Irish people are spending more on holidays, says CSO

IRISH PEOPLE are taking more frequent, longer and more expensive holidays, while the number of overseas visitors to Ireland and the amount they spend has only grown slightly, figures for the first quarter of 2008 reveal.

While the amount of money spent by Irish visitors abroad has increased by more than €300 million, the spend by overseas visitors in Ireland has remained almost stagnant for the first quarter of 2008, Central Statistics Office (CSO), tourism and travel figures from January to March state.

The number of Irish visits abroad increased by 12 per cent in the first quarter of the year, with more than 1.7 million trips abroad, compared to more than 1.5 million in the same period last year. However, these increases could be due to the Easter break falling in the first quarter of the year, the CSO said.

Holidays have been a growing reason for Irish people to travel. Irish people made double the number of leisure trips than they did four years ago, the statistics reveal. Irish travellers have also increased the amount they spend abroad, with an average increase of some €100 per trip.

The average number of nights Irish people spend abroad on holidays has also increased by one day. However, business trips are shorter by one day compared to last year.

Visiting friends and relatives was another growing reason for Irish people to go abroad, increasing by 16 per cent. Despite transatlantic trips from Ireland increasing by over one-third, the number of visitors from the US and Canada remained unchanged in the first quarter.

Visitors to Ireland are up by just 4 per cent and they are staying just one-third of a night extra. Despite this, the number of British visitors to Ireland is up by 10 per cent compared to last year.

While overseas visitors to Ireland spent more than €800 million, Irish people spent over €1.4 billion abroad in the first quarter of the year.

As a result, the net outflow from Ireland has doubled since the same quarter in 2007 as Irish people spend €628 million more abroad than visitors spend in Ireland.

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times