, exactly. You could easily lose the watch or whatever. Yeah, unfortunately, if you lose your phone in a taxi somewhere when you're away in Spain, it saves you the headache of knowing that you have it if you have it on paper. Yeah, just one paper copy of it somewhere. Now, Dave, like you said, you got lost in Dundrum. I got lost in Dundrum once as well. But any time I went to Shannon and parked my car, I got lost as well. So the airport map, this is my final question to you. That seems, like, very important because sometimes one could be running in the opposite direction to where you need to be going if you're looking for a gate or the duty-free or whatever. The map on your phone will do all that for you, will it? Yes, so it's an interactive map. So it will help you find directions to any of the shops, the gates. It will show everything from where the toilets are to where the duty-free is. It's got all the restaurants and stuff. So it's got everything in there in terms of, at a glance, you can find your way around whether it's charger bays or for your phone or bathrooms or change rooms for babies or whatever it is. Yeah, and especially the gates. Absolutely. No, no, absolutely. So the gates are all in there. If you're desperate to escape, the gates will be highlighted, will they? Yes. Yeah, okay. Listen, Trevor, that's lovely. Congratulations, Andrew. It sounds like a very innovative design and everything. And hopefully it works, and I'm sure it will help an awful lot of people in their travels. And, indeed, do you want to give the website address for more information if they want more? Yeah, absolutely. So if you're looking to download the app, just go into either the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. Just type in Shannon Airport and it should come up straight away for you. And then if you're looking for more information, we've got a page on the website on shannonairport.ie forward slash download app. I went in on that earlier before the program, and it's actually very clear. It opens the four aspects of the app and shows it all to you, which is brilliant, you know? Great. No, no, look, we're really happy with it, and there's some new features coming down the way. We'll be having live bus times on there now in a few weeks where you'll be able to sort of plan your bus routes and all that sort of stuff. Great. Trevor Carton, Marketing Manager of Shannon Airport. Thank you so much indeed for joining me today on the tourism program on Connemara Community Radio. Thanks very much. Thanks for having me. And bye-bye for today. Cheers. Bye-bye. Bye. Well, that's it for this evening, listeners. I hope you enjoyed the program. Indeed, thank you so much to my guests, to Laurence Corneli, who gave us all the details on the Festival of the Sea starting this 2nd of August, which is tomorrow, and Dermot Laffley, the Organising Committee of the OMI Races. They're a back to everybody's excitement and joy, and they're taking place on Sunday, the 4th of August, and Karen McCarron, who's the Development Officer with Tourism and Business in the Quilka Lakelands. That's the UNESCO Geopark in Cavan. And last but not least today on my program, I spoke to Trevor Carton, who is the Marketing Manager of Shannon Airport, who gave us all the details of the new app for travellers. That's it. Thank you to James on the desk and to Karen, who did all the research. And until I talk to you again next week, at the same time, thank you for listening, and bye-bye for today. You are listening to Connemara Community Radio, broadcasting on 87.8 and 106.1 FM. You can also listen in to us from outside of the Connemara area on our website, www.connemarafm.com. Good morning to you. And hope all is good with you on the lovely island this Sunday morning. Good evening and welcome to Connemara Community Radio, coming to you from the Innsbruck Studio. And if you've just joined us, welcome to Connemara Community Radio, broadcasting on 87.8 and 106.1 FM. Yeah, Lee Dorsey, followed by Captain Beefheart. Where else would you get us, Connemara Community Radio? 09541616, if you'd like a song played. Hello, hello, hello. You're welcome to me. I'm working in life. I'm a nice big old... That was a great tune by Fairport Convention, a nice, comoly bit of Kayleigh going on there. We'd have you dancing around the kitchen. And I'd like you to listen to the song tonight, and I'd like you to come back to me when I need you. Hello, everyone. Hope you're doing well. You're listening to Connemara Community Radio. Well, there was a time... You can also listen in to us from outside of the Connemara area on our website, www.connemarafm.com. Hope you're all well. Tonight features artists living around from the 60s, sold more than 250 million records worldwide, making them one of the best-selling artists of all time. So that's it for tonight. I'd like to thank you all for listening, and hope that you'll tune in again next week. Connemara Community Radio, thank you very much for listening, and I hope you enjoyed all of the music. Thank you. This programme was kindly sponsored by Letterfract Country Shop. 095-418-50. This programme was kindly sponsored by Letterfract Country Shop. 095-418-50. This programme was kindly sponsored by Letterfract Country Shop. 095-418-50.
