According to recent figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), trips to Ireland by overseas residents rose by 8% to 899,900 in April 2018 compared to April 2017.
The percentage marks an overall increase of 66,600 visitors.
Trips by residents of Great Britain increased by 3.3% to 322,700.
Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, said:
“While we welcome the fact that arrivals from Britain are up very slightly, this doesn’t represent a turnaround in the long-term trend. The impact of Brexit on outbound travel from Britain, therefore, remains a concern.
“The fall in the value of sterling has made holidays and short breaks here more expensive for British visitors and has made Britain more affordable for visitors from many of our top markets. Competitiveness and value for money remain more important than ever in Britain this year.”
Meanwhile, trips by residents of European countries other than Great Britain increased by 9.5% to 352,900.
Trips by residents of the USA and Canada to Ireland increased by 14.7% to 178,600, while trips to Ireland from other areas increased by 6.8% to 45,700.
The total number of overseas trips made by Irish residents during April 2018 decreased by 2.8% to 658,400.
The total number of trips (Irish residents’ trips overseas plus trips to Ireland) in April 2018 increased by 3.2% to 1,558,200 when compared to twelve months earlier.
In the four months to the end of April 2018, the total number of trips to Ireland increased by 7.3% when compared with the same period in 2017. Irish residents’ trips overseas during the same period increased by 0.5%.
