Forget about Buckingham Palace, the Eiffel Tower, and even the Colosseum, because Europe's leading tourist attraction is in the middle of Dublin.
The Guinness Storehouse has been named Europe's top attraction by The World Travel Awards, after it was presented with the award at a ceremony in Sardinia last night.
The Storehouse teaches its visitors just about everything they could want to know about Guinness, from the entire history of the company, right down to the making and distribution of the drink across the world. It's had over 13 million visitors since it opened in 2006, and that probably has something to do with why it claimed the prestigious prize.
Managing Director of the Storehouse, Paul Carty, said “We were honoured to have been shortlisted amongst such iconic attractions but to be voted by the public as ‘Europe’s leading tourist attraction’ goes beyond anything we could have imagined.
“We wish to claim this as a victory for Irish tourism. One in every two holidaymakers to Dublin visits the Guinness Storehouse and we are very aware and very proud of our position at the front line of the warm Irish welcome. This award is a great acknowledgement of the team’s dedication to providing an unforgettable, world-class visitor experience.
92% of all visitors are not Irish, which means that i's not just tooting our own horn, other people actually think the place is great too. By other people, we mean American, British, French, German and Italian tourists, seeing as they were the top five nationalities to visit the Storehouse last year.
Now, if you haven't been on the tour already, it looks like you might just have to fix that. It's actually really good fun, and you get a pint of Guinness at the end, as well the chance to drink it while looking out over all of Dublin. That's worth the admission fee alone.
Via The Irish Times
