8 reasons why tourists want to visit Ireland

Analysis: as tourists prepare to travel again, here are some of Ireland's unique selling points

By Mariia Perelygina and Samantha Morris, TU Dublin

The year before the pandemic was a record year for Irish tourism with Ireland welcoming over 11.3 million overseas tourists to the island in 2019. The same year, Dublin was the 50th most visited city in the world.

As overseas tourists begin to now re-emerge, destinations across the globe are vying for their attention. Ireland's priority is to continue to drive as much demand as possible and to entice and welcome back overseas tourists. Here are eight reasons why tourists may be heading to Ireland for their next break away.

Nature

The Irish natural environment with its landscapes and seascapes is one of the top reasons overseas tourists choose Ireland. From the cliffs at Slieve League, to the Connemara National Park and the golden beaches of Wexford, our scenery represents our sense of place and defines our identity.

What better way to experience Ireland’s scenery than cycling on one of the many greenways around the country? These purpose built trails are generally traffic free and exclusively for the use of cyclists and pedestrians and offer an authentic way to experience spectacular Irish scenery.

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From RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland, Cian McCormack speaks to Ann O'Connor from Mayo County Council on how cycle greenways have changed the dynamic of tourism and community development

Castles and architecture

From castles to tower houses, monasteries to churches and Georgian mansions to vernacular cottages, the Irish landscape is dotted with iconic buildings. Irish castles feature heavily in tourism campaigns. Arguably one of the most famous castles in Ireland is Blarney Castle, thanks to the legend of the Blarney Stone. However, there are spectacular castles all over Ireland, such as Dunluce Castle, Trim Castle, Charleville Castle and Dunguaire Castle. Tourists can take a part in everything from guided tours, medieval banquets, costumed interpretation, and re-enactments or even rent out an entire tower house for the ultimate experience.

Festivals

The St Patrick's Festival is an ambassador for Irish culture all over the world. The Global Greening initiative, where iconic landmarks all over the world are illuminated in green, celebrates and helps promote Ireland as a choice destination. World class festivals take place throughout the year all over Ireland, catering for all ages and tastes, including the Cork Jazz Festival, Galway Oyster Festival, Dublin Fringe Festival, the Rose of Tralee, the Cat Laughs Festival and the Púca Festival, to name but a few.

From RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland, Anna McGowan from St. Patrick's Festival and Anna-Marie McHugh from the National Ploughing Championships on their plans for 2022

People

All over the world, Ireland is renowned for Guinness, rain and its lush green landscape, but above all Irish people are known for our warm welcome. Ireland is known as the home of the ‘Cead Mile Failte’ and the place of lively conversation, humour and fun. Lonely Planet has named Dublin as the seventh-best city in the world to visit in 2022, an accolade won for being "one of Europe's most down-to-earth and friendly cities".

Drink

Jameson, Guinness, Bushmills and Bailey's are just some of the Irish brands known all over the world, so how could any tourist resist the chance to sample their favourite drink in its homeland? Tourists also have the chance to visit the distilleries to see how it’s made, sample special editions and to learn how to create classical and unique cocktails. As well as old favourites, the tourist can also experience the range of unique micro-breweries, craft distilleries and sample craft sprits, mead, craft beers and even Irish fruit wine.

Dark tourism

From RTÉ Brainstorm, Ireland has no shortage of tourism sites associated with death or incarceration

The dark side of Irish history and culture is certainly fascinating to tourists. Glasnevin Cemetery, Kilmainham Gaol and Titanic Belfast are among the most visited and top-rated attractions in Ireland. Halloween, which attracts autumn tourists, also has Irish origins and is based on the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. Many of the world's Halloween traditions began here in Ireland, including dressing up in disguise to ward off evil spirits, carving ghoulish faces into turnips to create the original jack-o'-lanterns, as well as baking barmbrack to forecast the future.

Golf

Pre-Covid, golf tourism was an extremely lucrative sector for Ireland and contributed almost €270 million to the economy. Ireland has a wealth of world class golf courses including Druids Glen, Rosapenna, Ballybunion, Cruit Island and Narin and Portnoo. Last summer, actor and golf enthusiast Bill Murray toured Ireland's golfing circuit for a new season of YouTube golf series The Links Life.

From RTÉ Radio 1's Drivetime, Niall Gibbons from Tourism Ireland tells us what Bill Murray is doing in Ireland

Literature

Ireland is recognised across the world as a country of great writers, poets, and playwrights. Writers such James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett, W.B. Yeats and Seamus Heaney make up the core element of Ireland’s tourist brand. Spanning summer schools, festivals, workshops and landmark tours, literary tourism offers overseas tourists a year-round experience. 2022 will be the centenary anniversary of the publication of Joyce’s Ulysses and a world-class programme of events is scheduled to take place throughout the year to mark the event.

From RTÉ News, An Post have issued stamps mark 100 years since the publication of Ulysses

Certainly, this is not a definitive list of what makes Ireland an attractive place for overseas tourists. There are many other reasons why tourists visit Ireland, from learning English to exploring Irish roots and Celtic culture, or even fans wanting to visit the home of U2 and Game of Thrones. Ireland is also well placed to expand on its clean and green image catering for the demand for a more sustainable travel experience. As Ireland begins to roll out the welcome carpet again, the main priority now is to entice overseas tourists inspiring them to put the island of Ireland high on their wish list for 2022.

Dr Mariia Perelygina is a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Hospitality Management and Tourism at TU Dublin. Samantha Morris is a senior research assistant and PhD student at TU Dublin who is currently working on the FADE (festivals, audiences and the digital experience) project which is funded by the Irish Research Council COALESC programme.

The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ