Overseas visits of people taking trips to Ireland have risen by 7.6 ％ for the first 5 months in Ireland in 2018 and it now looks very possible that the ongoing tourist season will deliver another record breaking year with regards to revenue. Mainland Europe and North American markets have both increased by 12 ％ and arrivals from the United Kingdom have increased by 2.4％ regardless of the fall in sterling and Brexit scares.
To tie in with this in the last week Fáilte Ireland have begun an advertising operation for ‘Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands’, the country’s latest tourism experience. This new experience was created following research with over 10,000 customers from Ireland, America, Britain, Germany, and France.
While the Ireland’s Ancient East and the Wild Atlantic Way have established themselves as rugged scenery and culturally history destinations, the latest edition seems well-placed to appeal to the growing tourism trend for a softer vacation experience,encouraging guests to ‘be active in nature’ and delve in the beaten track via activities like walking, cycling and fishing.
The brand has reverberated strongly in research across its target markets. The central focus of the brand which is underway by Fáilte Ireland in partnership with Waterways Ireland is to drive tourism opportunities for vacations in Ireland both on and off the water. A further resource will be the Beara Breifne Way, a walking track around the whole area, which will be developed imminently embodying a number of towns and destination hubs.
Fáilte Ireland chief executive Paul Kelly said “The overwhelming feedback is that visitors from key markets want the opportunity to explore Ireland’s natural gems and rural communities.”
“We believe that sustainable growth in tourism will depend on greater regional and seasonal activity and this new brand will go a long way in driving that — as well as economic and employment growth — across the midlands.”
Realising that it will take several years for the area to discover its full potential he said the current priority will be on working closely with key partners across the region to build the visitor experiences that will be central to the success of Ireland’s latest regional brand.
With a 75% audience reach planned over the coming weeks, the current campaign is hiring a visual style to place its viewing audience in the activities and landscape of the area, centred around the idea of Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands being ‘Yours to Uncover’.
It has natural gems around the area, including the hills of Drumshanbo as well as Glenade Lough in Leitrim; Lough Ree in Athlone; and Lough Key Forest Park and Cortober in Roscommon.