Irish lap up luxury trips abroad as sales surge

Holidays to Spain up by 20,000 and more take to the Wild Atlantic Way

AN astonishing rise in fivestar holidays is being driven by cash- and pension-rich retirees and honeymooners who are prepared to spend thousands on a once-in-alifetime holiday — despite the crushing burden of securing and paying for a mortgage.

Not only are the Irish going on more foreign holidays this year, but they are also spending far more on their vacation, latest figures show.

Expensive ocean and international river cruises are up a massive 17pc and an extra 20,000 people will travel to Spain in 2016 compared with last year.

On this Bank Holiday weekend, the busiest of the year on our roads, ports and airports, the Irish hospitality industry predicts that €70m will be spent over the threeday break.

It’s a potent sign of some recovery in the economy and renewed confidence — though tourism leaders say the rising tide has not lifted all boats.

Some areas of the country have not received the same fillip as key destinations along the Wild Atlantic Way, Dublin and Cork.

There was a whiff of Celtic Tiger exuberance last week after a punter spent €2,000 on two glasses of whiskey at the Galway Races, and yesterday the Ballybrit racecourse was again packed as the younger Bank Holiday set arrived to replace the seasoned racegoers who had travelled in huge numbers to the festival from last Monday.

But tourism chiefs have mostly been buoyed by the increases in Irish holidaymakers travelling abroad.

Bargain holidays became the norm during the recession, but the more expensive end of the market has rebounded in the last year.

Travel trade sources say many newlyweds in particular are willing to break the budget for a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ exotic holiday. Among the favoured destinations are South Africa, St Lucia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Thailand and Canada.

Despite the fact that the current generation of young couples face major challenges in coming up with a mortgage deposit — coupled with repayments that are increasingly out of sync with average earnings — the desire for a quality honeymoon break has sharpened.

Pat Dawson, CEO of the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA), said it is now the “norm” for honeymoon couples to spend up to three weeks overseas.

“This market is very, very strong, with an average spend of between €3,000 and €4,000. People are getting married a lot later in life. Even a couple of decades ago, it was at 24 or 25 years, but now it’s the other side of 30, and many are fairly established in their jobs at this stage.”

One travel agent based in Dublin described it as a “psychological thing”.

“Newly-marrieds know they are going to be in straitened financial circumstances for the first few years of their married life. So they’re willing to pay for a real high-class holiday, which will give them something to remember as part of their overall wedding experience.”

This latest trend is part of a general increase in the amount Irish people are now spending on foreign holidays.

Travel agents report that river cruises, luxury spa breaks and five-star all-inclusive resorts are doing a brisk trade.

Retirees on generous pensions make up a large proportion of those now spending more on their holidays — but young professionals are also digging deep to have a quality annual break.

Meanwhile, the domestic holiday market also remains “robust”, increasing by 6pc compared to last year.

Alex Connolly of Failte Ireland said that not only are more people holidaying at home, but they’re also spending more money, with the figure up 10pc on 2015.

Junior Sport and Tourism Minister Patrick O’Donovan said there is “massive optimism” in the tourism sector.

He said he expects tourism numbers to continue to rise over the rest of the summer season and match or exceed projected figures.

It comes as favoured destinations and a range of businesses around the country will see the economy boosted by hundreds of millions of euro this weekend, as consumer confidence returns to levels not seen for a decade.

Restaurants and bars expect to receive an extra €70m.

However, experts warn that only select parts of the country are seeing a substantial financial recovery.

More than 388,000 passengers will travel through Dublin Airport this weekend.

This figure is up 10pc on last year.