Dublin is not a “bargain bucket” destination for tourists and probably never will be, the director of the Little Museum of Dublin has said, but tourism and hospitality operators must deliver value for customers to win repeat business.
Trevor White, who founded the museum in a Georgian town house on Dublin’s St Stephen’s Green in 2011, also said tourism agencies are “anxiously” trying to develop new markets, given the Irish industry’s “over-reliance” on US visitors.
Mr White was speaking to The Irish Times after the Little Museum filed new accounts with the Charities Regulator for 2024.
Income at the Little Museum increased from €1.4 million in 2023 to almost €1.7 million, largely due to an increase in revenues from charitable activities.
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The results are particularly strong given its St Stephen’s Green premises were closed for renovation for much of 2024, with the attraction temporarily rehoused in Pembroke Street. It reopened in June 2025 after a €4.3 million refurbishment of the site.
The venue was left with a surplus of €634,317 for the 2024 financial year, up from €315,087.
The Little Museum accumulated total funds in excess of €2 million at the end of 2024, up from €1.4 million in 2023, according to the filings.
In a report attached to the accounts, the directors said the venue welcomed 79,749 guests in 2023, down from 104,757.
“The drop is directly attributable to the museum’s temporary relocation at a pop-up space on Pembroke Street during our essential accessibility and renovation works,” they said.
The Little Museum, which employed 17 people last year, received €545,202 in capital grants in the year and €70,000 from the Department of Tourism, the filings reveal.
Mr White said visitor numbers increased in 2025 after the museum reopened.
“We had a gobsmacking year,” he said. “We had a terrific summer, but I suspect we’re rather unusual in that regard.”
While he said the Little Museum was “fortunate” to have a lot of repeat business in 2025, the wider tourism industry has faced challenges amid a decline in visitors this year from Britain and Europe.
“There’s certainly a fear within the industry that we’re over-reliant on American business,” Mr White said. “And I think that’s a legitimate fear. I have to say that the tourism agencies are very much alive to that, and they’re kind of anxiously trying to develop revenue.”
Regarding the perception of Dublin and Ireland more generally as an expensive place to plan a trip, Mr White said the capital was “still a fantastic place to visit”. However, he said: “We’re not a bargain bucket destination and, frankly, I’m not sure we ever will be”.
There is a recognition within the industry that “you’re not going to get repeat business if you’re ripping people off”, but the country needs to be “wary” of this issue and the cost of doing business, Mr White added.
