Ardara glamping project hailed a major success by DLDC

Donegal Local Development Company is urging communities and individuals to examine what can be done at community level with support from programmers such as Leader.
One scheme being highlighted this week is the Farm Diversification Programme, which DLDC says has been used to great effect in Donegal in recent times.
One recent example they say is a glamping project on a family farm in Tullycleave, Ardara, which has been developed over the past two years by Francis and Deirdre Connolly, and is now ready to open.

Leader’s Rural Development Manager Frank Kelly says the “Owenea River Rest” project, which received funding of nearly €100,000 is set to be a major success……….

Release in full –
Donegal Local Development CLG (DLDC) as Implementing Partner to the Donegal LCDC,
are always delighted to support communities in a range of ways through the LEADER
Programme. LEADER can help in many ways including assisting to put plans around your
ideas, providing funding for studies as well as enabling capital funding for projects.
One such LEADER supported project enabled Francis and Deirdre Connolly to realise their
vision and develop a Glamping Site on their farm in Ardara, Co. Donegal.
When they approached DLDC in 2018, they were directed to the LEADER Team which
implements the Programme on behalf of the Donegal Local Community Development
Committee (LCDC). They worked closely with Rural Development Manager Frank Kelly and
LEADER Project Officer Laura Martin to submit an application for the development of
“Owenea River Rest”. In January 2019, Francis and Deirdre were awarded €97,744.71
towards the development of the project. 
According to Frank Kelly, DLDC are delighted to be associated with the Owenea River Rest
Tourism project and were pleased to assist in enabling LEADER funding get approved for
this new rural tourism business. In delivering LEADER, the approach is always to prioritise
projects which assist in diversifying the Rural Economy, and in turn, generate economic
activity while helping to sustain and create employment in rural areas. He added that “this
project is a very good example of how LEADER funding can improve and benefit a local
area like Ardara by attracting more people to visit and which in turn will have a positive
knock on effect in the local area.
The project was funded under the theme Economic Development, Enterprise Development
and Job Creation, under the sub-theme of Rural Tourism. As a Farm Diversification Project,
Francis was able to avail of a voluntary labour contribution as a farmer which is of great
benefit to projects like this one.
The 2-acre site has now successfully been converted into a Holiday Park with four
individually designed luxury self-contained cabins (Moonrise Lodge, Mountain View, Sunset
Haven and River Rest) complete with bathrooms, kitchens and living areas. One of the cabins is also wheelchair accessible. This site also has three spaces for Campervans and it will also house a kids play area, barbeque facilities and car parking. The Glamping Site is based in Tullycleave a very popular tourist location, close to Ardara and Portnoo and offers so much history, heritage, adventure and scenery, you’ll never fit it all in one visit! The 2-acre site allows for the visitors to have plenty of space/privacy and also have access to a wide variety of attractions locally.
To find out more:
 https://oweneariverrest.com/ – Visit their website 
 Owenea River Rest – Like them on Facebook 
 oweanea_river_rest – Follow them Instagram 
Keep an eye out for updates when restrictions are lifted for a quiet getaway in a beautiful
rural Donegal location with plenty of walks, historical sites and beaches to see!