Arab Spring countries tempt Irish thrill seekers

The sun and the States remain the traditional hotspots for Irish holidaymakers, but an increasing number of thrillseekers are looking to emerging democracies such as Libya for a trip with an edge.

Irish people are sticking to well-known destinations such as France and Spain to get away from the doom and gloom in 2013.

Speaking at the annual conference of the Irish Travel Agents Association in Istanbul, Turkey, the editor of Travel Extra magazine, Eoghan Corry, said Irish holidaymakers have a loyalty to traditional destinations and that is unlikely to change next year.

“Irish people are still going for the traditional markets,” said Mr Corry. “When you look at the figures, there is the big five or so. Spain gets 1.3m Irish visitors, France gets about 600,000, USA gets about 400,000, Italy gets about 250,000, and Greece and Turkey get about 100,000.

“Britain is still as big as Spain when you look at the numbers who travel for football packages and things like that.”

However, Mr Corry pointed out that, since the Arab Spring and the uprising in Liby, the more discerning Irish traveller is looking for a holiday with an edge.

“Libya could really be the hot destination for the real adventure-seekers next year,” he said. “The problem is there is still a travel advisory out against travelling there and travel insurance won’t cover you to go there.They had a stand at the World Travel Market in London last week for the first time which was remarkable. They are looking for tourists and it’s a beautiful country which few people get to see.

“In fact, all of North Africa is a place where it is very cheap to visit. The region is still bleeding from the Arab Spring. Prices to places like Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia are way below what they were a number of years ago. Last year, you could get a week in Egypt for the price of a good meal for two in Dublin. It really was that cheap. So if you want a bargain, you can find them in so-called trouble spots.”

Mr Corry said the real way to find a bargain is to go for something different or underused. “They might not be in sun destinations but there are newer routes which are great value for money, places like Stockholm, for example,” he said.

The conference also heard that the likes of Turkey and Australia are increasingly being targeted by tour operators. Turkish Airlines recently added three more flights out of Dublin to Istanbul to begin from next summer. Extra seats are also expected to be added to North American hubs such as New York, Boston, and Orlando.

ITAA chief executive Pat Dawson said the outlook for next year was “positive” and that price was crucial.

“They are going to the same places and it’s price-driven,” said Mr Dawson. “Spain carried about 1.3m people out of Ireland last year, which is huge. We are positive about next year. Travel agents will get up in the morning in 2013 with a positive outlook and positive ideas. If they didn’t, they wouldn’t be in this business, it’s as simple of that.”