Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, to the House.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State. It is wonderful to have the opportunity to discuss the issues regarding North American tourism and the marketing opportunities we have at the moment. I spent last weekend in Kinsale, and it quickly became very obvious from talking to people involved in the hotel industry and the restaurant industry that the feedback they are getting from their American customers is unique. We are have been enjoying a really good interaction with the American customers over the last few years. One of the key issues is that they see huge value for money in coming to Ireland. The current exchange rate is something we have never seen before. I recall going to America years ago, and for €1 you would be getting maybe $1.50. Now the dollar is on par with the euro. The knock-on implication of that is that an American who would be paying $10 for a beverage in America could pay around $5 to $6 for the same beverage in Ireland. We should have a real marketing campaign on the value for money that we have in our tourism industry for the American market, in particular, so we can capitalise on it.

There is potential there. From speaking to the American tourists I met, and it was great to see them in Kinsale, I know they are coming to Kinsale because of the value that is there and because of the attractions and the sights we have that are managed by the OPW. There is also the Wild Atlantic Way. That entity, in particular, needs to be spoken about. We need to start talking about the real assets we have. We have real story to tell, and sometimes it is not all about Dublin. Sometimes it is about the rural areas and what happens in places like Kinsale, Clonakilty and Bantry and all the way up the west coast. The starting point of the Wild Atlantic Way is in Kinsale. In many ways it has changed the focus in trying to get tourists into rural areas. If we were to join those dots together and talk about what we have to offer - the unique scenery, the great value for money and the culture and heritage that the American market is so tied into - we could have a wonderful opportunity to make sure our entire hospitality industry, along the south and west coast in particular, could be revitalised.

That is what I am highlighting today. The campaign has to be about what we have in rural Ireland and what we have to offer. It has to be about what the Wild Atlantic Way can offer, but it also has to be about value for money. That is the issue that we have missed in our marketing campaign. It is great to think that American tourists from a different social background are coming to Kinsale on package holidays now because they can get value for money. Traditionally, it was the high-spending market that was coming. Now is everyone is coming. I have never seen such an opportunity for us to capitalise before. St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner. It is the start of our intensive marketing campaign in so many ways. With St. Patrick's Day coming up and with our envoys like the Minister of State and others going around the world, we need to start talking about what we have to offer here. That is the core point today. The message has changed. We need to focus now on our rural areas and on value for money. If we can do that, I am sure our vibrant tourism trade, which is worth anything from €6 billion to €8 billion, can be made more profitable.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Lombard and the Members of this House for giving me for an opportunity to address this matter today on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media. I believe anybody could stand up here, as Senator Lombard has done, and talk about what we have to offer in their own part of Ireland. I live in County Waterford, near the greenway and between the sea and the mountains. Regardless of whether you live in beautiful west Cork, Kerry, Galway or elsewhere, our country has so much to offer. As Senators are all aware, the tourism sector was decimated during the pandemic. Even though it rebounded well in 2022, significant challenges remain on the horizon, including labour shortfalls, accommodation supply issues, inflation, rising costs and a much weaker global economy.

The supports that the Government has put in place for the sector, during and since the pandemic, have ensured that the sector is still in a very strong position for attracting international visitors. In budget 2023, an additional €15 million was allocated for overseas marketing, which will enable Tourism Ireland to significantly ramp up its promotion of Ireland as a world-class tourism experience in key markets, including North America. The US is our most important market in terms of revenue, and is responsible for 29% of all tourist revenue.In 2019, we welcomed 1.7 million US visitors, generating €1.5 billion in revenue but the Senator is right, we can do so much more. Throughout 2023, Tourism Ireland will roll out an extensive and targeted programme of activity in the United States and Canada. A wide range of promotional activities will be undertaken, including major marketing campaigns, publicity and programming, social media and digital marketing, as well as working with the tourism industry at home and the travel trade overseas to facilitate sales. Tourism lreland’s new global campaign, "Fill your heart with Ireland", will go live in the United States on 3 April. This new campaign will demonstrate how the island of Ireland fills the heart of celebrities, influencers and real-life holidaymakers, the likes of whom the Senator saw in Kinsale last weekend, to win market share among a more affluent holidaymaker audience. The key objective is revenue generation but hooks to grow tourism in the regions and during the shoulder season are built in. A number of supporting campaigns are also planned, as the Senator said, including the campaigns around St. Patrick’s Day, Hallowe'en, the Ryder Cup and The Open, luxury travel and screen tourism, as well as outdoor activities. Tourism Ireland will also capitalise on a number of special opportunities set to take place this year, including the Notre Dame versus Navy college football game in August and a collaboration with Riverdance in the United States.

A central theme in all of Tourism Ireland’s activity in North America will be sustainability, including an increased focus on achieving greater dispersal of visitors to the regions and extending the season through off-peak holidays. Greater dispersal of visitors to the regions is the key of what the Senator said because there is so much to offer. A lot of Irish people learned during Covid-19 that we have so much in our country. When you were limited to 5 km or to stay within your own county boundaries, we explored places we may not have visited since we were children. What we have to offer is fantastic. Tourism Ireland in conjunction with Searchlight Pictures created a short, behind-the-scenes video using footage shot during the filming of "The Banshees of Inisherin". It features director, writer and producer Martin McDonagh, as well as actors Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan, who describe and praise the special locations chosen for filming. That alone will have a huge impact for tourism from America.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State. She is making me yearn for travel after that reply.

Tim Lombard (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State's response. The focus of my contribution this morning was about trying to make sure the rural element of our rural towns was tied into the marketing campaign. When talking about towns like Kinsale and hotels like the Blue Haven, Actons and the Trident or the Fernhill Hotel, Clonakilty and the Celtic Ross Hotel, Rosscarbery, we have huge, wonderful complexes that can be part of this marketing campaign. Connections with local authorities are also important. I mentioned that the Kinsale-Bandon district is tied in with Rhode Island. They are also key links we need to work on in order that we can sell the message. I would like the Minister of State to clarify the following issue. This campaign should start on St. Patrick's Day, not 3 April. St. Patrick's Day is a traditional occasion during which we have great access worldwide to many events and influencers. We need to use that if we can. I hope St. Patrick's Day could be the real focus point so we can get things rolling. It is also about the cost of living. We have value for money we have never seen before. We have not sold that message. I picked up from Americans I have met that they have never seen such value for money. They are also on about the expense in America of food, which has become very expensive there. Now, Ireland is an affordable destination; we just need to tell that story and it has to be a part of the actual campaign.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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We know that significant economic and social benefits are derived from facilitating access to and from the regions. Air connectivity to key regional hubs is essential to support incoming tourism, foreign direct investment and indigenous businesses. In that regard, the €3 million allocated to the regional co-operative marketing fund in 2023 will enable tourism Ireland to explore new access routes and maximise the potential of existing services to the regions and match funding from airlines, sea carriers, airports, ports and tourism stakeholders, including local authorities, as the Senator said. In fairness to the local authorities, they have been strong in putting forward what they have to offer in their areas.

According to my notes, this will start at the beginning of April but as the Senator said, we are going to see the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister in the Green Party, junior and senior Cabinet Ministers and others travelling all over the world. Where else would you want to be on St. Patrick's Day? Everybody wants to put on the green jersey and feel that unique Irishness we all know and love. We get a huge amount of support as Irish people all over the world and a huge amount of media coverage, after which we will roll straight into the campaign in April. I agree with the Senator wholeheartedly. We have so much to offer and we can keep pushing and pushing to encourage as many tourists to come back as possible. We really missed them during the Covid-19 period.