Revenue at the country’s most popular natural visitor attraction, the Cliffs of Moher, last year increased by €3 million to €13.8 million.
The Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience generated revenue of €10.8 million in 2022, according to figures provided by Clare County Council.
A council tourism subsidiary firm, Clare Tourism Development DAC, operates the visitor attraction and a council spokesman said visitor numbers last year were at 84 per cent of the 2019 total of visitor numbers of 1.6 million.
The spokesman said visitor numbers for 2024 to the end of May were 440,000 and were in line with 2023.
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The confirmation of the surge in 2023 revenue coincides with the council commencing public consultation on its draft Cliffs of Moher 2040 strategy on the future development of the attraction over the next 20 years.
The visitor attraction generates the bulk of its income from entrance fees.
[ Cliffs of Moher redevelopment plan to deliver €36m in annual revenueOpens in new window ]
The spokesman said: “Price benchmarking with iconic sites indicates that the pricing at the Cliffs of Moher Experience is at the lower median of overall price ranges.”
“Price ranges from €7 per adult online – €12 gate rate with kids going free up to 12 years old,” he added.
At peak season 170 people are employed at the Cliffs of Moher.
The draft strategy outlined the need for a complete overhaul of facilities at the visitor attraction.
It says that “over the past 10 years, visitor numbers have far exceeded those which the site was originally designed to cater for. This has significant negative impacts on both the quality of the visitor experience and the special qualities and environment of the site.”
The council spokesman said the Fáilte Ireland-supported Cliffs of Moher Strategy 2040 “is a long-term roadmap for the sustainable development of the site and its environs and is founded on four pillars, namely spreading the economic benefit to the wider local area and county, enhancing environmental protection, delivering integrated sustainable transport and optimising the visitor experience”.
On the future economic benefits of the 2040 strategy, the draft strategy says “the Cliffs of Moher site was projected to generate an overall income of €36 million from visitor spend and employ more than 300 people”.
The draft strategy can be viewed online and the closing date for submissions is July 26th.
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