'Ballymahon on the map' - locals on Center Parcs impact
The Center Parcs holiday resort in Longford, Ireland, has significantly boosted the local economy of Ballymahon. Local business owners report increased footfall and revenue, crediting the resort for revitalizing the town's commercial landscape.
Why it matters
It highlights the economic impact of large-scale tourism infrastructure on small rural communities.
Center Parcs in Longford has been a major success story.
Longford Forest takes in approximately €2 million in revenue each week and the holiday resort based outside Ballymahon is expanding.
Operating profits at the resort increased by 4% to €34.5m last year and the business now records occupancy rates of 99%.
In July 2019, the 400-acre resort opened to much fanfare, but some were sceptical about the benefits the resort would bring locally.
Seven years on and Ballymahon, the hometown of Love Island star Maura Higgins, is booming.
Midlands Correspondent Sinéad Hussey has been speaking to some of the traders who say the "town is thriving" and that "Center Parcs has put Ballymahon on the map".
Marie O'Dowd opened the Wilder and Gold café on Main Street in Ballymahon about six months before Center Parcs opened.
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