‘Suspending Dublin airport cap has unlocked 12pc increase in aircraft seats’ – Tourism Ireland’s Alice Mansergh at IHF Conference

Tourism Ireland managing director Alice Mansergh told delegates at the Irish Hotels Federation Annual Conference in Killarney that Ireland needs to uplevel expectations around food and accommodation, as outdated perceptions persisted, while competing against premium-priced Northern European destinations such as Iceland and Norway.

Speaking on a panel discussion on the next chapter for Irish tourism” she said Tourism Ireland was constantly assessing which markets would drive future growth. The United States remained the most valuable visitor source market, and despite geopolitical disruption in the previous year, US visitors increased by 7 per cent. She observed that uncertainty had become the new certainty, yet people continued to take holidays amid daily headlines. Increased air access from the US required Tourism Ireland to make the most of those opportunities.

Mainland Europe, with 450m people on the doorstep, has not grown at the same pace as the USA. Mainland Europe offered untapped potential with planned increased investment to challenge outdated perceptions and compete with premium Northern European destinations.

Britain stood as the nearest neighbour and highest-volume market. Mansergh mentioned an upcoming Channel 4 travel show co-funded by Tourism Ireland featuring Martin Kemp, which aimed to encourage repeat visits by showcasing depth in what Ireland offered.

Long-haul markets such as China and India did not yet deliver the bulk of revenue for most operators, but Tourism Ireland aimed for them to play a future role.

She said the removal of the cap would unlock potential for new routes, including increased connectivity with China and India, more frequency from mainland Europe.

Alice Mansergh shared “Uncertainty has become the new certainty and people are getting used to daily headlines, but they still want to take their holidays anyway. Despite all the geopolitical disruption last year, visitors from the US grew by 7pc over the years..”

“The removal of the passenger capital at Dublin airport. How important is it? The briefest answer would be really important. Dublin airport is the biggest airport and hub that we have and, remember that the cap was actually enforced up until end of March last year. It’s very interesting to see now when the cap is on hold and under legal review what’s the difference in the numbers. It is illustrative of how important it is that we all back that government pledge you know to address the camp so last year the camp was in place this year it’s not we have 12pc more seats islandwide inclusive of all the regional airports this spring versus last spring. The biggest driver of that is growth that’s now been unlocked again at Dublin airport.”

“We’re really delighted that addressing the camp was in the programme for government that a bill has now been put forward for the Minister for Transport to be able to amend or remove the cap. And I think everybody in industry will really be cheering on strong momentum on this one. We’re grateful it’s happening.”