SOAR (Situation & Outlook Analysis Report) May 2012

Dear Industry Colleague,

Attached is a link to our latest SOAR report.

The global economic landscape presented further challenges for travel and tourism in the early months of the year. These were reflected in the initial indications for overseas visitors which show a drop of -1% for the three months to the end of March, based on CSO reports for the Republic of Ireland. However, the continued growth in visitor numbers from Britain (+2%), our largest and most important tourism market, is welcome. These first quarter results are in line with expectations. The first quarter typically accounts for around 18% of overseas tourism arrivals; quarters two and three account for about 61%.
 
Looking ahead, however, our tourism industry and travel trade partners are generally more positive – particularly for quarters two and three – with reports of enquiries and advance bookings being ahead of this time last year.

Meanwhile, our extensive, first-half marketing campaign continues across all markets and we look forward to working closely with tourism partners to deliver further growth in 2012.

Niall Gibbons
Chief Executive

Click here for the full report