Tourism Ireland has claimed that overseas tourism revenue can grow from €6.4 billion in 2023 to €9 billion by 2030, with the right strategic supports.
The organisation made the announcement as it launched details of its marketing strategy and plans to promote the island of Ireland overseas in 2025, at an event attended by over 500 tourism industry leaders from around the country.
"We’re ambitious to support growth for local businesses, economies and communities and our target is to grow overseas visitor spend to €9 billion by 2030," said Alice Mansergh, chief executive of Tourism Ireland.
In 2024, overseas visitor spend grew by over 10%, bringing an estimated €7 billion to the island of Ireland. In 2025, Tourism Ireland plans to invest in an extensive and targeted programme of activity across over 13 overseas source markets.
"There is also enormous potential ahead and we are ambitious for growth," said Mansergh. "In 2025, we will focus on increasing the value of overseas tourism, sustainably supporting economies, communities and the environment – and will do so by inspiring overseas visitors and strengthening strategic partnerships."
Tourism Ireland plans to make sustainable development a core of its plans for the year ahead, with continued focus on attracting tourists who have ‘value adding tourism traits’ – people who are likely to see more, do more, enjoy more and therefore spend more when they visit.
The organisation also plans to refresh and build its ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign, based on consumer insights – to make the island of Ireland stand out as a ‘bucket list’ destination.
“In any industry there are risks to mitigate and tourism is no different," said Mansergh. "This year, we will need to take account of the added step that the introduction of the UK’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme will bring for visitors to Northern Ireland. The passenger cap at Dublin Airport is top of mind and its review will be vital for tourism."
