The use of hotel accommodation for refugee and asylum seekers is having a significant impact on the tourism industry, according to Fáilte Ireland.
Fáilte Ireland’s latest industry research indicates that while most hotels and tour operators in Ireland saw increased profits in 2023, profitability declined significantly for activity providers and food and drink businesses.
Hotel profitability surged by 69pc compared to 2022, despite rising business costs.
A significant portion of businesses reported positive performance in 2023, with Dublin-based businesses, visitor attractions, and tour guides having a good year, but 56pc of activity providers experienced a decline in business compared to the previous year.
Rising costs such as energy, wages, insurance, VAT, and rates remain key concerns for the industry, along with issues like value-for-money, staffing, and accommodation capacity.
Concerns were raised about the impact of the removal of tourism accommodation to support the response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, affecting businesses that rely on visitor stays.
Fáilte Ireland CEO Paul Kelly highlighted the issues surrounding the unavailability of tourism accommodation, leading to a new business support grant for affected activity and attraction businesses.
Repeat visitors, improved air access, and marketing efforts were noted as positive developments, but there are signs of softening demand for domestic holidays.
Fáilte Ireland mentioned new and upgraded tourism projects, with plans for eight new visitor attractions and experiences to open, focusing on revenue growth and sustainability.
The direction is to prioritize revenue over volume, aiming to grow Irish tourism revenue by 5.6pc annually until 2030 with a sustainability-focused approach.
Concerns within the sector include antisocial behaviour in Dublin and the availability of car-hire stock, with efforts towards sustainable tourism development and climate action.
Fáilte Ireland CEO Paul Kelly said: “Our research showed that about 12pc of registered tourism accommodation has been withdrawn for humanitarian reasons. We estimate that between €750 million and €1.1 billion is lost to the Irish economy, which would be about €200m is tax revenue as well, because of the use of that accommodation.”
