Eadaoin Fleming enjoys dressing up and taking part in Athlone Castle’s official opening
on February 26th, 2013
Building on the energy and buzz surrounding last week’s castle opening, Athlone Castle is this week turning its attention to mothers. On March 10th mothers are honoured and pampered in homes, restaurants, hotels and places of leisure all around the country. So it is no surprise that Athlone Castle wishes to play its part in acknowledging the mothers of Ireland.
For all of Mother’s Day – March 10th, the usual family rate of €20 (which includes 2 adults and 4 children), will be reduced to €10 per family, and mum will be given a free cup of tea/coffee with a chocolate. Castle Guide Mary Bannon says “we get a lot of families coming in on Sundays – it’s generally a really busy day anyway, so we often do offers for families and this works really well for us. But this week it is all about mums, and so it is appropriate that while we treat the family by discounting the rate, we also give mum the chance to sit down and enjoy a cup of tea and a chocolate”.
Athlone Castle has been opened since November, and while this was outside of the main tourist season - there have thus far been 3,500 people through its doors. The castle’s cultural neighbour across the road - Luan Gallery has also attracted over 4000 visits since opening its doors in November 2012. So it seems that barely 3 months into operation, Luan Gallery and Athlone Castle are each striking a positive cord with the public. Building on this strong start it is hoped the castle will see a high influx of tourists to Athlone for the key high season period. But for now, this Sunday… it’s all about one person. Mums of Athlone and beyond, Athlone Castle salutes you!
Castle staff and volunteers – left to right:
Victor Fagg, Joe Grennan, Anthony Duignan, Mary Bannon, Joanna Groboz, Blaithin Fleming, Catherine Yorke.