RoI visitors spent just 3% of overnight stays in NI
Holidaymakers from the Irish Republic spent just 3% of their overnight trips on the island north of the border last year, a report has revealed.
Republic residents made five million overnight holidays on the island in total, spending £942 million.
Although a weakening in sterling had prompted a recent bounce for business in in the province, higher VAT and a lack of “must see” attraction has contributed to a decline in recent years, a report for Tourism NI said.
Its review said: “Northern Ireland is consistently outperformed by Republic of Ireland on most of the key motivating short break activities (shopping, nightlife, enjoying the natural environment, engaging with locals).
“Importantly, Republic of Ireland consumers rate Republic of Ireland as offering better places to eat and stay - two key drivers of decision-making in choice of a short break destination.”
The RoI industry was far more focused and engaged in promotion of their propositions to domestic consumers, it added.
“There is a challenge to create more awareness of Northern Ireland generally, placing Northern Ireland into the consumer’s mindset as a compelling alternative to a Republic of Ireland break.”
The purchasing power of the euro consistently weakened over 2012-15 against the pound, making Northern Ireland a relatively expensive destination.
There had also been a “very significant” decline in Tourism Northern Ireland’s campaign budget in recent years.
Tourism NI chairman Terence Brannigan said: “In the first half of this year alone Tourism NI’s Say Hello To More marketing campaign helped deliver 221,000 overnight trips by Republic of Ireland residents to Northern Ireland, contributing £40 million to the economy.
“While we have experienced growth in recent years, progress has been sporadic in our closest-to-home export market.
“We also face a strong competitor in the Republic of Ireland as a destination.”