Who would stay in a place like this!
“Traffic-choked”, “tacky” and “charmless”. Just a few of the less than
complimentary words used in a new travel guide to describe three of
Ireland’s best known towns.
The latest edition of the Lonely Planet says Newcastle in County Down is
“garish” whilst Larne in County Antrim is “lacking in charm”.
It adds that Bundoran, on the southern shore of Donegal Bay, is “one of
Ireland’s tackiest holiday resorts”.
Mourne country…. but Newcastle is described as “garish”
But the guide, which is renowned for being brusque, gives a favourable
mention to the cities of Belfast, Londonderry and Dublin.
Often dubbed the backpackers bible, Lonely Planet says the seaside
resort of Newcastle, at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, enjoys a
superb setting and is a good base for exploring.
But it adds: “Shame about the main street. On summer weekends it’s a
garish, traffic-choked strip of raucous amusement arcades and fast-food
outlets.”
South Down Democratic Unionist Party Assembly member Jim Wells said he
agreed with the sentiments but pointed out the guide must have been
written before recent improvements.
“Sometimes the Lonely Planet guide goes over the top, but not on this
occasion,” he said.
“The council is aware of the problems and is spending a king’s ransom in
addressing the issue.
The guide says Bundoran is “tacky”
“It is spending millions, £6m I think, in upgrading the promenade along
the sea front.
“Half is done and the other half, when complete, will transform the area
and be the catalyst for much needed regeneration across the centre.”
Travel along the Antrim coast, and you come to a what the guide
describes as “poor old Larne”.
It says there is “no reason to linger” in the town, a sentiment refuted
by the town’s mayor John Matthews.
“Larne is a vibrant working city, it’s not some twee part of industrial
archaeology. It’s individual, it’s got character,” he said.
Mr Matthews adds that the town boasts “one of the best leisure centres
in Northern Ireland” as well as superb sporting facilities and a
theatre.
DUP East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson agrees that at first sight, Larne does
appear unattractive, but he urges people to go beyond the “raised
motorway and high towers” on the approach to the town.
“If you do look beyond that, there’s very quaint Victorian parts of
Larne. It is the entrance to the Antrim coast as well,” he said.
Across the border in the Republic of Ireland, is Bundoran, described by
the Lonely Planet as “a kitsch assortment of half-baked fairground
rides, flashing arcades, fast food diners and overpriced B&Bs”.
It says the seaside resort is “nonetheless riding a new wave of
popularity as one of Europe’s premier surfing spots”.
The comments have outraged local hotelier and Fianna Fail councillor
Sean McEniff who says: “Bundoran is not tacky and I think the fairground
is absolutely magnificent.
“It is not some small resort, it is like a mini Blackpool and tourism is
booming. I am adding an extra 40 bedrooms to my hotel because of the
demand and all the other hotels are the same.”
He insists accommodation is of a high standard and the town so clean
“you could eat your breakfast on the streets of Bundoran”.
Despite the criticisms, the guide’s co-ordinating author Dublin-born
Fionn Davenport has words of praise for the often maligned city of
Belfast.
He says massive investment combined with optimism engendered by the
peace process have transformed it into a “boom town”.
“Its old bombs and bullets reputation has given way to a designer
Belfast,” he says, typified by “hip hotels” and elegant restaurants.
Mr Davenport says Ireland is a “compelling contradiction” of the
traditional and the modern and points out that the book is guide to
where people would want to visit.
“That’s the thing we’re trying to convey,” he said.
“If you want a glowing positive… view of Ireland, pick up any tourist
brochure and that’s what you’ll get. You’ll never get a critique,
never.”