The ‘sea louth’ scenic seafood trail, developed by Louth County Council to showcase the county’s world-class seafood producers and to attract visitors to the county’s scenic coastline, is celebrating its first birthday and the feedback from visitors, food producers and restaurants has been overwhelmingly positive. 

Hundreds of holidaymakers have embarked on the trail to date, filling sea louth ‘passports’ with stamps in exchange for an exclusive memento.

“Though the trail was launched in the midst of a global pandemic, it has proved to be a big hit with visitors who are coming from all over Ireland and further afield,” said Susan Murphy, project lead at Louth County Council.

“sea louth is here to stay, and we welcome visitors year round to ‘sea, eat and admire’ what the county has to offer,” she added.

“Come see where our local seafood producers land their catch, to eat out finest seafood fresh to your table and to admire the stunning coastal views along the way”.

The trail covers the entire 70km stretch of coast, highlighting stunning scenery and the finest local seafood along the way.

Featuring 14 scenic viewpoints, from Drogheda to Omeath; nine producers; and over 40 restaurants, visitors can pick up sea louth ‘passports’ from tourist offices in Drogheda, Dundalk and Carlingford – or download online - and collect uniquely designed scenic viewpoint stamps from designated collection points along the trail.

Two restaurant stamps are needed in addition to complete the passport, and can be earned by choosing a local seafood special from over 40 participating restaurants the length of the trail.

Once completed, passports can be exchanged at the tourist offices for an exclusive sea louth memento. The passport has no expiry date, meaning visitors can come back as many times as they wish and explore the sea louth trail at their leisure.

sea louth has featured in national publications including the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Food and Wine magazine, the Irish Daily Mail, the Sunday Times and the Sunday World. 

Pól O’Conghaile, travel editor of the Irish Independent, recently wrote: “I’ve found a passport that doesn’t involve a stressful application, and a holiday without queues. It won’t whisk you overseas, but it might just bring you a surprising short break here in Ireland.” 

“Bracing air, lively local and succulent seafoof give Ireland’s smallest county huge appeal,” according to Rose Costello at the Sunday Times. 

For further information about the trail and to download a sea louth passport, visit www.sealouth.ie. 

For the latest sea louth news and updates, follow @sea_louth on Instagram and Twitter, and like @sealouth on Facebook for all the latest news and Louth travel inspiration.

The 14 scenic viewpoints along the trail, from north to south, are as follows: Omeath, Carlingford Lough Greenway, Carlingford, Greenore, Templetown Beach, Gyles Quay, Dundalk Bay, Blackrock, Annagassan, Port Beach, Clogherhead, Termonfeckin, Baltray and Drogheda. 

Producers featured in the trail, include: Callaghan & Hoey Fisheries, Carlingford Oyster Company, Gyles Quay Lobster and Crab, Clogherhead Fishermen’s Co-operative, Cooley Oysters, Dunany Crab, Fishermans Catch, Lobsters Direct and Oriel Sea Salt.

Tag #sealouth and #scenicseafoodtrail to share your adventures along the trail. 

There are 41 participating restaurants listed in the sea louth passport. Please note, these are subject to change. To see the current list, scan the QR code on the reverse of the passport.