Enhancing the visitor experience
Posted on: 06 April 2017
Over two million visitors come to Trinity each year. This summer they will enjoy an enhanced visitor experience with new developments such as the refurbished entrance at Nassau Street, a refreshed Book of Kells exhibition and a brand new visitor centre in Regent House.
Greeting people as they enter from Nassau Street is a new nine-screen digital wall, wood panelled walling and ticket kiosks. The digital wall provides visitors, students and staff alike with information on events being held on campus, things to see and do and improved wayfinding. Further projects in the pipeline include implementing a campus tours policy to allow only authorised tour providers access the campus and a visitor app to complete the visitor experience.
Trinity’s iconic campus has plenty to offer the culturally curious visitor during the summer months: the Book of Kells and Long Room, housing 200,000 of the Library’s oldest books, one of the few remaining copies of the 1916 Proclamation and the Brian Boru Harp; Science Gallery Dublin; the Zoological Museum; and student-led walking tours as well as summer accommodation and restaurants on the beautiful 40 acre campus.
“Visitors to the Book of Kells and Old Library Exhibition reached nearly 900,000 in 2016, an increase of 42% since 2013. Featuring again in Fáilte Ireland’s list of top 10 Irish attractions, visitors come from all over the world with increasing numbers from France, Germany, Ireland, China and the US in particular,” explained Anne-Marie Diffley, Visitor Services Manager. Anne-Marie, who has been working in the Old Library for 25 years, has observed a huge increase in visitors in the past decade.
Trinity saw the fourth year of consecutive growth of visitors on campus in 2016 at its other leading attractions: over 7,000 people visited the Zoological Museum from last June to September to view the unique 200-year-old collection, which includes approximately 25,000 specimens from Ireland and further afield. While in Science Gallery Dublin there was a record breaking 429,000 visitors to its four exhibitions.
Visitor numbers to Trinity are expected to rise in 2017. With the recent enhancements they will enjoy an improved experience in a world-class visitor destination.
A team of student Welcome Ambassadors work during the peak tourist season, June to October, promoting the University’s venues and facilities open to the public as part of the Trinity visitor experience. This summer, for the third year running, these students will be a real point of difference to visitors who love engaging with them as they share insider knowledge on Trinity student life.
The Welcome Ambassador programme is being extended this year to include support for conference events, incorporating general orientation, client liaison and helping to ensure the conference delegates can explore all of the campus.
In response to demand from visitors the Trinity Gift Shop has expanded its range of gifts, the most recent being a new range of sportswear inspired by Trinity Rugby’s iconic kit. All revenue generated directly benefits Trinity, contributing to the University’s academic mission of teaching and research.