Irish tourism gets £40m ad boost

Northern Ireland tourism has continued to grow

Tourism Ireland is set to spend £40m over three years in a bid to attract more visitors north and south.

The new advertising campaign aims to target about 200 million people across the globe.

The drive was announced by Tourism Ireland and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board in Belfast on Thursday.

Part of the campaign will tie in with the launch of The Chronicles of Narnia film of the book by Belfast-born author CS Lewis.

An advert - 'Discover the Land that Inspired Narnia' - will be shown in British cinemas.

Simon Gregory of Tourism Ireland said it should be an effective way to sell Northern Ireland to potential visitors.

"The Narnia advert that we've done is going out in Britain with the launch of the film next week and that's going to be playing in 600 cinemas all across Great Britain.

"We think that's going to be a great way to inspire people to come and see Northern Ireland," Mr Gregory said.

Campaign

The wider campaign's theme is "Discover Your Very Own Ireland" and will run across TV, radio, print, online and in cinemas.

Bruce Robinson of the Department of Enterprise Trade and Investment said Northern Ireland tourism continued to grow, with more than 2.3 million visitors last year, generating £439m.

"Revenue from overseas visitors grew by 10% in 2004 and in August 2005, hotel occupancy reached 71%, the highest recorded in the last 10 years," he said.

"Direct access from 11 European and two transatlantic destinations has been secured with the potential to increase visitor numbers to Northern Ireland."

He added: "In an intensely competitive marketplace we must ensure Northern Ireland tourism continues to grow by targeting new markets such as China and expanding existing markets."

Our new advertising brings to life, in a warm and humorous fashion, the wide range of holiday choices and activities just waiting to be discovered in Ireland Paul O'Toole Tourism Ireland

Tourism Ireland Chief Executive Paul O'Toole said Ireland continued to enjoy an extremely positive image as a holiday destination.

However, there was a need to "animate the Irish holiday experience and bring it to life", he said.

"The new campaign unashamedly reflects our core strengths - the beautiful scenery, the warmth of the people and the living and historic culture which have always resonated so well with our visitors," said Mr O'Toole.

"But our consumers also told us they needed more information about what a holiday in Ireland might involve.

"Our new advertising brings to life, in a warm and humorous fashion, the wide range of holiday choices and activities just waiting to be discovered in Ireland."