AUSTRALIA offers significant potential for tourism to Northern Ireland, according to a new Tourism Ireland strategy.
The three-year strategy for growth sets out ambitious targets which will see the number of Australian visitors grow by +20% by the end of 2017.
#Australia is the third most important market for tourism to Northern Ireland (after mainland Britain and the United States) in terms of visitor numbers and revenue.
The strategy highlights key factors working in Ulster’s favour:
· Recent strong performance: since 2010, visitors from Australia to the island of #Ireland have grown by more than 40%; in 2014, more than 180,000 Australians visited the #island of Ireland. One-third of all Australian visitors include Northern Ireland in their itinerary.
· Strong cultural affinity: Ireland and Australia have many things in common, including language, heritage, sense of humour, love of sport … and both drive on the left.
· Improved air access: there are twice-daily, one-stop flights now available between Australia and Ireland (via the Middle East). Australians who are visiting Great Britain and mainland Europe can also use excellent connecting flights to Belfast.
· Australians are highly prized visitors; they travel throughout the year, stay longer (on average 12 nights), spend more (approximately £760 – almost double the average visitor spend), and like to get off the beaten track – so are more likely than other nationalities to tour rural areas.
Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, said: ‘Australia has performed well for #tourism to Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland in recent years and the future is undoubtedly bright. We believe this is a market of considerable potential over the coming years – given that these high-spending visitors travel right throughout the year and enjoy getting off the beaten track.’
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