Most visitors to Killarney National Park stick to well-worn paths, but a new 28km trail will take them to areas rarely visited other than by boat.
The walk allowing for a looped circle of the largest of the lakes of Killarney has received ministerial approval.
Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Jimmy Deenihan, a keen walker, said the trail would put walking tourism there on a par with that in the Lake District in England.
The scale of the project and the sensitive nature of the park meant that a responsible and considered planning approach in consultation with local landowners was being taken, the Minister also said.
The trail will start and end in Killarney town. It will take in two of the area’s famous lakes, Lough Leane and Muckross Lake.
Sections adjacent to Killarney town will also be designated multi-use and will be suitable for walkers and cyclists alike. Discussions are under way with other landowners.