Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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1124. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the extent to which particular sectors of the tourism sector to date in 2018 have shown particular potential for growth with consequent economic benefit in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25677/18]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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After a number of very successful years, indications are that 2018 will prove to be another good year for tourism in Ireland. Sentiment in the industry both overseas and here at home is generally positive for the remainder of 2018. Tourism Ireland’s aim is to grow overseas tourism revenue by a further 5% this year and to increase the number of overseas visitors by 2%.

The early signs are promising, with the CSO reporting in its Overseas Travel release that overseas trips to Ireland for the first four months of the year, at over 2.8 million visits, were up 7.3% on 2017, as follows:

- Visits from North America were up by 13.6%

- Visits from Mainland Europe were up by 12.3%

- Great Britain registered an increase of 1.1% in visits, and

- Visits from the rest of the world (long-haul) increased by 2.9%.

While the data only covers four months and it is too early to predict how the rest of the year might fare, it is a welcome start which indicates that we are well placed to build further on the outstanding growth of recent years. Revenue figures for overseas visitors in Q1 are due to be published this week and should also be positive based on the visitor numbers.

There is no CSO data published yet for domestic tourism in 2018 but indications are positive following a difficult, weather-related, start to the year. Fáilte Ireland reported in its Tourism Barometer in April that hotels have reported a strong performance from the domestic market.

Fáilte Ireland estimates that tourism now supports approximately 235,000 jobs across the country, making it a vital indigenous economic sector and one that supports communities in both rural and urban areas. Whilst we cannot be complacent about continued growth in tourism, the outlook for the remainder of the year looks positive.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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1125. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the extent to which his Department has identified the degree to which potential growth of the tourism sector region by region with particular reference to the use of historical sites, monuments and buildings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25678/18]

Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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The tourism potential of the various regions is developed and promoted in line with the relevant tourism brand experiences - namely Ireland's Hidden Heartlands, Ireland's Ancient East, the Wild Atlantic Way and the Dublin brand - which are the overarching context for related tourism product development, marketing and enterprise support.

Promoting and leveraging the appeal of Ireland's culture and heritage are an intrinsic element of all the tourism brand experiences. However, with specific regard to our historical and built heritage, these are particularly to the fore in Ireland's Ancient East, which has an especially rich and diverse range of such heritage experiences - including passage tombs, monastic sites and medieval castles.

As the development of the brand experiences is a matter for Fáilte Ireland, I have asked the agency to reply directly to the Deputy's question. I ask him to contact my private office if he has not received a reply within ten working days.