More than 92 top French conference and meeting planners, as well as influential media, came together to attend a networking ‘Meet in Ireland’ event in the prestigious Irish Embassy in Paris, organised by Tourism Ireland.
The event provided a valuable opportunity for Tourism Ireland and 19 partners from the island of Ireland – including hotels, venues, PCOs (professional conference organisers), convention bureaux and Aer Lingus – to showcase their product and to communicate what is unique about Ireland as a conference and business tourism destination.
It was also an excellent opportunity for Tourism Ireland to highlight the Wild Atlantic Way and major events this year like Limerick City of Culture to the influential guests.
Fiona O’Mahony, Tourism Ireland’s head of Europe, said: “We were delighted that so many of the key decision-makers from the business tourism sector in France took the time to come and meet our Irish partners, demonstrating their keen interest in the island of Ireland for 2014 and beyond. Ireland has always been a strong player in the French marketplace for incentive business and we were very pleased with the strong turnout from the association conference sector, which – together with our industry partners – we are proactively targeting in 2014. “Our networking event was also an excellent opportunity to highlight the Wild Atlantic Way – Ireland’s first long-distance touring route stretching all the way from Donegal to Cork – to the business tourism buyers, as an ideal experience for delegates to enjoy on the sidelines of their conference or meeting in Ireland.” Business tourism is the most lucrative form of tourism, with visitors travelling here for business purposes spending about 2.5 times more than the average visitor.
© 2014 - Hospitality Ireland Magazine by Enda Dowling
