Embracing Outdoor Tourism

The gathering, at Malone House in Belfast, took place as part of Tourism & Hospitality Week 2025, which aims to shine a spotlight on the importance of the sector to the local economy.

As part of the week, Tourism Northern Ireland brought together two key stakeholder groups to discuss and support the ongoing implementation of the ‘Embracing Outdoor Tourism’ framework.

The framework aims to support the delivery of a strategic and coordinated approach to the promotion of outdoor adventure, activity and nature tourism in Northern Ireland.

It also supports the Tourism Vision & Action Plan: 10 Year Plan and creates a partnership structure for Tourism Northern Ireland to work with other public authorities and the tourism industry to shape and develop action plans.

This week’s meeting was the latest gathering in an ongoing two-year collaboration.

The Interdepartmental Working Group (IDWG) is made up of representatives from the Department for the Economy NI), Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), Department for Communities, Department for Infrastructure, and SOLACE NI, the representative body of local authorities in the region, and supported by Tourism Northern Ireland.

The Outdoor Tourism Partnership is made up of Ireland's Association for Adventure Tourism, senior council representatives and outdoor activity representatives as well as Outscape, TransLink, Sport NI, Disability Sport NI, the National Trust, the Forest Service, Waterways Ireland, the Loughs Agency, MOURNE HERITAGE TRUST, Causeway Coast & Glens Heritage Trust, Landscapes NI, Northern Ireland Environment Link, Sustrans and international tour operator, Vagabond Tours Ltd.

Those who gathered yesterday for the first joint meeting of the two groups were welcomed by Sheena Dickson, Landscape & Activities Tourism Manager at Tourism Northern Ireland. 

The focus of the gathering, which included a facilitated round table discussion, was water-based experiences with topics including Blueways, Lough Neagh, Water Quality, changing behaviours and creating sustainable facilities explored.

The group heard from a host of guest speakers representing organisations including Outscape and Ulster University.

Sheena Dickson, Landscape & Activities Tourism Manager at Tourism Northern Ireland, said: “Bringing together key outdoor stakeholders to collaborate on topical issues and opportunities is vital to realising our common priorities for achieving the outlined actions from the framework. 

“We know from our visitor research that enjoying our stunning landscapes and exciting outdoor offering is a top reason to visit for both closer to home and international markets. 

“Therefore, it makes sense that facilitated collaboration between the partners takes place as we continue to develop this visitor offering.”

Photo caption: (L-R) Chris Scott, from Outscape, Sheena Dickson, Landscape & Activities Tourism Manager at Tourism Northern Ireland, Rachael Singleton, from Ulster University and Brendan Kenny, CEO of Ireland’s Association for Adventure Tourism, were among those who attended an event at Malone House in Belfast this week to discuss the future of outdoor tourism in the region