Powerscourt estate visitor numbers up 14%

The results make Powerscourt 9th most popular tourist destination in Ireland

Powerscourt estate in Wicklow was Ireland’s 9th most popular fee paying visitor attraction in 2016.
Powerscourt estate in Wicklow was Ireland’s 9th most popular fee paying visitor attraction in 2016.

Powerscourt estate in County Wicklow witnessed a 14 per cent increase in visitor numbers in 2016 compared to the previous year.

In total, the estate saw 467,000 guests pass through its gates in 2016, 271,000 of whom visited the gardens while the rest were there to see the waterfall.

The cohort of visitors with the largest percentage increase were those from China - up by 47 per cent - while more Irish visitors also made the trip to the estate with that numbers in that group up by 34 per cent.

Powerscourt comes in 9th place on Fáilte Ireland's top 20 fee-paying visitor attractions. Topping that list is the Guinness Storehouse, which welcomed over 1.6 million visitors in 2016, and the Cliffs of Moher, which had over 1.4 million visitors in the same year.

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Sarah Slazenger, managing director of Powerscourt estate said: "2016 confirmed that Powerscourt Gardens & Waterfall continues to be among the must-see visitor attractions in Ireland. "

“With exciting new businesses in the pipeline including Powerscourt Distillery and the Cool Plant Experience, the estate’s offering and appeal continues to grow each year.”

Abridged accounts for Powerscourt estate show that the company had net assets at the end of 2015 of €21.5 million, up from €20.4 million the previous year. In that year the company’s average number of employees was 40 while salary costs came in at over €1.29 million.

Fáilte Ireland's top 20 fee-paying visitor attractions:

Guinness Storehouse, Dublin

Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience, Clare

Dublin Zoo

National Aquatic Centre , Dublin

Book of Kells, Dublin

Tayto Park, Meath

St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin

Castletown House & Parklands,Kildare

Powerscourt House & Gardens, Wicklow

Fota Wildlife Park, Cork

Kylemore Abbey & Garden, Galway

Blarney Castle, Cork

Kilmainham Gaol, Dublin

Kilkenny Castle

Bunratty Castle & Folk Park, Clare

Rock of Cashel, Tipperary

Emo Court House & Gardens, Laois

Old Jameson Distillery, Dublin

Dublin Castle

Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin

Peter Hamilton

Peter Hamilton

Peter Hamilton is a contributor to The Irish Times specialising in business