Key Findings
- Of the 577,400 foreign visitors who departed Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023, 35.5% of the visitors were from Great Britain, 21.2% were from the United States, and 7.8% were from Germany.
- The visitors’ most frequent reason (46.5%) for visiting Ireland was for holiday or leisure purposes.
- The visitors stayed a total of 3,958,200 nights in the country.
- The total estimated expenditure of foreign visitors on their trips to Ireland was €695.1 million.
- The visitors stayed on average 6.9 nights and spent on average €1,204 on their trips.
Statistician’s Comment
Detailed Residency
Of the 577,400 foreign visitors who departed Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023, the highest proportion (35.5%) was from Great Britain, accounting for 204,700 of the visitors in total. The second highest proportion (21.2%) was from the United States, accounting for 122,100 visitors. The third highest proportion (7.8%) was from Germany comprising a further 44,900 visitors. Furthermore, 35,500 (6.2%) of the visitors came from Spain/Portugal, 29,200 (5.1%) came from France, 22,600 (3.9%) from the Benelux countries, and 20,400 (3.5%) came from Italy.
Figure 2: Foreign resident overnight visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes by detailed residency, October 2023
© Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM02
Nights in Ireland
Foreign visitors who departed Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023 spent a total of 3,958,200 nights in the country. Broken down by residency, Other Europe visitors spent more nights in the country than any other residency group, accounting for 1,330,300 (33.6%) of the nights. The next most important visitor group, in terms of nights spent, was the USA & Canada, making up 1,171,500 (29.6%) of the total nights. Visitors from Great Britain were third most important, accounting for a further 910,300 (23.0%) of the nights. Other visitors made up 546,200 (13.8%) of the nights.
Figure 3: Nights spent by foreign resident visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes by residency, October 2023
© Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM03
Reason for Visit
Among the 577,400 foreign visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023, more had come for holiday or leisure than for any other reason. Some 268,200 (46.5%) had holiday as the main reason for their trip. The next most likely reason was to visit friends or relatives, with 181,500 (31.4%) of the visitors coming for this purpose. A further 91,700 (15.9%) of the visitors had come for business or work-related reasons.
Figure 4: Foreign resident overnight visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes by main reason for visit, October 2023
© Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM04
Accommodation
Figure 5: Average length of stay (nights) of foreign resident overnight visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes by main accommodation type, October 2023
© Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM05
Expenditure
Foreign visitors to Ireland who departed Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023 spent a total of €695.1 million on their trips.
Broken down by expense category, the costliest subheading was day-to-day spending (incidental expenditures incurred during their visit such as eating out, entrance fees, public transport, etc, but excluding accommodation), amounting to €247.9 million (35.7% of the total expenditure). The next costliest subheading was accommodation at €238.1 million (34.3% of the total). Fares cost a further €179.3 million (25.8% of the total). Lastly, prepayments (items paid in advance, such as car hire, pre-booked tickets, etc.) comprised just €29.8 million (4.3% of the total).
Overall, the typical foreign visitor spent €1,204 on their trip to Ireland, breaking down as €311 on their fare, €52 on prepayments, €412 on accommodation, and €429 on day-to-day expenses.
Figure 6: Expenditure of foreign resident overnight visitors departing Ireland on overseas routes by expense category, October 2023
© Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM06
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (29 November 2023) released Inbound Tourism October 2023.
Commenting on the release, Gregg Patrick, Statistician in the Tourism and Travel Division, said: “The results show that among the 1,829,700 passengers departing Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023, some 577,400 (31.6%) were foreign visitors completing their trips (with the balance being Irish residents heading abroad (59.3%) and foreign same-day visitors (9.2%)). Amongst the 577,400 foreign visitors, some 35.5% were from Great Britain, 21.2% were from the United States, and 7.8% were from Germany.
Typically, their visit lasted 6.9 nights. Their most frequent reason for visiting was for holiday or leisure purposes (46.5%). More of the visitors stayed primarily in hotels (46.1%) than in any other accommodation type, and the mean cost of their visit was €1,204 (comprising €311 on fare, €52 on prepayments, €412 on accommodation, and €429 on day-to-day expenditure).”
Departing Passenger Categories
In total, 1,829,700 passengers departed Ireland on overseas routes in October 2023. The majority of these (59.3%) were Irish residents heading outbound for tourism or other purposes. A further 9.2% were same day visitors, comprising Northern Ireland residents heading outbound via an airport or seaport in the Republic of Ireland (3.7%), foreign resident transfer passengers (4.3%) or other foreign resident same day visitors (1.2%). Some 31.6% of the departing passengers were foreign resident overnight visitors, constituting 577,400 visitors in total. The remainder of this release focuses exclusively on the characteristics and activities of these foreign resident overnight visitors (referred to simply as foreign visitors for the sake of brevity).
Figure 1: Passengers departing Ireland on overseas routes by category, October 2023
©Central Statistics Office, Ireland
https://data.cso.ie/table/ITM01