Travelers to Ireland

• One in three euro spent in Ireland by overseas visitors were spent in Dublin. Mainland Europe accounted for a higher proportion of revenue (43%) than visits (39%).
• While Dublin saw significant growth through the early years of the century, the number of overseas visitors, in particular, British visitors has sharply declined in recent years due to economic uncertainty and consequent changes in travel behaviour.
• British Visitors
  The British market is fairly evenly divided between holidaymakers, those travelling on business and visits to friends and family. They tend to arrive by air and are well spread throughout the year. Almost half of British holidaymakers travel to Dublin during the first and last quarters of the year and nine in ten arrive by air. They tend to stay exclusively in Dublin - two in five say they are on a city break and almost two-thirds are on a Dublin Break (staying only in Dublin for a maximum of three nights). In keeping with this, few use a car and tend to get around the city on foot and on public transport.
• Mainland European Visitors
  More than half of European visitors to Dublin are on holiday and almost a quarter are visiting friends or family. Their is the usual form of access to Dublin and more than half of European visitors arrive between May and September. They are less likely to travel outside of Dublin and tend to be on their first visit to Ireland. More than half are under 35 years of age and they travel either on their own or as couples.
• European Holidaymakers
  The months of June to September attract almost three in five European holidaymakers and they tend to arrive in Dublin by air. Half describe their holiday as a city break and one in five are on a Dublin Break (staying only in Dublin for a maximum of three nights).
  Less than a third use a car while in Ireland, preferring to walk or use public transport. As air travel is the preferred form of access, it follows that most of those who use a car hire one (26%). The majority (66%) are white collar workers and more than half are under 35 years of age. While the majority (57%) described. themselves as single, the largest proportion (40%) are travelling as couples. They are most likely to be on their first visit to Ireland and are independent travellers.
• North American Visitors
  Two thirds of North American visitors to Dublin are on holiday and almost half come to Ireland between June and September. A further quarter were either on business or visiting family or friends. Three in five arrive direct by air on transatlantic routes, with the remainder primarily arriving by air from Britain or Mainland Europe and a minority coming by sea.Unlike British or other European visitors, they tend to travel around the country with more than a third also spending at least one night in the South West. Almost two thirds are on their first visit to Ireland while a significant 30% are repeat visitor and more than half travel alone. Around a quarter are managers or professionals and one in five is aged between 45 and 54 years. Two-thirds arrive between May and September and most arrive by air, a slightly higher proportion (59%) arriving directly from North America and 40% travelling through Britain or Europe.
  Almost three-quarters of North American holidaymakers (73%) stay in hotels which account for almost two-thirds of North American holiday nights. They have a strong tendency to explore the rest of the country with almost half visiting the South West. Two in five describe their holiday as a combination of a city and countryside holiday. Over one third hire a car during their holiday and one in five take a coach tour involving an overnight. Almost a third (31%) are on some form of package which is a relatively high proportion compared to our other markets. Four out of five are in Ireland for the first time and almost half (45%) travel as couples.