Source: Shutterstock/Ocskay Bence

THE WILD ATLANTIC Way has been named a ‘Best International Self-Drive Route’, at an awards ceremony in Shanghai.

The campaign that focused along the west coast of Ireland was one of the destinations listed in the ‘Best International Self-Drive Route’ category – along with routes in Sweden, Malaysia, Tasmania, California and Florida.

The winning routes were chosen by about 10 million Chinese travellers, who voted through an online system.

James Kenny, Tourism Ireland (right), accepts the award for the Wild Atlantic Way of ‘Best International Self-Drive Route’, from Mr Liu Yi, CEO of HuiZuChe. Source: Tourism Ireland

Accepting the award, James Kenny, Tourism Ireland’s manager in China, said:

“Chinese travellers have so much choice nowadays, which makes it more important than ever for us to ensure that the island of Ireland really stands out from other destinations – so this award is really good news.”

The awards were organised by a car rental portal in China, HuiZuChe.

Tourism Ireland has offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu. As well as working closely with Chinese travel and lifestyle journalists, the organisation also teams up with businesses in aviation and the travel trade.

Read: Red tape from the EU could choke Irish tourism businesses after Brexit

Read: Seaweed could shield Ireland’s food and drink business from Brexit fallout