Visits by foreign tourists up by 15%

THE tourism sector received a boost with the news that trips here by overseas visitors increased by almost a quarter of a million in the second quarter of the year.

The figures, published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), show that between April and the end of June the total number of overseas trips to Ireland increased to 1,781,600 — up 240,200 or 15.6% compared with the same period in 2010.

The main reason for the rise in the number of overseas visitors was a 24% increase in visits by people from European countries other than Britain. They accounted for 620,700 visits.