Latest figures released by the Central Statistics Office reveal that Ireland's tourism boom is showing little sign on slowing, highlighted by a 9.5% growth in overseas visitor spend to €1.93 billion and 12% growth in visitor numbers for first half of the year.
The number of overseas trips to Ireland increased by 10.8% to 2.6 million between April and June this year, when compared with the same period in 2015.
The CSO figures also show the number of nights spent in Ireland by overseas visitors increased by 5.3% in the second quarter to 17.3 million, while the number of trips made by Irish residents overseas between April and June increased by 2.5%, from 1.928 million trips in Quarter 2 2015 to 1.975 million, reports rte.ie.
On the positive results, Niall Gibbons, Tourism Ireland CEO, commented: "This was an excellent first half performance and reflects the sentiment we are hearing from our tourism industry partners, overseas and here at home. We are determined to ensure that tourism growth continues. Next week, we will launch our extensive autumn campaign – aimed at boosting late-season travel from around the globe, reminding prospective visitors everywhere that there has never been a better time to come and discover the island of Ireland."
