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Ministers Donohoe and Ring at the launch of the Tourism Action Plan

Transport  Minister Paschal Donohoe and Minister of State for Tourism Michael Ring today launched a Tourism Action Plan for the period 2016-2018.  The Plan contains 23 Actions which will be carried out in order to help achieve the overall policy objectives in the Government’s Tourism Policy Statement “People, Place and Policy – Growing Tourism to 2025”. 

Among the issues covered in the Tourism Action Plan are:

•        a restoration of overseas tourism marketing funds to pre-recession levels, and a commitment to improving the presentation of and access to State owned heritage and cultural attractions;
•        the extension to 2018 of a fund to encourage direct air and sea access to airports and ferry ports in the regions;
•        the preparation of a list of possible themes for a focused tourism marketing initiative (including a possibility of a successor to The Gathering) for decision by Government;
•        Fáilte Ireland to publish an analysis of hotel capacity issues in Dublin with recommendations on how to address any shortfalls;
•        a commitment to support the IRFU’s bid to host the Rugby World Cup in 2023; and
•        enhanced collaboration between Fáilte Ireland and Bord Bia on the development of food-related experiences for tourists.

Minister Donohoe said:

Amongst the measures in the Action Plan is a commitment to bringing our overseas marketing spend back up to pre-recession levels to ensure continued growth in overseas visits to Ireland.  Furthermore, in order to adapt to a changing global market, a new targeted strategy to increase visitor numbers and revenue from new and developing markets will be developed.  The strategy will focus not only on marketing but also on the training and up-skilling that is required for the tourism industry here to meet the needs of visitors from these markets.  There will also be enhanced co-operation with key bodies in the heritage sector, like the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, the OPW, and others to ensure that Ireland’s heritage sites are presented to overseas visitors in the best way possible.  We will also examine the funding arrangements for festivals and events to ensure the highest possible impact in terms of attracting overseas visitors.

The full Action Plan can be downloaded here.

Read the full press release here.