HOL LOT OF US STAYING HOME

Tourism set for bumper year

BUSINESS is up for hotels and guesthouses around the country as more people are choosing to holiday at home.

More than two-thirds of Irish hoteliers have reported a hike in staycations so far this year . The majority of them say advance bookings for the rest of 2017 have jumped up as well. There’s also been a rise in advance bookings from the US, Germany and France. The figures indicate the Emerald Isle is set to host even more overseas visitors than the 8.8 million who holidayed here in 2016. The only bum note is the increase in international guests does not include British holiday- makers, according to an Irish Hotels Federation report. IHF president Joe Dolan warned Brexit has already impacted on the country’s tourism sector when examining the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office. He said: “Visitor numbers are up, which is good news and the growth in domestic tourism is particularly encouraging as it extends beyond the traditional tourism hot spots and its impact on local economies can be felt more widely.” “However, the latest CSO figures show a continued fall in UK visitors – our biggest market – which illustrates the fragility of the tourism recovery.” The industry is Ireland’s lifeblood as it supports about 230,000 jobs, which is 11% of the country’s total employment. Happily this jobs figure is set to increase with 40,000 new roles expected by 2021. Mr Dolan said it is key for the Irish tourism industry to stay competitive with the likes of tax incentives so that the country is an enticing holiday destination. He added: “Enormous strides have already been made in the development of our products and brands including the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Ancient East and ‘Dublin – A Breath of Fresh Air’. “Time and time again, Irish tourism has shown itself to be an excellent investment with every euro spent in destination marketing by the state resulting in €34 being spent by visitors in the country.”