Irish PM Talks Tourism In Toronto

If there was any doubt as to the importance of tourism to Ireland, it was erased last week when Enda Kenny, the country’s Prime Minister, stepped up to the podium in Toronto to tell a hand-picked group of this country’s top tourism executives just what the industry means to the Emerald Isle.

Ireland is certainly doing exceptionally well these days as tourism visitor numbers hit record levels out of Canada in 2016, growing by 16% to over 220,000 – close to a 40% rise since 2014.

Tourism Ireland officials note that those gains – driven by the significant increase in air lift and the ramped up promotional initiatives by the tourist – have seen Canada grow to become the destination’s 10th largest tourism source market.

And putting the icing on the cake, so to speak, Canadian visitors tend to stay longer than the average visitor, spend more, and travel more extensively throughout the island.

Now while numbers are nice, Ireland’s Prime Minister captured one of the key reasons that Ireland has been successful, telling his Toronto audience that “the destinations that you remember, you remember because of the people you meet.”

For those who know Ireland well, those people you meet are the ones who tell the country’s story to the visitor and for today’s traveller, it is all about seeing a place and understanding it.

Pointing to the historic bond that exists between Ireland and Canada – over 4.5 million Canadians claim Irish ancestry – Prime Minister Kenny extended a welcome to his audience, telling them “if you’re looking for somewhere to visit choose Ireland.”

Seen in the photo, from l to r, are Tourism Ireland’s Alison Metcalfe; Irish Prime Minister, Enda Kenny; and Tourism Ireland’s Siobhan McManamy.