Minister for Tourism John O'Donoghue claimed last year represented a "landmark" for tourism figures.
"We expect to have received a total of 7.4 million visitors in 2006, an increase of close to 10 per cent on 2005.
"Figures from the CSO for the first nine months of the year show an increase of 11 per cent in foreign revenue earnings. In respect of mainland Europe, the 11-month figures show numbers are up by almost 19 per cent on the corresponding period in 2005."
Mr O'Donoghue said part of this impressive performance had been due to an increased number of visitors from central and eastern Europe, and there was no doubt that this region would be an increasingly important tourism market for Ireland.
However, the bulk of the growth from mainland Europe last year still came from traditional markets.
"Outside of mainland Europe, all of our major tourism markets have shown healthy increases in the first 11 months of 2006, with visitors from Great Britain up by 6.2 per cent, visitors from North America up by 10.5 per cent, and visitors from long-haul routes up by 7.8 per cent."
Referring to this year, Mr O'Donoghue said a growth target of 5.6 per cent had been set in overseas visitor numbers.
"The target is particularly ambitious when viewed against the background of changing consumer preferences, tougher international competition and pressures on Ireland's relative competitive positioning.
"In particular, the continuation of the later booking pattern, changing consumer demands, and the increased demand for authentic holiday experiences, will pose challenges for the industry here."
Green Party spokesman Paul Gogarty said that although the tourism figures had continued to rise, the length of stay had tended to either stagnate or decrease.
This showed that, notwithstanding people's pressurised lives, they found Ireland too costly and were staying here for a shorter period.
He urged Mr O'Donoghue to "procure marketing or financial incentives to ensure local people here can be part of the product".
Mr O'Donoghue said it was estimated that over the next six years about 6,000 additional people would be required for the tourism industry in the State. The industry already accounted for more than 3 per cent of GNP.
He said he had announced earlier yesterday that the Government would make €148 million available to ensure the human resource element of tourism was looked after.
