A DIFFICULT start to the year – due to weather conditions – somewhat dampened tourism sentiment for many sectors in Kerry and elsewhere but most businesses report a positive outlook for the remainder of the year.
This was one of the findings from the latest Fáilte Ireland Tourism Barometer, a survey of more than 500 tourism businesses around the country.
The report also shows that the proportion of tourism businesses expecting trade to be up in the year ahead greatly outweighs those expecting a downturn. This is especially true for accommodation businesses on the Wild Atlantic Way, with 45 per cent of hotels, guesthouses and B+Bs up on visitors from 2017.
The research also shows that the positive impact of the successful Wild Atlantic Way programme area continues to be felt, with 78 per cent of businesses operating in the region saying that it is having an impact on their business this year.
The full, comprehensive Tourism Barometer can be accessed HERE.
Although the experience of having fewer visitors due to the poor weather has brought the figure down slightly, the overall industry sentiment is good as feedback from operators and industry leaders shows that the rest of the year is being looked at with high hopes, and that tourism is strong.
The impact of the poor weather had a real impact on caravan and campsite businesses with almost a half seeing a decrease in visitors during the first quarter of this year. In addition over half of golf clubs reported a decrease in visitors as a result of the weather.
Hotels are still performing particularly well, with 52 per cent welcoming more visitors than in 2017. The domestic market is key to this success with 46 per cent of hotels reporting that their domestic corporate business is up.
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