Minister of State for Tourism and Sport, Brendan Griffin TD, is leading a delegation from Kerry to Berlin. The aim of the visit is to highlight Kerry in the all-important German market, and in particular the new, twice-weekly Ryanair flight from Berlin to Kerry.
Today (Friday, 3 November), Minister Griffin was briefed on the German market by Tourism Ireland. And, Tourism Ireland hosted a networking lunch event for Minister Griffin and the delegation from Kerry, which was attended by key German travel trade and media representatives.
Germany is the third-largest market for tourism to the island of Ireland and is worth about €400 million annually to our economy. Last year was another record year for Irish tourism from Germany – when we welcomed over 650,000 German visitors, an increase of +3% on 2015.
Zoë Redmond, Tourism Ireland’s Manager for Central Europe, said: “The new twice-weekly flight from Berlin to Kerry is really good news for tourism from Germany to Kerry and the South West. We are delighted to co-operate with Ryanair and our partners from Kerry, including Kerry Airport, to maximise the promotion of this new service. As an island destination, the importance of convenient, direct, non-stop flights cannot be overstated – they are absolutely critical to achieving growth in inbound tourism.
“Germany is our third-largest source of visitors, with the latest CSO figures showing growth of almost +3% for January to September. Right now, we are planning a busy programme of promotions for 2018, to continue to build on this year’s growth.”
