Eight Chinese Airline representatives arrived in Ireland last week where they spent time on site visits to Solis Lough Eske Castle and Harvey’s Point Hotel.
The representatives got to learn more about Fáilte Ireland’s three major tourism brands: Ireland’s Ancient East; the Wild Atlantic Way and Dublin – A Breath of Fresh Air.
The tailored visit was designed to promote Ireland to the Chinese market and was hosted and managed by Fáilte Ireland in collaboration with Tourism Ireland.
The representatives were some of the most influential airline operators in China who expressed an interest in growing their business into Ireland.
While in Ireland a bespoke itinerary was designed by Fáilte Ireland for the Chinese group to immerse themselves in.
The highlights included a guided tour of EPIC Ireland and the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, a visit to Wicklow’s Powerscourt House and Gardens, a trip to Kildare Village and a tour of Ireland’s National Stud in Ireland’s Ancient East, followed by a trip to Bunratty Castle & Folk Park, the Cliffs of Moher (pictured), a walking tour of Galway City, Kylemore Abbey & Victorian Walled Gardens, site visits to Solis Lough Eske Castle and Harvey’s Point Hotel on the Wild Atlantic Way.
Ciara Sugrue, Fáilte Ireland’s Head of International Publicity, explained “The Chinese market is an important market for Ireland and we were delighted to welcome the Chinese Airlines representatives to Ireland where we showcased our tourism offering across our three tourism brands. We believe that their interest in learning more about Ireland is a testimony to the strength of our attraction.”
China is the world’s largest source market, accounting for an estimated 85 million outbound trips in 2016. It is also projected that Europe will welcome an estimated 11 million Chinese arrivals in 2016 – a share of 12% of the Chinese market.
With the Chinese market to Europe forecast to grow by 9% per annum over the next five years, these Chinese decision makers have the capacity to deliver significant amounts of visitors to Ireland and their presence here is testament to Ireland’s appeal as a destination.”