EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum Named Europe’s Leading Tourist Attraction

A museum that celebrates the Irish diaspora has been named Europe’s Leading Tourist Attraction at the World Travel Awards for the second consecutive year.

EPIC, the Irish Emigration Museum, located in Dublin, provides an interactive experience that narrates the story of Ireland’s emigrants. For the second year running, it won the title of Europe’s Leading Attraction at the World Travel Awards, widely regarded as the ‘Oscars’ of the travel industry. Voted by the public, EPIC triumphed over renowned landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, the Eiffel Tower, and the Colosseum, making it the first attraction to achieve this prestigious recognition twice in the awards’ 27-year history.

In response to the award, Ireland’s president Michael D Higgins remarked, “The award is public recognition for its role in highlighting Ireland’s emigrant experiences, its causes and consequences, and its relevance to the stories of those who are, today, escaping marginalization, poverty, and conflict.”

The museum documents the substantial impact made by Irish emigrants around the world, the challenges they encountered, and how they contributed to shaping the cultures of their new homelands. Furthermore, it provides avenues for visitors seeking to trace their Irish roots. During the pandemic, the museum adapted effectively to social distancing requirements through a series of workshops, webinars, and virtual tours, leading to over 20,000 online visitors in 2020.

Patrick Greene, director of the EPIC Museum, expressed pride in receiving this recognition two years in a row, stating, “In the same spirit that more people are ‘shopping local’, we hope that Irish individuals will have even more reasons to explore a two-time winner tourist attraction located right on their doorstep and that we’ll again become a must-see destination for overseas visitors soon.”