Survey finds 31% growth in domestic tourism

The number of domestic trips has increased by 31 per cent over five years, a Central Statistics report on domestic tourism has found, but stays in B&Bs and guesthouse accommodation have fallen by 4 per cent. There has also been a significant decline, of 22 per cent, in the number of B&Bs and guesthouses registered.

Some 39 million trips were taken by residents within the State between 2000 and 2005 involving at least one overnight stay away from home, amounting to almost 139 million nights. Some 7.2 million trips were taken in 2005 compared with 5.5 million in 2000.

B&B and guesthouse trips went down from 13.2 per cent of the overall number in 2000, to 9.2 per cent in 2005, while the numbers registered of both types of premises went down from 4,605 in 2000 to 3,607 in 2005.

During the same period there was a decline of 34 per cent in one-star hotels and 6 per cent in two-star hotels. However, hotels with four stars increased by 41 per cent and three-star and five-star hotels also showed an increase.

Almost 80 per cent of all trips taken over the five years were for recreational purposes. Some 45 per cent of these were considered holidays by the participants while 34 per cent were to visit friends and relatives.

Residents in the Dublin region took the longest trips, on average 4.7 nights, while domestic nights spent by owners in their holiday homes doubled over the five years, to 2.2 million in 2005.