City’s tourist appeal gets boost with top award

LIMERICK’S much-maligned image got an unexpected boost this week when the city won an international tourism award.

A brochure promoting the city, entitled Limerick City Attractions Guide, produced by Limerick Civic Trust, was on top at the International Association of Professional Brochure Distributors (APBD) conference in New Jersey.

The Limerick Civic Trust brochure won first prize in the regional category for design, content, headline, and overall appeal.

From a selection of more than 7,000 brochures produced and distributed for the international tourist market, the Limerick brochure, as well as winning the regional competition, came fifth in the overall competition. This is the highest place ever achieved by a brochure from Ireland.

Mayor of Limerick Michael Hourigan said: “This is an outstanding achievement for a voluntary organisation like Limerick Civic Trust to be able to successfully compete with public companies and cities who would have much greater budgets for promotional material.

“This award also complements the high standards of the venues which tourists may visit in our city.”

Limerick Civic Trust chairman Jim O’Donnell said: “We are delighted to have received this international recognition for our efforts to promote our City. The Limerick City Attractions Guide is a new promotional initiative of the Civic Trust, which was carried out in addition to its main work of conservational and environmental enhancement in Limerick.”

John Rice of Glance Promotions distributed the guide on behalf of the Civic Trust.

“Considering that the normal winners of this competition are large cities like Vancouver, or multi-million dollar operations like Seaworld or Disneyland, then this achievement is fantastic news for the Civic Trust and the quality of marketing that Limerick can carry out,” he said.

The brochure, which was designed by the Optic Nerve Design Group in Limerick, competed with brochures from Canada, the US, Europe, and South Africa. Other brochures entered in the competition were: Stade de France, The National Baseball Hall of Fame, Vermont, A Special Place!, Moulin Rouge, Florida State Fair, The National D-Day Museum, and the Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament.

The APBD Best Brochure Awards recognises excellence in the design of brochures and rack cards for the travel industry. Eligible nominees come from the roster of approximately 7,000 brochures.