SOME 190 iconic landmarks and sites around the world will be illuminated in green over the coming days – as part of Tourism Ireland’s 2016 Global Greening initiative to celebrate the island of Ireland and St Patrick.
Even the Derrys Clipper race yacht got in on the celebration as it is moored in Qingdao, China.
From Rome to Rio and from London to Las Vegas, a host of buildings and sites around the world are turning a shade of green to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.
New sites taking part in 2016 include 7 World Trade Center at Ground Zero in New York, Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Yas Viceroy hotel in Abu Dhabi and the Nelson Mandela statue in Johannesburg.
They are joined by some ‘old favourites’ which have gone green in previous years – including the Colosseum in Rome, the Sacré Cœur basilica in Paris, the Great Wall of China, Niagara Falls and the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro.
Tourism Ireland’s annual Global Greening initiative has gone from strength to strength – from its beginning in 2010, with just the Sydney Opera House and the Sky Tower in Auckland going green, to this year, with some 190 sites taking part.
Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, said: “This is the seventh year of Tourism Ireland’s Global Greening initiative and it’s bigger and better than ever this year, with some wonderful newadditions like 7 World Trade Center in New York, the Boston Red Sox, the light rail system in Addis Abba and even an opera house in the heart of the Amazon rainforest.
“St Patrick’s Day traditionally marks the real start of the tourism season for us; our aim is to bring a smile to the faces of people around the world and to convey the message that Ireland offers the warmest of welcomes and great fun, as well as wonderful scenery and heritage.
“Our St Patrick’s programme spans Great Britain, Mainland Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand, as well as emerging tourism markets like China, India, Brazil, the Middle East and South Africa.
“We are using every opportunity to capitalise on the island of Ireland’s heightened profile this week; the saturation coverage across the global airwaves, in newspapers and digital media, is an invaluable boost for our overall 2016 tourism promotional drive.”
LANDMARKS AND ICONIC SITES AROUND THE WORLD JOINING TOURISM IRELAND’S ‘GLOBAL GREENING’ FOR ST PATRICK’S DAY 2016
Great Britain
- London Eye
- Nelson’s Column, London
- ExCel, London *
- Selfridges, London
- Selfridges, Birmingham
- Stoke Park Golf Club, Buckinghamshire *
- Trafford Centre, Manchester *
- Town Hall clock, Manchester
- Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Newcastle upon Tyne *
- ‘Armadillo’ (SECC), Glasgow
- The SSE Hydro, Glasgow
North America
United States
- 7 World Trade Center, Ground Zero, New York *
- Aisling Irish Community Center, New York *
- Boston Red Sox (baseball team) *
- Fenway Park (home of the Boston Red Sox), Boston *
- Empire State Building, New York
- Reunion Tower, Dallas *
- ‘Welcome’ sign, Las Vegas
- High Roller, Las Vegas
- Bridgestone Arena, Nashville *
- Chicago Board of Trade building
- Chicago Gaelic Park *
- John Hancock Center, Chicago
- Navy Pier, Chicago
- One Prudential Plaza, Chicago *
- Sheraton Grand Chicago *
- Soldier Field (home to the famous Chicago Bears team), Chicago
- State Street, Chicago
- United Center (home to the Chicago Blackhawks and Chicago Bulls), Chicago
- Wrigley Building, Chicago
Canada
- Niagara Falls (on both the Canadian and US sides)
- Turbo the Goat, Toronto *
- Casa Loma, Toronto *
- The Distillery District, Toronto *
- Courtyard by Marriott hotel, Toronto *
- City Hall, Toronto
- Breakfast Television studio, Toronto
- Calgary Tower *
- Hôtel de Ville, Montreal
- St Patrick’s Basilica, Montreal *
- Olympic Stadium, Montreal
- Complexe Desjardins, Montreal
- La Tour McGill (McGill College tower), Montreal
- McTavish Reservoir, Montreal
- Verdun Borough Hall, Montreal
- Canadian Museum of Nature, Ottawa
- Cabot Tower on Signal Hill, St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador
Mainland Europe
Austria
- Burgtheater, Vienna
- Bridges on the River Danube, Vienna *
- Wiener Riesenrad (Giant Ferris Wheel in the Prater Amusement Park), Vienna
- Bergisel Sprungschanze Stadion (ski jump), Innsbruck *
- Skiwelt Söll (ski resort)
- Löwensaal, Hohenems
- Kaprun Castle, Zell-am-See region
Belgium
- Grand Place, Brussels
- Manneken Pis statue, Brussels (“dressed” in Irish costume)
- Burg, Bruges
- Belfry, Mons
Bulgaria
- National Palace of Culture (NDK), Sofia *
Czech Republic
- Petřín Lookout Tower, Prague
- Mahen Theatre, Brno *
- City Hall, Ostrava
Cyprus
- Municipality Building, Nicosia *
Denmark
- Den Blå Planet (national aquarium), Copenhagen *
Finland
- Lahti Radio Towers *
- Ice swimming lake and swimmers, Tampere *
France
- Roue de Paris (Big Wheel), Tuileries Gardens, Paris *
- Sacré-Cœur Basilica, Paris
- BHV Marais (Bazar de l’Hôtel de Ville – department store), Paris *
- Sleeping Beauty castle at Disneyland® Paris
- Château de la Muette (headquarters of the OECD), Paris
- Galeries Lafayette, Paris
- Drugstore Publicis, Paris
- Irish Embassy, Paris
- Porte de Bourgogne, Bordeaux
- Porte Dijeaux, Bordeaux *
- Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, Cannes
- La Croisette, Cannes
- La Mairie, Cannes
- Tour de la Castre au Suquet, Cannes
- La Manufacture des Tabacs, Lyon *
- Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, Lyon
- Le Palais de Justice, Lyon
- Le Musée des Confluences, Lyon
- Mairie de Villeurbanne, Lyon
- Astroballe (indoor sporting arena), Lyon
- Opéra Comédie, Montpellier *
- Aéroport Montpellier Méditerrannée *