Sunday 4th March 2007

CONTINUED VIGILENCE REQUIRED TO SAFEGUARD IRISH TOURISM

IHF Annual Report reveals

The total value of tourism revenues rose to €5.9 billion in 2006 compared to €5.3 billion in 2005, making tourism Ireland’s most important indigenous industry accounting for 3.1% of GNP. Speaking today on the eve of the launch of the IHF’s 2006 Annual Report and Review at its 69th Annual Conference, John Power, Chief Executive, commented that strong headline figures for 2006 continue to conceal the steady erosion in regional tourism since 1999. He states that, while Government policy now recognises tourism as a vital component within the Irish economy, continued support and vigilance will be required by the next Government to ensure that Ireland does not channel itself into a city break destination for overseas visitors but widens its offering to preserve and grow its regional tourism offering.

According to the IHF, growth in visitors has been impressive. It stated that visitors from Britain increased by 4% to 3.8 million in 2006 with visitors from Mainland Europe increasing by 17% to 2.3 million and visitors from North America increasing by 11% to over 1 million - a figure not surpassed since 2000. Total tourism revenue in 2006 grew by 11% compared with 2005, contributing €4.6 billion in foreign exchange earnings and a further €1.3 billion in domestic tourism revenue. The domestic market continues to be important in terms of its size with figures for the first nine months of 2006 indicating an increase of almost 13% in domestic holiday trips and an increase of over 20% in domestic holiday expenditure. The tourism sector as a whole contributed some €2.7 billion to the Exchequer and now employs over 160,000 people, of which 57,000 are in the accommodation sector.

“While Government targets to increase the overall visitor headcount to 10 million by 2012 are to be commended, it is vital that we pay heed to the length of time visitors are spending in our country and the knock on effects the trend for shorter breaks is having on total tourism revenue. As an industry we must remain focused on creating and delivering complete quality experiences that meet the high expectations of visitors. With intense competition from other international destinations, we must not lose sight of the key qualities that make our tourism product strong. This will require a clear vision and direction in developing Irish tourism and a commitment by state bodies and industry leaders to invest in innovative and creative offerings while safeguarding the traditional strengths of Ireland’s tourism product,” adds Mr Power.

As an industry, hotels and guesthouses in Ireland continue to deliver the highest quality of service in a highly competitive market. Mr Power states, “It is good to see that the regional distribution of tourism in 2006 improved somewhat with the Western seaboard regions, Southwest, Shannon and the West recording higher levels of growth than Dublin and the Eastern regions. However the sustained development of tourism across all regions remains one of the most pressing issues facing the Irish tourist industry. The new partnership structures for tourism at regional level, put in place by Fáilte Ireland with the major involvement of the tourist industry, during the latter half of 2006, will provide a new well-funded vehicle to drive sustained recovery of tourism across all regions. ”

The IHF maintains that the setting up of three new 'super regions' for the purposes of overseas promotion is a strategic step in re-invigorating the regions. The benchmark for success of this initiative will be the strength of communicating compelling reasons to visit the regions to overseas leisure tourists.

Mr Power adds, “It is gratifying that the National Development Plan provides for an Exchequer investment of €800 million over the next seven years. Of particular note is the NDP’s focus on improving regional transport infrastructure. This will result in greater access to the regions and will assists in achieving sustainable growth in regional tourism. This focus will greatly facilitate the newly created Regional Tourism Development Boards fulfil their marketing objectives.”

Commenting on the recent reclassification scheme for hotels and guesthouses developed in conjunction with Fáilte Ireland, Mr Power, states, “This new scheme will provide for more open and transparent classification of premises which will provide the public, through a dedicated website, the detailed basis on which each hotel and guesthouse achieves its classification. It will provide Ireland’s tourism industry with one of the most modern classification schemes in Europe based on clear and objective criteria representing the distinct character and range of facilities of individual premises.”

Mr Power notes that the Federation’s Be Our Guest guide continued to be the leading and most comprehensive guide to accommodation in Ireland with some 340,000 copies of the 2007 guide distributed in Ireland and overseas. He also noted the continued growth of Irelandhotels.com with the volume of bookings on the site increasing by 35% in 2006 and the value of bookings increasing by 29% to over €4 million over 2005.

There are now 873 hotels with over 53,600 bedrooms and 383 guesthouses with over 4,400 bedrooms in Ireland. The number of people employed in hotels and guesthouses in 2006 has been maintained at 57,000, making IHF members the largest employers in the tourism sector.

Overseas Visitor Numbers 2006

FOR INFORMATION:
Siobhan Molloy/Eoin Quinn
Mobile: 086 8175 066 / 087 2332 191
Weber Shandwick FCC               

HOTEL & GUESTHOUSE STATISTICS 2006
69th IHF ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Sunday 4th to Tuesday 6th March 2006

• 7.4 million overseas visitors to Ireland in 2006 (6.7 million in 2004), a 9% increase on 2005.
• €4.66 billion foreign exchange earnings in 2006, compared with €4.3 billion foreign exchange earnings in 2005.
• Total tourism revenue in 2006 grew to approximately €5.9 billion compared to €5.3 billion in 2005.
• 57,000 people employed in the hotel and guesthouse sector – largest employer in the tourism sector.
• Visitors from North America surpassed 1 million, an increase of 11% on 2005, while European visitor numbers reached 2.3 million, an increase of 17% on 2005.
• 873 hotels with over 52,600 rooms (870 hotels with 47,000 rooms in 2005).
• 383 guesthouses with over 4,433 rooms (440 guest houses in 2005).
• Total of over 57,600 hotel and guesthouse bedrooms in Ireland. 
• 2% of all hotels are five star status, 10% are four star 36% are three star, 21% are two star and 6% are one star.
• 30% of hotel bedrooms and 22% of guesthouses bedrooms are located in Dublin.