A recent survey conducted by the Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland shows that every single respondent had noted a substantial decline in bookings for next year.
The CTTC survey also found that 84% of private operators do not expect to financially recover in the next year, following a period of near negligible activity over the last 18 months.
When asked if international coach tour bookings had increased or decreased for 2022, when compared to the same period in 2019, all the respondents noted a substantial decline in bookings.
The CTTC said this stark finding is likely to alarm operators and the thousands of retail, hospitality and visitor attraction businesses throughout the country.
According to today's survey, 93% of coach tour operators said their business has been significantly impacted by travel restrictions on international visitors.
93% of respondents also believe that low levels of consumer confidence are damaging their business.
The survey also reveals that 100% of operators believe that more needs to be done to improve confidence levels in public transport, post-pandemic.
73% of Ireland's leading operators also said they will be forced to reduce their workforce in 2022, which could lead to considerable job losses.
The chairperson of the Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland said that while the results of the survey will be of little surprise to many, they offer a striking assertion of the bleak prospects facing the coach tourism industry at present.
"Having witnessed the complete decimation of their businesses over the past 18 months, for many operators, the balance sheets are becoming increasingly unstable, with no certainty on the horizon," John Halpenny said.
He said that for many industries, the partial resumption of international tourism marked the light at the end of the tunnel - but this was not the case for the council's operators.
"The average lead generation time for international tourist bookings is at least 12 months, if not longer. Realistically, we are facing a scenario whereby most coach tour operators will not be able to meaningfully resume their services until June 2022," he explained.
"Such a dramatic drop off in activity is likely to result in decreased connectivity to the rural tourism destinations in Ireland and significant job losses, situations that must adamantly be avoided," he added.
Mr Halpenny said he was urging the Government to provide supplementary support for operators this year so they are best placed to take advantage of the 2022 season.
"Looking to next year, a resumption of the Business Continuity Scheme on a contingency basis would provide a safety net for many," he added.
