Here’s some good and rather uplifting news. The Irish Museum of Time has been nominated for the prestigious British Guild of Travel Writers International Tourism Awards 2022.
This gem of a museum is located on Greyfriars Street in the heart of Waterford’s Viking Triangle. The refurbished gothic-style church which houses the museum is a fitting home for what is probably the finest collection of Irish timepieces in the world. And now, it’s on the shortlist for the award and has been listed in the top six visitor attractions in the UK and Ireland.
That’s certainly something to cheer about, and also be incredibly proud of. That’s because the British Guild of Travel Writers is the UK’s leading organisation of travel media professionals, established in 1960. The criteria for membership in the guild is incredibly tough – and every single one of the 270 members has to satisfy an annual audit to retain their membership.
The Irish Museum of Time, which is part of the Waterford Treasures suite, gained its nomination after being selected by the award-winning global travel writer and guild member Isabel Conway.
In her nomination, Isabel describes the Museum of Time as featuring: “Rare and beautiful old clocks and timepieces, from all over Ireland and around the globe displayed in a swirl of dials, chimes and beautiful craftsmanship. Most of the collection of over 600 superb exhibits were donated by two avid Irish horologists – whose homes were heaving with the ticking treasures they had collected over a lifetime.”
What happens next? Well, the museum will now move to the next stage of the awards journey. At this stage, members will vote on the attractions that should move forward to the shortlisting stage and then onto the finalist stage if selected.
The awards ceremony will take place in London in November on the eve of the World Travel Market (WTM), which is the largest global gathering for the tourism and hospitality industry.
Have you been to the museum? It opened to visitors in 2021 and it is the fifth museum as part of the Waterford Treasures suite in Waterford. Visitors can enjoy a ‘Freedom of Waterford’ ticket enabling them to access all of the museums and a guided walking tour under one ticket price 7 days per week.
If you have been to the museum and have something to share – drop us a line. And do keep your fingers crossed, for it may be the museum’s ‘time’ to shine at the awards ceremony at WTM.
