Spain is still the top holiday spot for the Irish

Spain remains the destination of choice for Irish holidaymakers, but inbound tourism figures reveal the visitor appeal of Ireland continues to break records.

Central Statistics Office numbers show an increase of 10.9% in overseas visits to Ireland for 2016 compared to 2015. A record-breaking 9.5m tourists visited Ireland over a 12-month period.

A quarterly survey by the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) released on the opening day of the Holiday World Show in Dublin showed 65% of travel agents found Spain was their most popular destination last year, followed by Portugal and the US.

This year, the status quo remains with Spain and Portugal as top choice. However, some travel agents predicted a surge of interest in Russia and South Africa which may become their top sellers.

The survey found 95% of Irish travel agents enjoyed an increase in their turnover in 2016 compared to 2015.

A similar number are optimistic for an increase in turnover in 2017, with business likely to be up on average13%.

The industry has also increased its workforce over the last year, with 40% of travel agencies reporting an average growth of 17% in staff numbers.

ITAA president Cormac Meehan said the findings confirmed the sector’s continued upward trend.

“Our hope is that next year, all Irish travel agents will be in a position to report an increase on their yearly turnover.

“This would be a fantastic result for an industry which has adapted and embraced huge changes over the last number of years.”

Meanwhile, CSO figures on inbound tourism found visits from mainland Europe grew by 8.5% in 2016 to 3,302,100 while visitors from North America increased by 19.4% to 1.8 million.

The UK, however, remains the key market. The numbers visiting from Britain were up by 10.6% to 3.9m while those coming from the rest of the world — mostly long-haul and developing markets — totalled 550,200, an increase of 2.2%.

CEO of Tourism Ireland Niall Gibbons said Brexit was one of the main challenges facing the industry in 2017.

“Since the EU referendum, Tourism Ireland has been monitoring developments closely, to better understand and plan for the implications of Brexit.

“Tourism Ireland believes the adverse impact of Brexit can be mitigated through a combination of aggressive overseas marketing and the continuation of existing successful wider policy initiatives,” he said.

The Holiday World Show at RDS Simmonscourt in Dublin continues until tomorrow.