Overseas visits to Ireland were up by 7.6% for first five months of 2018, compared to the same period last year, according to the latest CSO data released today.
The figures show that Ireland had a total of 3.8m overseas visitors from January to May, with over 700,000 visitors from North America (+12.4%), and just over 1.4m from Mainland Europe (+12.3), with both Germany (+26%) and Italy (+16%) growing strongly. British visitor numbers also increased by 2.4% to 1.47m, and visitors from all other areas grew by 0.6%.
Welcoming today’s figures, Fáilte Ireland’s Chief Executive Paul Kelly said:
“Overall, today’s results reflect further significant tourism growth from overseas. Additionally, anecdotal evidence from the industry is telling us that the current good spell of weather is also generating a domestic dividend with increased home holiday activity. All of this is great news in a sector that sustains 235,000 jobs and generates €1.7bn in exchequer funding - €1,000 for every household in Ireland.
“The key focus for Irish tourism must now be to sustain this performance. The potential for further growth – and significant increases in jobs and exchequer revenue - is very much within our grasp, particularly with the increase in air access from North America, Europe and China. The main barrier for us in realising this potential will be our capacity to provide these visitors with outstanding holiday experiences and maintain a strong value for money reputation. Therefore it is incumbent on both public and private sector organisations throughout the country to invest and facilitate the growth of tourism capacity in accommodation, attractions and transport. For our own part, Fáilte Ireland is investing in attractions, activities and festivals across the country to ensure a good regional spread of tourism activity and a broader tourism calendar in order to cater for growing visitor numbers.”
Overseas Visitors to Ireland Jan-May 2018
|
|
All Visitors (Overnight & Day trips)
(000) |
|
|
Jan-May 2017 |
Jan-May 2018 |
% Change |
|
Britain |
1,436 |
1,471 |
2.4 |
|
North America |
663 |
745 |
12.4 |
|
Mainland Europe |
1,261 |
1416 |
12.3 |
|
France |
221 |
219 |
-1.0 |
|
Germany |
231 |
290 |
25.8 |
|
Italy |
123 |
142 |
15.8 |
|
Spain |
159 |
163 |
2.7 |
|
Other Europe |
528 |
602 |
14.0 |
|
Other Areas |
213 |
214 |
0.6 |
|
Australia/New Zealand |
67 |
68 |
1.0 |
|
Other long haul areas |
146 |
146 |
0.2 |
|
Total Visitors |
3,573 |
3,846 |
7.6 |
Source: CSO Overseas Travel, 27 Jun 2018
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