issued November 2005

Tourism Ireland's Craic Pack

Lonely Planet has joined with Tourism Ireland to produce The Craic Pack, the ultimate mini-guide to Ireland for younger travellers.

Developed as an essential add-on for those already going to Ireland, or as the inspiration for booking the trip in the first place, The Craic Pack provides insights on many regions as well as tips on working holidays, festivals and the lesser-known beauty of Ireland's Islands. Both Dublin and Belfast are also covered, providing the most current information from Lonely Planet's sources - making it even more up-to-date than the current Lonely Planet Ireland guide!

Lonely Planet co-founder, Maureen Wheeler, originally hails from Belfast and has written a personal reflection on Ireland as an introduction to the booklet. Maureen's depiction of Ireland is certainly glowing – The Antrim Coast Road shimmered in the heat, and in Enniskillen the peace of the lakes, the green of the fields, interspersed with many coloured wildflowers looked like a painted backdrop for Finian’s Rainbow – but the focus is on offering practical insights for young travellers looking to have fun, either as independent travellers or those on organised tours.

According to Jeff Trounce, Lonely Planet Business Development Manager, "the challenge Lonely Planet faces in working with tourism authorities is that our editorial independence and reputation for genuine opinion are not always what the tourism people want to hear. In this case there wasn't any problem as so much of what we wanted to say about Ireland was so positive!”

The Craic Pack will be distributed for free within Australia and New Zealand as part of a "Win a trip to Ireland" consumer competition.