CIE data should assist tourism industry planning

BRITISH tourist numbers to Ireland are expected to rise

Ireland’s largest inward tour operator is also anticipating a full year decline of 48% in the German segment of continental tourism.

These forecasts are drawn from CIE’s internal database, the Tourist Forward Bookings Monitor, which has tracked and predicted tourist movements to Ireland with relative accuracy since 1998.

For the first time these figures will be made available for use by the Irish tourist industry.

Explaining the decision to publish CIE internal data, managing director of CIE Tours International Brian Dowling said: “Irish tourism cannot anticipate, yet must accommodate

major external shocks such as foot and mouth, September 11 and downturns in international markets. Irish tour operators could better match their supply of resources to tourism demand if they were given some indication of how foreign tourist booking were performing.

“For the past five years, CIE Tours has maintained a Tourist Forward Bookings Monitor for all its market areas.

“We have decided to extract this data and publish it, partly as a public service so that tourism policy might be better informed, but mainly as a tool to assist the short term planning of the many partner firms with which CIE Tours works.”

Four issues of the Monitor are planned, an October issue to consider the out-turn for the current year, a year end issue to preview prospects for the following spring, a March issue to preview prospects for early summer and a May issue to preview prospects for the summer peak.