Tourism Figures Up 12% Over Summer Months

By Steve Wynne-Jones
Tourism Figures Up 12% Over Summer Months

The tourism industry took another boost this week as the latest figures show visitor numbers were up by nearly 12 per cent in the second quarter of the year.

The total number of visit made to Ireland between the months of May and July rose by 11.8 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to figures released by the Central Statistics Office.

The biggest increase came from tourists from North America,which took a 15 per cent increase, while 11.9 per cent more trips were taken from Great Britain.

Tourism Ireland chief executive Niall Gibbons said the figures indicate the "best ever January to July period for overseas visitors to Ireland", with more than 4.8 million arrivals so far. 2015 looks set to become a record year in terms of visitors, expected to surpass the 7.7 million that touched down in 2007.

The CSO report also showed Irish residents made more trips abroad in those months - up 9.4 per cent on the 2014 figure.

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