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Tourism

Ireland has a huge amount to offer as a tourist destination: the breathtaking scenery of its mountains, waterways and coastline. The island’s history dates back as far as 6000 BC, providing a huge array of historical and cultural sites to visit and experience. Ireland has a huge amount of activities to offer, with golf and walking holidays being the most popular. Tourists are often attracted by Ireland’s reputation as a relaxed and friendly nation.

Dublin, as the capital of Ireland, has become a very popular destination for city breaks. The city is famous for its rich historical and literary past along with its hundreds of pubs, but more recently has become a hip European city with an array of shopping boutiques and trendy restaurants, cafes and clubs.

Ireland's tourism industry has benefited from an increase in the country's popularity as a holiday destination, in particular with the growth in its appeal as a short break destination. Overseas visitors in 2007 stood at 8 Million, a 4% increase on 2006. The table below shows the breakdown of International visitors to Ireland:

Continental Europe is the growing market, with a 14% increase in visitors on 2006.

There is continued growth in Irish residents traveling overseas which is, in part, due to Irish people’s increasing appetite for travel and their increasing amounts of disposable income from the country’s economic success. In 2007, there were 7.8 million overseas visits by Irish residents, a 12% increase on 2006.

This information was sourced from the Central Statistics Office of Ireland, more information can be found from their website at www.cso.ie/statistics/TourismandTravel.htm