Public toilets at Mayo tourism site are in 'disgraceful' state

The condition of the public toilets in Knock village have been described as “disgraceful”, with complaints of no toilet paper, broken door locks and filthy facilities. 

The public toilets in question are located near the stalls on the Kiltimagh side of the village and are not ones in the Shrine grounds.

Cllr Richard Finn raised the issue at the September meeting of Claremorris and Swinford Municipal District after a bus driver from Donegal, who was bringing a group of tourists to Knock for the day, contacted him. He said the condition of the toilets had “gone to a new level” two weeks ago during the “height of the pilgrim season”.

Cllr Finn told the meeting the bus driver had reported “no toilet paper, no door locks, and everything filthy”, which he said was not acceptable in a public place where “a million and a half tourists come every year”.

The annual Knock Novena, which attracts thousands of pilgrims, has just concluded, while large numbers of visitors also flock to Knock throughout the summer tourism season.

Cllr Finn said visitors to Knock were entitled to proper facilities, comparing the situation to past complaints about the condition of toilets at Croagh Patrick.

“The Shrine brings tourism, funding, and everything else into the county,” he said, asking for something to be done “over the next few weeks, not months”, to bring the toilets to standard.

Municipal district head Padraic Flanagan said there was a “gap in the caretaking” of the toilets that had now been addressed.

“There’s minor issues there that aren’t acceptable, they will be fixed straight away,” he said.

Mr Flanagan informed councillors that a budget submission had already been made for 2027, and a refurbishment programme for the toilets at Knock is included.

“I have seen it myself. They are ‘worse for wear’ is the best way to describe it. They need a lot of tidying up. We don't have the resources [now], but have applied for that."

Cllr Finn said the complaint was particularly concerning because it came from a visitor.

“When bus drivers from other counties who are bringing 50 or 60 people start ringing up local representatives to say that [the toilets] are a disgrace, it's not easy to defend it,” he said. “We need to tackle this straight away and sort it out. Even though it is the end of the season, for next season it cannot be allowed to continue."

Mr Flanagan assured the meeting that funding was being sought for refurbishment in early 2027 and any works that could be afforded would be carried out in the interim.

• Published as part of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.