News worth waiting for

At long last we have something to smile about. It appears our Icelandic friend has, for the moment, fingers crossed, ceased to roar. This news couldn’t have come a moment sooner. All over Europe the eruption has cost hundreds of millions of Euros in lost air travel and hotel bookings: some would say this is a conservative estimate. Long term, the real cost may never be known. Recent CSO figures for the first quarter reveal a depressing forecast, but let's hope figures for next quarter reflect a better scenario.

That said, the last few weeks have begun to show glimmers of light. We had the announcement of the largest ever mid-year overseas marketing drive, in a bid to attractthe maximum number of overseas visitors, to the island of Ireland, during the peak summer months. The €20 million campaign, rolled out by Tourism Ireland in Great Britain, the US and mainland Europe, will focus on the excellent value available from the industry here. It will tap into the later-than-ever booking trend, which is more pronounced this year. The initiative includes an extensive promotional campaign in key markets around the world, developed in conjunction key influencers of tourism industry from hotels, B&BS, self catering, national cultural institutions, golf courses, independent visitor attractions as wellas air and sea carriers. The industry has got behind the campaign with a superb range of value-for-money offers.

Next was the announcement that Padraig Harrington, three times major winner, is to be crowned Fáilte Ireland Ambassador for Golf. The announcement comes as the tourism authority launched a new golf brand and embarked on a €1.5 million marketing blitz to promote Irish golf overseas. For the next year, Harrington will be at the forefront of Irish golf tourism promotions and will help promote Fáilte Ireland’s new golf brand, Time to Play. What is worth noting is the Harrington has given his services for free and no costis been incurred by Fáilte Ireland or the state for this gesture. Speaking at the launch, he said "I am very proud to represent Ireland wherever I play around the world, as I have been throughout my career. As I travel the globe, I visit and experience some wonderful places and get to play some of the world's best courses, but I always look forward to returninghome and playing the unique golf courses of Ireland."

Irish golfing welcomes almost 150,000 visitors annually and is one of Ireland’s greatest tourist attractions, contributing an estimated €110 million to the economy. Incredibly, little or no reference was made by much the media to this gesture. Even our national broadcaster didn’t seem to think it warranted coverage. Maybe if Padraig worked in RTE, it would have gotten wall to wall coverage.

The euro crisis may also have a silver lining for the indigenous tourism industry. Given that almost 60% of our trade is during the peak period of May to September, this may just be the antidote we needed. Factor in the strong US dollar performance and positive consumer spend indicators from the US region, and maybe we are seeing recovery, albeit gradual.

So let's take a leaf out of Marc Coleman’s address at the recent I H I conference and remember, as he said, "We have done for world hospitality what the Germans and Japanese have done for the auto-mobile industry. We have set the standards for others to follow." Marc explained that Ireland has exported a model of fine hotels, setting standards for the rest of the world, and promised the best has yet to come, if we maintain the three C’s: Competitiveness, Candor, and Culture. "Preserving Irish Identity also plays a key role in welcoming visitors to our shores," he added. And so say all of us.

Cyril McAree

EDITOR