Scenery from Lecale area in new brochure

Scenery from Lecale area in new brochure

29 April 2015

THE scenic beauty and rich history of Ardglass and other Lecale coastal villages features heavily in a new tourism brochure which has been officially unveiled.

The colourful publication recognises the tourist potential of the fishing port and surrounding villages located at one of the most scenic locations in Ireland.

Launched recently, the new brochure has been endorsed by Tourism Northern Ireland and is viewed as a key component in the drive to attract more visitors to the area.

Councillor Cadogan Enright has been heavily involved in developing the new brochure alongside the Ardglass Development Association and is confident it can encourage more people to sample the delights of the Lecale area.

He said that for too long, Lecale “has fallen into a blank area on the tourism map between the Mourne Mountains and Strangford Lough.”

Councillor Enright said that gap has now been filled, with the Lecale area beginning to get recognition for its wealth of culture, history and natural infrastructure.

He continued: “Our many beaches, the Killard Nature reserve, the lovely and unique villages like Killough, Ardglass, Ballyhoran, Kilclief and Strangford, all have a stirring history and cultural heritage that can be shared.

“While the brochure features the circular heritage trail around Ardglass and links to our new on-line app launched recently, we have also given several pages to Killough, Ballyhornan, Killard and the beaches and natural infrastructure that surrounds us on the Lecale Coast.”

The new heritage and tourism centre in Ardglass was the setting for the recent brochure launch which was attended by Ardglass Development Association officials, representatives from Tourism NI and members of community groups dotted along the Lecale coastline.

Written by councillor Enright and local historian Michael Howland, the brochure is superbly illustrated with artwork and maps prepared by Killough artist and professional illustrator Kieron Black.

The new brochure was sponsored by the Ardglass Development Association with funding provided by Down Council with help from the Down Rural Area Partnership and will be distributed widely in tourism information centres.

Development Association chairwoman, Margaret Smyth, expressed appreciation to Down Council for its support for the new brochure and local authority tourism official Mark Mohan 

for allowing Ardglass and the Lecale coast to be included in the series of village heritage trails supported by trail maps and associated maps across the district.

“The maps are also available in Killyleagh, Saintfield, Ardglass, Strangford, Dundrum and Castlewellan and while we only had two weeks to turn our project around, particular praise and thanks are due to councillor Enright, Michael Howland and Kieron Black for helping us to meet the deadline.”