merrion street

Mayor D’Arcy;

Distinguished Guests;

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to be here in the historic city of Waterford to officially open the Medieval Museum, with the final major element of the iconic Viking Triangle project. I wish to thank Mayor D’Arcy and the Council for inviting me to speak at this event.

The opening of this Museum marks the culmination of eight years of work by Waterford City Council, which sought to re-create the historic core of the city as an iconic visitor attraction.

From Viking times through to the Normans and on to the Middle Ages, Waterford is a city rich in stories from its historic past. The City Council identified a need to make these stories more accessible, integrated and coherent for the visitor and to make the city stand out as a destination renowned for its culture and heritage.

The Medieval Museum and the overall Viking Triangle will have broad appeal to both Irish and overseas visitors and will also support Waterford’s ambition to be a discerning destination of choice for Irish and international visitors.

The centrepiece in the new medieval museum is the Great Charter Roll of Waterford, which dates from 1373. I had the pleasure of showing the Great Charter Roll to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip on their visit to Ireland in 2011. This major historical artefact features the earliest illustration of an Irish city, as well as key historical figures from the period, and adds much to our understanding of 14th Century dress and costume.

The Medieval Museum joins the already completed re-developments of the Bishop’s Palace and Reginald’s Tower, which together tell the story of Waterford’s one thousand year history, under the theme of ‘1000 years in 1000 paces’.

The Viking Triangle sees the commercial and non-commercial forms of visitor attraction both contributing to the success of Viking Triangle project, with the House of Waterford Crystal Centre adding to the overall visitor appeal of the area.

Towards the end of this year, we will see the completion of public realm works which will involve re-paving of the Viking Triangle area and the addition of sculptures of relevance to the history of Waterford.

The Government, through Fáilte Ireland, has provided significant support to this project. Eleven million euro has been invested by Fáilte Ireland in the development of the Viking Triangle project. This funding is provided under the Tourism Capital Investment Programme, the purpose of which is to support investment in tourism infrastructure, visitor attractions and visitor activities.

It is not just the capital investment in facilities that is important in terms of communicating the story of a place to visitors. The overall quality of the visitor experience is also enhanced by interaction with people. In recognising the importance of personal engagement with visitors, Fáilte Ireland has also supported the introduction of costumed actor guides into both the Medieval Museum and the Bishop’s Palace. This has transformed the visitor experience of both properties and augments the impact of the capital investment already made in both.

The Viking Triangle project is a successful example in Ireland of the clustering of visitor attractions into a unified experience for the tourist. It is intended that the development of attractions of this quality and unique character will accelerate the development of Waterford as a tourism destination and that its iconic character will appeal to visitors from overseas. It also provides an opportunity for Waterford to broaden its range of visitors, by opening up their experience to more independent travellers as well as the traditional coach tour business.

This year the priority of the Government and that of the State tourism agencies is on delivering The Gathering Ireland 2013, our biggest ever tourism initiative.

There are now 3,300 confirmed Gatherings nationwide, ranging from large-scale national festivals and events that will appeal to all tastes and interests, to a myriad of local festivals and events taking place across the country throughout the year. The range of gatherings is a testament to the ingenuity of the Irish people and a revival of the spirit of “meitheal”.

As a Government we are delighted to get behind The Gathering, not just to bring visitors to Ireland to create and sustain jobs, but also to provide a year that will promote Ireland on the international stage after some difficult years for our international reputation.

Next year, of course, is another landmark year for the City of Waterford. 2014 marks eleven hundred years since the founding of Waterford in 914 A.D. The completion of works in the Viking Triangle museums and the public realm improvements by the end of this year will enable the city to present itself to the World with a new and confident face on its eleven hundredth anniversary.

Finally, to Mayor D’Arcy, Councillors, City Manager Michael Walsh and his officials, and to the people of Waterford, I congratulate you on the opening of the Medieval Museum, and for your successful re-generation of the historical centre of your city. Waterford can now stand with major historical cities anywhere in Europe in the quality of how its story is presented, and its reputation as a visitor destination is certain to grow in the years ahead as a result of this landmark project.

Thank you very much.