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Fáilte Ireland Unveils 2023 Plans to Help Drive Sustainable Recovery of Tourism

Fáilte Ireland has unveiled its plans for 2023 to help support the sustainable recovery of the tourism sector this year.  

The plans were announced at a special virtual event for the tourism industry watched by over 1700 tourism operators, providers and employers from across the sector. 

Fáilte Ireland’s plans in 2023 focus on 7 key areas: 

• Business Recovery  
• Tourism Careers  
• Domestic Marketing  
• Opening the Outdoors   
• Industry Digitalisation 
• Destination Development  
• Climate Action 

CEO Paul Kelly explains Fáilte Ireland’s focus, saying, “our plans for 2023 are built around 7 key pillars that we believe will lead to transformational change. These are driving sustainable recovery at the level of individual businesses; supporting employers and employees in making tourism an attractive long-term career; accelerating growth in domestic tourism; enhancing our outdoor tourism product and the quality of visitor experiences in destinations; building the digitalisation of the industry and driving climate action.” 

“The domestic market is critical for sustainable recovery and plays a key role in driving regional and seasonal spread. Looking at the domestic market, consideration for taking a domestic holiday in 2023 is at 82% which is in line with 2019 levels and intention to take a domestic break in the next 3 months is at 23%. Visitor satisfaction is high but offering good value for money is critical to convert this domestic intention into domestic bookings.”  

“A recent analysis conducted by Fáilte Ireland’s Economic and Industry Analysis team showed the tourism sector lost €12billion in revenue due to the pandemic. The very welcome and comprehensive package of Government supports injected approximately €6billion into the sector to keep businesses alive but the sector still had to manage through a huge net loss of €6billion in revenue.”  

Fáilte Ireland also unveiled details of its new Motivations Framework which has been created using behavioural science and extensive research to understand peoples’ motivation for travel. Understanding what really motivates people to travel will provide tourism businesses with useful insights to help shape their offering and experiences and inform their sales and marketing activities. 

Fáilte Ireland’s Head of Consumer Planning and Insights Jill De Azevedo explains, “the Framework adds rich context to the way we view consumers. There are many ways we can understand tourists’ habits and preferences. Why they travel; why they choose their destinations; their behaviours while taking a break. For tourism businesses, understanding these motivations is important to understanding demand. As consumers and tourists, we all have multifaced motivations for travel. Our research shows that the ‘why’, the actual motivation, is the most important factor that influences the choice of destination and behaviour while on a break.”  

In her address to welcome Fáilte Ireland’s plans Minister Catherine Martin TD said, “the Government remains committed to supporting the recovery of tourism. I welcome Fáilte Ireland’s priorities for 2023 and I look forward to seeing the results across the country of their ambitious plans. While I know hotel capacity, energy costs and labour shortages are real challenges for the industry this year, I am continuing to direct significant resources to support the sustainable recovery of the sector. In Budget 2023 I secured additional funding for the industry in the areas of marketing, skills and staffing, product development and sustainability.”  

Read Fáilte Ireland’s 2023 tourism plans  here .

Source: Fáilte Ireland

Ryan Harmon

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Fáilte Ireland launches 5-year Regional Tourism Development Strategies to drive sustainable tourism

26 May 2023

Fáilte Ireland has launched four new Regional Tourism Development Strategies 2023-2027 which will provide a framework for sustainable tourism development across Ireland.

The Regional Tourism Strategies for Ireland’s Ancient East, Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands and Dublin were launched at Mount Congreve Gardens, Waterford.

The Regional Tourism Development Strategies outline a vision for tourism which contain a five-year strategic framework for the sustainable development of Fáilte Ireland’s regional brands. By capitalising on the uniqueness of each brand they set a clear path ahead for the development of new and enhanced visitor experiences, building greater capacity and capability into the industry, and provide a clear strategy for attracting visitors that will stay longer and spend more. Currently, there are 120 outdoor enhancement projects and 27 large scale attractions in development that are set to come on stream over the next five years.

Commenting on the launch of the strategies, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media Catherine Martin TD said, “I welcome the publication of Fáilte Ireland’s Regional Tourism Strategies, which will improve visitors’ experiences in destinations in every county in Ireland, supporting tourism and enabling regional economies to thrive. With the support of Government and my department, the cooperation of Local Authorities, the tourism industry and local communities, these strategies will play a key role in improving the social, cultural and economic contribution of tourism across Ireland’s regions. Tourism is a significant economic sector in Ireland, and these strategies will support the development of tourism across all four of Fáilte Ireland’s regional brands, bringing new attractions and experiences for visitors and creating new opportunities for communities and businesses across the country.”

Speaking at the launch, Paul Kelly, CEO of Fáilte Ireland, said, “Our Regional Tourism Development Strategies have been devised with the support and input of all key stakeholders across the regions and this was a critical stage in the process. This alignment provides the blueprint for the development of sustainable tourism as it is crucial that we continue to innovate, improve and enhance our tourism offering, for domestic and international visitors. These strategies will ensure the primary focus is on sustainability, so the socio-economic benefits of tourism are seen and felt in communities and businesses across the country. The strategies will also ensure we make progress on decarbonising the tourism sector and in doing so help protect our environment for future generations.”

The Regional Tourism Development Strategies will be activated across every region through a series of local area action plans, referred to as Destination and Experience Development Plans (DEDPs). Fáilte Ireland’s commitment is for every part of the country to have a detailed tourism development action plan created in partnership with local stakeholders.

Fáilte Ireland was recently appointed as a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Champion. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals will inform the ongoing implementation of Fáilte Ireland’s four new Regional Tourism Development Strategies. Read the strategies .

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Tourism industry unveils plans to grow sector by 50% by the end of the decade

Vision 2030 envisages 350,000 people employed in sector with exchequer revenue increasing to €2.3bn.

The new plan would involve up to seven million seats on air and sea transport and 14,000 additional tourist accommodation rooms. Photograph: Daniel Leal/AFP via Getty Images

Tourism leaders have launched ambitious plans to grow the industry by 50 per cent between now and the end of the decade.

Vision 2030, produced by the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation (ITIC) envisages tourism revenues increasing from €10 billion to €15 billion while employing 350,000 people and providing €2.3 billion in exchequer revenue.

For that level of growth to happen in the sector, there is a need for a further 24 per cent growth in both domestic and international visitors.

This would involve up to seven million seats on air and sea transport and 14,000 additional tourist accommodation rooms.

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Vision 2030 said the sector lost €12 billion during the pandemic of which €6 billion was restored by the Government and it will be 2025 or 2026 before visitor numbers reach 2019 levels.

The primary constraint on achieving those goals was the lack of guest accommodation.

It stated that 20 per cent of the country’s tourism accommodation is currently being allocated to refugees and is “not sustainable”.

Speaking at the launch of the document in at the ITIC conference in Athlone on Monday, the Minister for Tourism Catherine Martin said the real figure was 13 per cent which are currently occupied by Ukrainian refugees nationally.

She had requested from Fáilte Ireland a report on the knock-on effects from having so many hotel rooms given over to refugees.

She acknowledged that in many places along the western seaboard, the number of Ukrainian refugees staying in hotel accommodation is much higher than that figure.

“We have to think outside the box about that. We have to source alternative accommodate. At all times we should never forget that we are a nation that fled awful circumstances and went to other countries abroad,” she said.

She ruled out doing a U-turn on the Government’s decision to restore the 13.5 per cent VAT rate on hospitality.

There was dismay within the hospitality industry when this month the Government restored VAT from the temporary rate of 9 per cent back to the pre-pandemic rate of 13.5 per cent.

Ms Martin said the Minister for Finance Michael McGrath had made it clear that the reduction in the rate was seen as a Covid-19 support that was lifted once the pandemic ended.

The hospitality sector, which includes hotels, B&Bs and restaurant, argued that the timing of the restoration of the VAT rate was wrong with so many businesses under pressure from inflation.

Ms Martin responded by stating that the VAT cut cost the exchequer €1.2 billion.

“I advocated right throughout the Covid pandemic, that it remain at 9 per cent, but the Minister for Finance Mr McGrath was quite clear that he had made the decision it was coming back,” she believed.

When it was suggested that it would be consumers who would ultimately pay the cost, she responded: “We have to look at other supports that this industry needs. The cost for running businesses has gone through the roof and that’s where we are not now. The Minister for Finance was clear that he was not going to [retain the VAT rate].”

She said the Government was discussing the possibility of splitting the VAT rate with accommodation providers paying a different rate to restaurateurs, but this was a very complex arrangement.

Vision 2030 stated that the increase in VAT will now make Irish accommodation costs the third highest in Europe and lead to a further loss in competitiveness.

Ronan McGreevy

Ronan McGreevy is a news reporter with The Irish Times

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Tourism Ireland Three-Year Strategy Plan

Tourism Ireland have just launched details of a three year tourism plan. The aim of the three year plan (2020-2022) is to grow overseas tourism revenue to €6.54 billion which is an increase of +13% and visitor numbers taking vacations in Ireland to €12 million (a growth of 7%) by 2022.

The plan is designed to deliver further growth in overseas visitors and tourism and supporting industry across Ireland. Phase two of Tourism Ireland’s global campaign “Fill Your Heart with Ireland” was also revealed at the launch. The new ad features less visited attractions and locations, including Trim Castle, the Waterford Greenway amongst many others. By focusing on less visited attractions such as Trim Castle and Waterford Greenway hotels in Waterford and Meath for example will certainly benefit from this.  From January 2020 Tourism Ireland’s new campaign will be rolled out in over 20 markets around the globe.

Additionally the period 2020 – 2022 is set to see Tourism Ireland redevelop its entire suite of Ireland.com websites. These websites attracted more than 23 million visitors seeing trips to Ireland in 2019 alone.

2019 saw a very mixed experience for Irish Tourism as a whole with slightly weaker demand and uncertainty surrounding Brexit, giving rise to consumer concern in Britain and mainland European markets as a whole. Estimates indicate that by year end, revenue generated by international visitors will be €5.78 billion which is a decrease of 1.4% compared to 2018 with an estimated 11.17 million people having visited the island of Ireland.

2020 is set to continue to present challenges surrounding Brexit which is likely to impact those seeking Ireland vacation deals and travel from Britain and some mainland European markets. Other challenges include the constraints on the availability of aircraft; particularly relating to the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX. Whilst recognising that various risks and challenges exist, Tourism Ireland are still aiming to grow overseas tourism revenue to €6.54 billion and visitor numbers to 12 million.

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'The weather is a big issue': Rain among the many challenges facing Ireland's tourism businesses

David Walsh at the Force Awakens, which will begin trips to Skellig Michael in May. Picture: Alan Landers

On May 11, the Force Awakens will awaken. David Walsh's boat to Skellig Micheal will be among the number of vessels starting a new season, setting off for the Unesco World Heritage Site — weather permitting. And whatever you do, don't be a late.

"There is no such thing as a set departure time for Skellig Micheal," David says. 

His boat — named Force Awakens — is based out of Ballinskelligs, the only Skellig boat to leave from that point. The other boatmen depart from Portmagee and Caherdaniel and they too are geared up for the new season. According to David, if you have to be on board for departure at 4.30pm, don't show up at 4.35.

It's a point made with some degree of seriousness. "There is not too much room to stay in," David says of some of the accommodation stock in the different departure points. 

Due to the war in Ukraine, many tourist areas now have longer-term residents, and while local communities stress they are happy to welcome them in, it does put heightened pressure on beds during the summer. 

For David, someone aiming for Skellig who might normally be staying in Portmagee but who may now have to travel from slightly further afield needs to watch the clock. 

"That is a big issue," he says. 

"Departure times can change at any time."

Accommodation supply a 'challenge'

Further down the Wild Atlantic Way, they are also preparing for the coming season in Bantry in West Cork. According to Eileen O’Shea, chairperson of Bantry Development and Tourism Association, the supply of accommodation is a "challenge". One hotel in town, the Bantry Bay, has recently switched to providing haven for Ukrainians fleeing the war in their home country.

"The accommodation is definitely challenging for the sector for the last two years, both from hotel side and particularly from the self-catering side," Eileen says. 

"We really notice that there is a real shortage of self-catering in West Cork. A lot of people let the houses out to the Ukrainians now. Individual houses have left them out long term. That is all around the Wild Atlantic Way."

Bantry is a hub of activity in the summer months, not least due to large-scale events such as the West Cork Literary Festival in July and the Chamber Music Festival in the same month. 

Eileen is keen to strike a positive note, outlining how "everyone completely understands the awful situation that is going on" that requires Ireland to provide accommodation, while balancing that against the needs of a sector of huge importance, both locally and nationally.

"We want to have a positive outlook," she says. "We hope 2024 is as good as 2023, which was very good."

The data indicates 2023 was indeed a broadly successful one for the tourism sector. 

Fáilte Ireland ’s Tourism Barometer, published in January last, shows visitor levels in 2023 were "significantly up in some sectors”, with 59% of businesses saying they had more visitors in 2023 compared to 2022, while 22% had fewer. 

Three-quarters of inbound tour operators and destination management companies (DMCs) said they had increased business last year, alongside a similar percentage of hotels, attractions and tour guides. In the main, it appears the North American market drove that increased traffic.

A spokesperson for Fáilte Ireland said: "Headline findings showed that most tourism businesses are predicting 2024 will be better than 2023, with 44% of respondents expecting an increase in visitors this year and 21% expecting fewer visitors.

Concerns about rising costs

"However, businesses are still reporting concerns about rising operational costs in 2024 with half of businesses saying the minimum wage increase will have a ‘significant’ impact on their payroll costs. The ongoing capacity constraints is also noted as a worry for 2024."

Yet when it came to the top three concerns for 2024, they were listed as "rising costs besides energy or payroll"(58%), "rising energy costs" (55%) and "rising payroll costs" (51%), with the food and drink sector particularly affected. Another striking figure was the 42% of Dublin businesses citing anti-social behaviour as a concern.

That is not to say accommodation was not an issue — a shortage of available and affordable tourist accommodation was described as a challenge, with the "cost of tourist accommodation" ranking fifth overall as a concern, but first among attractions, activity providers, tour guides, inbound tour operators and DMCs.

According to the Fáilte Ireland presentation: “In some areas, especially rural, pubic contracts for accommodation have significantly depleted bed stock for tourists, and as well as this causing a lack of availability, the reduced supply is also pushing up prices. This is affecting non-accommodation businesses, which rely on potential tourists finding somewhere to stay in the area.” 

More broadly, it said: "Supply shortage plus rising operating costs are pushing up prices — causing some inbound tour operators to say they are losing incoming business." 

But for all that, 44% of businesses expect to have more visitors this year, compared to 21% who expect to be down. The projections show the food and drinks sector as having a negative outlook for 2024 in expecting a downturn, yet all four brand experience regions — Dublin, Ireland’s Ancient East, Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands and the Wild Atlantic Way — expect to see higher visitor volumes this year.

Refugees and asylum seekers

According to a spokesperson for the Department of Tourism: "Fáilte Ireland analysis of Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth data shows that in, November 2023, 12% of all registered tourism accommodation stock was under contract to the State, down from 13% in June 2023. An additional quantum of tourism-type accommodation that is not registered with Fáilte Ireland is also contracted to the State."

The Government — and more specifically, the Department of Integration — late last month announced a new accommodation strategy for international protection applicants, driven by a move away from reliance on private providers towards a core of State-owned accommodation, with the aim of delivering 14,000 State-owned beds by 2028.

If implemented, this will make a huge difference to the current accommodation landscape, but the likelihood is it will make little or no difference in the short-term, according to Eoghan O'Mara Walsh, chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation.

He says the tourism sector has "no issue" with providing solace to Ukrainian refugees or others who need it, but the concern is Government housing them in hotels and guesthouses. 

"This year, compared to last, the short answer is that the tourism industry is more worried than last," he says.

A year ago, we were told the use of hotel rooms etc was a short-term measure or a temporary measure. Now, the Ukraine war is two years on and it looks like there is not going to be any clear alternative plan in place.

He believes effectively 20% of tourism accommodation stock is gone from its primary use and while the providers of those beds still receive a cheque from the State, it is the "downstream" services — such as pubs, restaurants and tourist attractions — that lose out most financially. 

He quotes a Fáilte Ireland figure suggesting that for every €1 spent on accommodation, tourists tend to spend as much as €2.50 on those other local services and attractions. 

"Alright, they get a bit of business [from whoever uses the contracted rooms], but nothing like the level of business from tourism here," he says.

Mr O'Mara Walsh says another impact is rising prices, driven at least in part by the reduced supply of rooms available. 

"It is completely affecting demand and supply equilibrium," he says. "If 20% [of rooms] are gone, then for the 80% that are left prices then jump. The best way to moderate prices is supply."

It could be argued Airbnb might mitigate some of this, given someone booking a stay in Ireland is quite likely to at least investigate the self-catering sector alongside the hotels and B&Bs. 

Yet Mr O'Mara Walsh also sees difficulties there, arguing some stock has also been impacted by the current situation. The Government also hopes to have a new regulatory system in place which would see new planning guidelines for short-term lets — bringing more of those lets back into longer-term rental use.

Mr O'Mara Walsh sees the four-star and above accommodation sector — key for visitors from North America — as less likely to be impacted by the current situation than the three-star and below sector, more popular with British and European visitors. 

"There was plenty of what we would call frustrated demand," he says of the 2023 picture. 

"We will keep the pressure — we were shouting about this well before the Government realised what they were doing."

Funding for tourism sector

The spokesperson for the Department of Tourism pointed out that Budget 2024 provided for total funding of €216m for the tourism sector, with up to €10m available for a programme of supports targeted at those downstream tourism businesses "experiencing particular challenges linked to the reduction in footfall in regions most impacted by tourism bed stock displacement".

"This programme of supports includes investment in sustainable tourism development and promotion, industry digitalisation, promotion of domestic tourism and festivals and recruitment and retention initiatives," they said.

The department also said Tourism Minister Catherine Martin approved a Fáilte Ireland proposal for a one-off business support grant that will be targeted at those activity and attraction businesses based in locations where more than 15% of registered tourist accommodation is contracted by the Government for the international protection of Ukraine citizens. 

The categories of tourism businesses identified as eligible for support under the scheme are visitor attractions, outdoor tourism activity providers, tourism golf courses and tourism boat tour operators, with that scheme having been open for applications from March 4 to March 29.

Eoghan O'Mara Walsh believes the sums involved in those mitigation measures are "inadequate".

"We go back to our original demands — this should all be managed out of the Department of that Taoiseach, that it is that important," he says. 

"The Department of Minister Roderic O'Gorman is completely overwhelmed. It [the accommodation situation] is having an enormous impact so the Department of the Taoiseach should have oversight and there should be a whole-of-Government approach to this."

Back in Bantry, Eileen O'Shea says the shortage of accommodation means accommodation providers are often fully booked and at an earlier stage, yet she emphasises that, apart from maybe the first week in August, people will find accommodation and most people book in advance. 

"There is no such thing as people arriving and booking on the day," she points out.

As for the future, she hopes the accommodation issues will "come right in the next couple of years" and also sees some other concerns, such as the possibility some people who grew up with their parents running B&Bs may not wish to continue into the future. 

The weather

She also sees a need to be more responsive to mobile travellers who come to Ireland in recreational vehicles or RVs, such as camper vans — and then there's the weather.

"The big attraction for West Cork and Kerry is outdoor activities and the weather hasn't been very kind to us so far," Eileen says. "Walking and hiking and marine facilities — people are very much more concentrating on their holidays and things to do, not just driving."

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Off the coast of Kerry, eyes are also turning to the skies. David Walsh says last year's boat season was "good enough" but adds: "The weather was a big issue, from July on, rain every day."

Mr Walsh has been ferrying people out to Skellig for many years, more recently on Force Awakens, a newer boat renamed after the success of the Star Wars films and one he has leased from local businessman Kevin O'Sullivan. 

He would prefer the season to start earlier, in light of the likelihood of poorer weather at the back end of the season in September. He can take one boatload of passengers a day, yet it is all weather-permitting.

That, and everyone being on time.

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