Curraghchase is named one of Ireland’s most popular outdoor recreation sites

Almost 100,000 people visited Curraghchase Forest Park last year.

A forest park close to Adare, County Limerick, is among Coillte’s top 20 most-popular outdoor recreation sites in Ireland.

Curraghchase is ranked number six on the list of the 20 most popular Coillte sites, as they had a total of 95,729 visitors in 2022.

This follows the announcement of €3 million to develop and upgrade over 300 forest parks, walkings trails and outdoor amenities in Ireland – including in Limerick.

Curragh Chase Forest Park will be allocated €34,560 to install new park signage.

Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys TD announced that some €2 million will be invested in improving and maintaining 280 recreational facilities on Coillte-owned lands right across the country.

A further €1 million will be used to deliver 25 new outdoor projects such as walking trails, loops, boardwalks, ecotrails and carpark facilities.

Part of a strategic partnership between the Department of Rural and Community Development and Coillte, the investment is designed to boost rural tourism and local economies.

Mr Humphreys said: “Ireland’s outdoors, including our forest parks, walking and cycling trails, uplands and blueways are among the best in the world.

“The benefits that they provide in terms of our physical and mental wellbeing are huge. They are also such important assets in terms of attracting tourists to Rural Ireland and supporting our local economies.”

Coillte’s Head of Recreation, Daithi de Forge added: “With the Department’s ongoing support, Coillte will continue to deliver the highest quality outdoor forest recreation experiences for our communities nationwide.”

“We have an open forest policy and we’re proud to support local businesses such as café operators, bike hire providers and many others who partner with us and add the services that make a trip to Coillte’s forests so enjoyable for our visitors.”

The funding is part of a five year strategic partnership between the Department of Rural and Community Development and Coillte, which will see a €15m investment over a five year period between 2022 and 2026.

Coillte recorded a significant increase in visitor numbers to its sites over the past number of years.

From the Limerick Leader

For more information on walking trails in this region click on https://adarevillage.com/activities/walking-holidays/