OVERSEAS TRIPS by Irish residents fell by more than 13 per cent in February compared with February of last year, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
So far this year trips abroad by Irish residents have fallen by almost 11 per cent to 976,100. This is a complete reversal of the growth in numbers achieved last year.
The Irish Travel Agents’ Association said the drop in trips abroad was expected as the growth in overseas trips had been “really dramatic” in the early part of last year. Its chief executive Simon Nugent said he would have been surprised if a drop in trips had not been registered. “Last February, March, April, May were the last months of really strong growth.”
He said travel agents had accepted this would be a late-booking season.
“Once people have processed the implications of the Budget and made an assessment of where they stand, there should be a surge in bookings in the April/May period. A lot of people are playing the waiting game, and that’s very understandable.”
The CSO figures also show a drop in the number of overseas trips to Ireland in February. Trips to Ireland fell by 5.5 per cent to 445,200 when compared with February 2008.
A fall in the number of trips from Britain accounted for much of the decrease. There were 15,000 fewer trips from Britain in February, a fall of 5.8 per cent.
The number of trips from the US fell by almost a fifth, from 46,800 to 37,500. However, trips from Europe increased by 1 per cent to 149,100.
Tourism Ireland, which promotes the island of Ireland overseas, has predicted that visitors to this country could fall by up to 9 per cent this year.
