Golf marketing group targets British visitors

A new golf marketing group aimed at attracting British visitors to courses and resorts in the south and east of the country has been launched in Rosslare by Tourism Minister Leo Varadkar.

The umbrella group, Club Choice Ireland, features golf clubs and resorts, hotels and travel operators, and is seeking to attract upwards of €2m in golf spending to the region.

The 26 trade partners and golf clubs are about to embark on an aggressive marketing campaign which will include direct visits to British golf clubs, a series of Irish Golf Days in Britain, advertising, e-marketing, a dedicated website and media and travel trade familiarisation trips aimed at attracting 1,500 additional visitors to the regions.

Tiernan Byrne, Club Choice Ireland said that this is the first co-operative group of its kind to be set up in the regions and that they are indebted to both Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland UK for their practical and financial support.

Also critical to the success of the group is the commitment of travel trade partner Stena Line which will be providing travel support and prizes for competitions being run in Britain. The programme of marketing activities will begin immediately with the first of ten Irish Golf Days taking place in February 2013.

Over the course of 2013, the group will visit 120 golf clubs, talking directly to golfing enthusiasts with an interest in golfing overseas.