Tourism Ireland, together with a delegation of tourism companies from Ireland and the US, recently embarked on a sales mission in the US that involved meeting, and doing business with, hundreds of travel professionals in Chicago, Dallas and Boston. Tourism Minister Brendan Griffin joined the mission in Boston.
The mission was the second stage Tourism Ireland's series of "Fill Your Heart With Ireland" sales blitzes for 2019.
"A Vital Opportunity To Highlight What Is New And Exciting In Ireland"
Griffin commented, "I am delighted to be here in Boston to join Tourism Ireland’s 'Fill your heart with Ireland' sales blitz and to promote everything that is great about a trip to Ireland. 2018 was the sixth consecutive record year for visitor numbers to the island of Ireland from North America. In 2018, we welcomed over two million American and Canadian visitors, delivering revenue of €1.85 billion for the economy. Boston and the east coast of the United States are important sources of US visitors to Ireland, and events like this provide a vital opportunity to highlight what is new and exciting in Ireland to influential local travel trade and media. Tourism Ireland looks forward to continuing to work with our travel partners to ensure that US travellers enjoy a unique and memorable vacation and receive the very best of Irish welcomes."
The "Fill Your Heart With Ireland" programme kicked off at the end of February, taking in Boca Raton in Florida, Washington DC and Atlanta, Georgia. Similar events are planned to take place on the west coast of the US in late 2019.
The schedule for this latest stage of the programme included B2B events in Chicago, Dallas and Boston, each of which featured an interactive presentation that showcased Ireland and provided the participating companies with a platform via which they could promote and sell their products and services to the key American decision-makers who were in attendance at the events.
© 2019 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.