TOURISM:THE DROP in the number of overseas visitors coming here continued in February when trips to Ireland were down by a quarter compared with the previous year.
The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that 336,800 trips from overseas were made here in February. Trips from Britain were down by almost 30 per cent to 171,500, while trips by residents from the rest of Europe and the US decreased by 22.8 per cent and 6.7 per cent respectively.
Tourism Ireland chief executive Niall Gibbons said the first three months of this year had been “extremely difficult” and the CSO figures reflected the impact of the world recession on consumer spending. “And, as well as the poor economic climate, the reduction in air access has not helped.
Mr Gibbons said air access over the winter months had dropped by 18 per cent when compared to the same period last year.
He said Tourism Ireland had a comprehensive promotional programme in place to restore overseas tourism to growth this year.
The Irish Tourist Industry Confederation said the figures were “extremely disturbing”. Its chief executive, Eamonn McKeon, said the industry was not expecting growth in the first half of the year “but neither were we expecting declines of this magnitude”.
Irish residents also curtailed their trips abroad in February. They made 447,200 overseas trips during the month – down 5.7 per cent on February 2009.
Minister for Tourism Mary Hanafin said while the CSO figures were disappointing, “they should be seen in the context of the severe weather conditions in January and February, particularly in Britain, which would have impacted on people’s plans for overseas travel”.
