Ireland must stop ripping off tourists if it is to continue to benefit from the increasing number of American tourists, Minister for Tourism John O'Donoghue said today.
John O'Donoghue
Speaking at the announcement of the North America: Land of Opportunitystrategy, aimed at boosting tourism from North America, Mr O'Donoghue said Ireland needs to "tackle value-for-money issues" and that an improvement in the "warmth of our welcome" was necessary.
According to research by Tourism Ireland, Ireland has seen a 30 per cent increase in the number of Americans travelling here over the past five years.
The Republic is the sixth-most popular European tourist destination for Americans, with almost one million visiting annually. Only Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Spain attracted more American tourists last year.
The Tourism Ireland study also found that 56 per cent of US travellers are "extremely or very likely to visit or revisit Ireland", with almost half of these expressing an interest in visiting within the next five years.
Mr O'Donoghue said the country had a "sizeable and unique" opportunity to avail of the growth in the number of tourists arriving here by refocusing marketing efforts.
Tourism Ireland chief executive Paul O'Toole called on the tourist industry to introduce new services to aid this new profile of visitors.
One of the recommended services is the use of Shannon airport as a "gateway" for tourists. A new "open skies" arrangement is also to be examined, with the aim of facilitating tourists travelling from the west and south of the United States.