The number of trips to Ireland by overseas visitors increased by 19 per cent between 2004 and 2008, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) today.
However, the
Tourism Trends 2008report reveals signs of a slowing sector, with the number of overseas visits down from more than eight million in 2007 to 7.8 million in 2008. Earnings from visitors to Ireland also decreased from 2007 levels to €4,781 million.
Foreign travel remained popular in 2008, with Irish people taking eight million foreign trips; an increase of 47 per cent since 2004. However, the figures reveal that much of this growth took place prior to 2007 and numbers only rose slightly between 2007 and 2008.
Despite the small rise in the number of trips, Irish residents spent €7,583 million on foreign travel, an increase of nearly 11 per cent from 2007. Spain accounted for almost a third of all trips abroad, making it the most popular holiday destination for Irish travellers in 2008, followed by Britain, France and the United States.
A CSO report released last week suggests that the downward trend in tourism has continued this year. The figures showed that overseas visits decreased by 13 per cent between August 2008 and the same month this year. They also revealed that Irish residents took 748,600 foreign trips in August 2009, down nearly 11.5 per cent on the same period in 2008.
Today's report shows a drop in visitor numbers from Ireland's biggest tourist market – Britain - since their peak in 2006. In 2008 the number of visits from Britain was 3,872,000, 4.6 per cent less than in 2006.
Domestic holidays increased by 19 per cent between 2004 and 2008 and the popularity of watersports and hiking doubled. Hiking also doubled in popularity for overseas visitors to Ireland.
A slowdown in the tourism industry is also indicated by price reductions in 2008. Price levels for accommodation services in Ireland fell from July in 2008, according to the Consumer Price Index. In the three years previously, price levels did not begin to fall until September. Room occupancy in hotels in Ireland also fell from 64 per cent in 2007 to 58 per cent in 2008.
The cost of living was still seen as one of the biggest drawbacks for visitors in 2008, as was the weather. The Irish people and the scenery were the biggest attractions.