New air routes and new tourism markets for Ireland must be opened up, if the target of four million extra tourists by 2012 is to be achieved, the Irish Hotels Federation has said.
They have called on the Government to "immediately" begin to renegotiate the Ireland US bilateral air agreement to increase air routes from the US and to facilitate additional access to and from Ireland for the coming season.
The delay in the second terminal at Dublin airport was "incredulous". It could not be excused and the IHF was calling on the Government to give the go-ahead to an independent competing second terminal to allow quick turnarounds for low-cost carriers, Mr John Power, chief executive, said on the eve of the IHF's 66th annual conference in Killarney.
A more open air transport agreement between Ireland and the US and a new agreement to increase US air routes would bring 100,000 additional visitors a year, generating some €64 million for the economy, he said.
This agreement was vital if the target 10 million tourists was to be met in eight years time.
"The current situation whereby there is restricted access for airlines to fly into and from the US, and the lack of a second terminal at Dublin Airport has constrained the potential for growth . . . There are immense opportunities to create new routes to Ireland from a range of US cities, but the current arrangements create barriers to the creation of such routes," Mr Power said.
Direct air travel was the key to bringing in tourists from areas like Dallas, Orlando and San Francisco where there were large "untapped" populations interested in visiting Ireland.
Last year the American market accounted for almost 900,000 tourists generating €750 million in revenue. An increasing majority of American visitors chose to travel directly to Ireland rather than via Britain or mainland Europe.
The average US visitor spends €840 - almost twice as much as other overseas visitors and they travel extensively throughout the country while here, benefiting all regions, Mr Power added.
While Shannon would need support in order to adjust to the likely removal of the compulsory stopover, under new arrangements, the higher number of flights to Ireland from North America would "have a major positive impact on the regions"
The phenomenon of Internet booking and the pitfalls of modern distribution systems will be among the topics discussed over the three days. The Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Mr O'Donoghue, will address the 400 delegate conference this afternoon.