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2015 was a record year for tourism - Donohoe
Minister Donohoe with Tourism Ireland CEO Niall Gibbons
2015 was a record year for tourism, according to figures reported by Tourism Ireland.
The organisation has said this was the best year ever for overseas tourism, with about 7.9 million visitors, an increase of 11% on 2014 figures. This rise brought over €4.2 billion in revenue to the economy, with growth from all markets.
Tourism Minister Paschal Donohoe was at Tourism Ireland headquarters today to look back on the highlights of the year, with promotional activity by Tourism Ireland around the world including the Wild Atlantic Way, the 150th anniversary of the birth of WB Yeats and its "Ireland says I do" campaign.
The group's Global Greening initiative on St Patrick's day was bigger than ever before this year, generating over €10 million worth of positive publicity for Ireland. Landmarks such as the Colosseum in Rome, the Sacré Coeur basilica in Paris and Edinburgh Castle were lit up in green for the first time ever to celebrate Ireland's national day. More than 180 landmark buildings took part in the Global Greening this year.
Minister Donohoe noted the ambitious targets set for next year:
We are determined to maintain the positive momentum seen in 2015, and I was very pleased to recently launch the Tourism Ireland 2016 Marketing Plan, which is targeting a further 5% growth in overseas visitor revenue next year.
For more information read the press release here.