Economic Value of Ireland's Historic Environment - The Heritage ...

7 Westport
7.1 The Asset
Westport‟s urban core is a planned town, developed originally by the owners of Westport House in the
18 th century as an estate town, this urban centre has been well preserved, and in recent decades has
benefited from very proactive planning, led by the County and Town Councils, to ensure that streetscapes
are protected, and that shop fronts, signage, etc. retain their attractive characteristics, including the
refurbishment of many old buildings and minimisation of new build. 52
Today, Westport is the third largest town in County Mayo, with a
population of about 5,500 (2011 Census of Population). It is the centre
of local government for the western part of the county. Westport is a
case where the core heritage asset is the town itself. Its urban core is
critical to its tourism success while Westport House is one of Ireland‟s
major stately homes open to the public. The town also has many other
natural advantages as a tourism and leisure centre, including being
located in an area of exceptional scenic beauty, having a coastal location on Clew Bay and an old port
(Westport Quay), its proximity to Croagh Patrick (one of Ireland‟s major spiritual tourism attractions) and
its proximity to Gaeltacht areas. In recent decades it has also benefited from the development of major
new national heritage attractions in other parts of Mayo, including the National Famine Memorial at
Murrisk, and the Museum of Rural Life in Castlebar. Westport has also seen improvements in transport
access and in its accommodation base. It has long had direct rail services to Dublin, development and
expansion of Knock airport gives it direct air access to the UK, and development of the national motorway
network, while not reaching Westport itself, reduces travel time to/from Dublin. 53 The town also benefited
from tax incentives for hotel investment, which allowed the construction of considerable amount of new
hotel accommodation.
Westport House is the premier visitor heritage attraction in the town. It
is in private ownership, the present owners being the descendants of
the original family. In recent years, and alongside traditional stately
home attractions, it has developed a range of ancillary attractions,
including a caravan and camping park, a “pirate adventure”. The
house is also used as a wedding venue and as a filming location. The
house has attracted over 4 million visitors since it was first opened in
the 1960s.
Another heritage attraction is Clew Bay Heritage Centre, which features a local museum, attracting about
8,000 visitors annually.
52 Simon Wall, Town Architect, “The Westport Experience”, various PPT presentations, 2010/11
53 Westport “visibility” has also benefited from being the named destination on the M3 motorway signage.
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