Ireland has won a major travel award in London – the ‘most desirable island destination in Europe’. The award was presented to Tourism Ireland last night (8 November), at the 21st annual Wanderlust Travel Awards, which took place in the iconic White Tower of the Tower of London.
Wanderlust is a popular travel magazine in Britain and the winners of its annual awards are decided on by an independent panel of judges, as well as by tens of thousands of the globe-trotting readers of the magazine. Ireland took the number one spot in the ‘most desirable island destination – Europe’ category – beating off tough competition from Malta, Crete, Sicily and Madeira.
According to Wanderlust, its readers selected Ireland as the winner in this category because it’s “the island they’re dreaming about the most in Europe. Marking the western edge of the continent, the Emerald Isle calls out to travellers looking for fantastic natural landscapes, historic cities, and epic road trips to connect it all. Its capital Dublin, sitting on the east coast, is known for being the home to Guinness – best experienced in the cobbled riverside neighbourhood of Temple Bar. While the Wild Atlantic Way is a fantastic tourist trail stretching 2,500 km along the entire western coastline of Ireland, linking County Donegal to County Cork”.
Welcoming the news of the award, Niall Gibbons, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, said: “We are delighted that Ireland has been singled out for this prestigious award. Accolades like this help to shine a spotlight on Ireland for all the right reasons.
“In 2022, our priority was to restart overseas tourism to the island of Ireland. As we prepare now for 2023, our research confirms that the desire to travel is stronger than ever – so this award is some really positive news. Travellers nowadays have tremendous choice, which makes it more important than ever for us to ensure the island of Ireland stands out from other destinations.”
Tourism Ireland has been undertaking its most extensive programme of promotions ever this year to RESTART overseas tourism to Ireland, following an extremely challenging two years for the tourism industry. The organisation has a three-phase plan to RESTART, REBUILD and ultimately REDESIGN demand.
