More than 80% of visitors book trips online

AT LEAST 80 per cent of tourists visiting Ireland are now buying some part of their trip online, according to a report issued yesterday.

The Tourism and Travel Distribution in a Changed World report said 80 per cent of tourists visiting Ireland used the internet to buy some element of the trip in 2008.

The report said the figure would increase as mobile internet technologies, such as smartphones, increased their market share.

The report was commissioned by the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation to look at the changes in how people buy travel and tourist products. It found 65 per cent of European travellers used websites as a first source in researching a holiday. More than one-third started their research by using a search engine and almost half visited more than five websites before making a purchase.

The report said people were more likely to trust consumer reviews than advice from experts.

“In an Irish context, a typical month could include as many as three million unique visits to Trip Advisor [website] with almost 3,500 accommodation establishments and over 2,000 Irish restaurants viewed by potential visitors.”

It highlighted the need for tourism providers to manage their reputations online and monitor what is being said about their businesses on social media websites.

The report recommended Tourism Ireland develop a strategy for managing the reputation of Irish tourism on such websites.

Introducing the report, Minister for Tourism Mary Hanafin said the past week clearly illustrated the power of social networking sites.

Referring to the controversy over Taoiseach Brian Cowen’s Morning Ireland interview, she said it showed how easily a comment on a site such as Twitter could be sent around the world instantly.

The confederation’s chairman Tom Haughey said the study highlighted the need for Irish tourism providers to respond to the internet’s increasing role in planning and booking holidays.