Since being crowned the Rose of Tralee last August, Maria Walsh has travelled over 65,000 miles from Kolkata, India to the National Ploughing Championships in Laois. Now she is preparing for another trip, this time around Ireland - to find her successor.

On Monday 12 January, Maria will set off from Newbridge, Co Kildare, home of the festival’s biggest sponsor, to visit 32 counties in 15 days, all to encourage young women to take part in what she found to be a life-altering event.

An estimated 1000 women aged between 18 and 27 will apply to the Rose of Tralee this year. The hopefuls will then take part in selection events around Ireland and eleven countries worldwide.

After the number of Roses is further whittled down at the Rose of Tralee Regional Festival in County Laois in May, a grand total of 32 Roses will take part in the Rose of Tralee International Festival in the Dome in August.

Maria, who is the 56th Rose of Tralee, said: “I can’t really find one word to share how extraordinary the win has been. It has been a busy few months meeting people on my travels to Ireland, India and South Africa and on all of these journeys I have shared my wonderful experiences of the Rose of Tralee International Festival. I’m looking forward to welcoming many more people into the Rose of Tralee family over the coming weeks and months.”

The 2015 Rose of Tralee will win a trove of Newbridge Jewellery and Homeware from Newbridge Silverware, a World Travel Prize valued at €25,000 from The Loop at Dublin and Cork Airports and she will drive a Kia Soul car for the year of her reign, courtesy of Kia Motors Ireland and McElligotts Kia, Tralee.

The Rose of Tralee festival will take place from Friday 14 to Tuesday 18 August.

Full details on how to enter are available here or by phoning (066) 7121322.