Fáilte Ireland is this week supporting hospitality and tourism businesses to showcase the best of Ireland to 250 top international wedding planners, designers and influencers from over 18 countries at the major Engage! Luxury Destination Wedding Summit – all with a focus on driving revenue from this growing market for regions across the country.
The Engage! Summit is being hosted in Ireland for the first time, following a successful event bid led by Adare Manor and Conference Ambassador Tara Fay, supported by Fáilte Ireland and Shannon Regional Conference and Sports Bureau. Over 80% of overseas luxury destination weddings are influenced by a wedding planner, and this week’s event will be an opportunity to showcase the country to leading wedding industry buyers from key European, US and emerging markets.
Over the course of the conference, Fáilte Ireland will highlight sample itineraries and visitor experiences for prospective wedding parties, as well as Ireland’s attractiveness as a wedding destination through its high-quality food, variety of venues and luxury offerings, and its world-class hospitality and scenery.
The tourism agency will also unveil its new suite of wedding images on IrelandsContentPool.com, which were completed with the support of renowned US wedding photographer Eric Kelley. Additionally, to coincide with the event, Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland have collaborated on creating new Destination Wedding pages on www.Ireland.com to present Ireland to overseas wedding consumers - all of which will help the planners to successfully sell Ireland to their clients.
A key focus will also be on driving growth from the overseas wedding market across the entire country, with a bespoke familiarisation trip being provided for some of the most influential planners at the event. This will include dinner at Dromoland Castle in Clare, experiencing the Belmond Grand Hibernian Luxury Train, a stay at Ashford Castle in Mayo, period dining and a stay at Ballyfin Demesne in Laois as well as presenting the luxury-shopping offering for wedding party guests at Kildare Village. The tour will finish with a stay at the Merrion Hotel in Dublin as well as a unique experience at Dublin’s Christchurch Cathedral.
Speaking about Fáilte Ireland’s work to target the overseas wedding market, Head of Commercial Development, Paul Mockler, said:
“We know that the overseas wedding market already generates around €70m in revenue for Ireland – in addition to the estimated €150m in spend which comes from overseas wedding guests. At Fáilte Ireland, this is a market we’re keen to tap into as it has the potential to bring even more revenue to our shores, particularly to the regions. This market also has the ability to bring off-season business to regional Ireland, another core focus of Fáilte Ireland’s wider work.
“This is the first time Ireland has hosted an event like Engage!, and this week’s conference will give us the unprecedented opportunity to directly target 250 influential wedding planners. I’m confident that the top-quality Irish suppliers presenting at Engage! will provide these buyers with countless reasons to sell Ireland as a premier and unique wedding destination to their clients.”
Engage! Founders Kathryn Arce and Rebecca Grinnals said:
"Bringing Engage! to Ireland has been such a positive experience. From the welcome and detail of our first site inspection through to agreeing the finer points of the event programme over the last 12 months, we have been fortunate to work with the most committed Irish suppliers. The highly professional team at Adare Manor have continually exceeded expectations in engaging with us as true partners, sharing our passion and dedication to deliver the most authentic and creative Irish Experience that is #beyondeverything we could have imagined. We have every confidence this will deliver some truly amazing events and destination weddings to Ireland in the future.”
Speaking today, Paul Heery, General Manager at Adare Manor said:
“We are delighted to welcome the Engage! team and delegates to Ireland and Adare Manor. This global industry leading event attracts the best of the best from around the world, who come together to discuss and share innovative ideas. One of the most popular industry events in the global calendar, it allows for open and honest networking in a non-client and non-competitive environment. Careful attention is paid by Engage! to create an intimate atmosphere for every individual attending that blends structure and downtime, and here at Adare Manor, this is what we do best. We take great pride in hosting this international delegation as we believe it is a huge opportunity for Adare Manor, Limerick and Ireland to have this summit here in Adare. The opportunity to showcase what we have to offer for destination weddings and events worldwide is immense”.
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