Johnstown Castle Estate, Museum and Gardens, Wexford has received an award at the 33rd Annual CIE Tours Awards of Excellence. The awards, which are based on feedback received from customers of CIE Tours International throughout the year, were presented at a ceremony recently held at Christchurch Cathedral, Dublin.
The annual awards scheme acknowledges tourist attractions which achieve a customer satisfaction rating of 94.5% for an exceptional quality experience and welcome to visitors. The winners are chosen from an independent valuation of feedback surveys completed by over 30,000 CIE Tours International customers.
Accepting the CIE Tours International Awards of Excellence, Jess Sinnott, Customer Experience Manager at the Irish Heritage Trust which manages the Johnstown Castle Estate, Museum and Gardens visitor attraction says,
“We are delighted to receive our third CIE Excellence award for Johnstown Castle. We are especially proud to accept this award on behalf of all of the hard-working team at the Irish Heritage Trust and at Johnstown Castle, who go to every length to ensure our visitors have the best experience possible every day and the fact that this award is won on the back of our visitor’s endorsement, it is a real testament to the hard work of all our team. We are excited to share that from 3rd February, our opening hours at Johnstown Castle will be extended and we will be open from 9 a to 5pm daily, with those hours extending to 5.30 pm from 16th March.”
Johnstown Castle has become a leading visitor attraction in Ireland’s Ancient East, having opened to the public in 2019 following a major conservation and development project. In 2024, over 165,000 people visited Johnstown Castle, with 21% of visitors coming from overseas. In addition to tourists from across Ireland, visitors included local members, supporters of the vibrant events calendar, and day visitors exploring the stunning castle, picturesque gardens, and the rich rural heritage of the Irish Agricultural Museum.
With its rich 800-year history, Johnstown Castle continues to reveal its fascinating stories under the stewardship of the Irish Heritage Trust, an independent non-profit organisation. Since opening in 2019, ongoing conservation projects and visitor experience enhancements have continued – all made possible through visitor and membership support, grants and philanthropy.
CIE Tours, which celebrates 93 years in business is the largest operator of guided tours to Ireland in the North American market. Launched in 1990, the Awards recognise Ireland’s hospitality ambassadors – the people and businesses throughout the country who put Irish tourism on the global stage through the warmth of welcome and quality of service provided to our international visitors.
Chairman of CIÉ Tours, Aidan Murphy said; “That we can offer a unique experience unrivalled by any other country is due in no small part to our many partners who work closely with us, taking the feedback from our visitors and continuously refining their offering. Our honorees are exemplary contributors to our 95.4% guest satisfaction rate, and they all deserve recognition for the excellent roles they play in welcoming visitors to Ireland and ensuring they have a memorable experience”.
Johnstown Castle Estate, Museum and Gardens is open 7 days per week year-round. Daily tickets can be purchased in advance (pre-booking of castle tours is recommended) and the Irish Heritage Trust membership scheme provides access to all its sites in Cork, Roscommon and Wexford. For further details see www.johnstowncastle.ie