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Ireland had a record year for visitors from North America in 2013 and it was also the best year for overseas tourism since 2008, Tourism Minister Leo Varadkar said today.

The CSO Overseas Tourism figures which were released earlier today show that a total of 6.986 million overseas visits were recorded last year, representing an increase of 7.2% on the 2012 figure. The total number of visits from North America amounted to 1.158 million, which exceeded the previous record set in 2008, and represented an increase of 13.9% on the 2012 figure. All of Ireland’s main overseas markets grew in 2013 compared to 2012; the number of visits from Great Britain grew by 5.6%; visits from Mainland Europe grew by 4.9% while there was also strong growth of 15.1% from other long-haul markets.

Minister Varadkar said:

Last year was a record year for visitors from North America and the best for overall tourism since 2008. The Gathering was enormously successful in generating additional visitor numbers. The North American market has always been key for Irish tourism where we have traditionally outperformed many of our competitors. The fact that we achieved our highest ever number of North American visitors in 2013 is a credit to the communities across Ireland who staged Gatherings and festivals during 2013.

Since coming into office, the Government has taken key decisions to support tourism. The 9% VAT rate, which was initially a short-term measure, has been retained. The Air Travel Tax is being reduced to zero from April, and this has helped to secure additional airline routes and capacity into Ireland. The Irish Visa Waiver scheme, launched in July 2011, has helped our numbers from long-haul markets. All of these factors, along with good value for money, have helped to drive increased visitor numbers.

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