Price increases for accommodation could damage Ireland’s ‘image’ among holidaymakers, Tourism Ireland told

Tourism Ireland was warned price increases of up to 30 per cent for accommodation had the potential to damage “the island of Ireland’s image”.

A series of special reports on rising costs for visitors said there was continuing feedback on increased car hire and hotel costs from trade partners across Europe and on social media.

However, Ireland had escaped relatively unscathed in international media coverage of the high price of holidays, with only occasional specific references to spiralling prices here.

A report from early July said there were concerns among French operators, some of whom had put a “temporary pause” on Irish holidays due to pricing and capacity problems.

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The briefing said: “Market partners [in France] report that, while the demand for holidays here [in Ireland] is strong and French holidaymakers will want to stay in Europe in 2023, pricing issues will need to be addressed to ensure we win future business.”

From Spain, tour operators had reported major difficulties in hiring coaches for groups visiting Ireland, with coaches sometimes being sourced and transported from mainland Europe by ferry for tours.

The report said: “Accommodation availability at specific price points and standards also remains a challenge at times.”

In Italy, there had been considerable media coverage of an Italian school trip that ended up stranded in Ireland for more than 48 hours due to a flight cancellation.

“Italian trade operators have reported group cancellations, and the need to divert a proportion of business to other destinations, due to accommodation availability,” said the report.

There were complaints as well from Austria and Switzerland where bookings had been cancelled at late notice or previously agreed rates had been increased at the last moment.

The report said: “[This resulted] in some bookings being diverted to competitor destinations and warnings of a risk to future co-operation.”

Tourism Ireland monitoring of social media also showed a continuing “low but consistent number of complaints”, mostly focusing on the cost of car hire or hotels.

Dublin Airport was also popping up in international coverage with reports about plans to put the Irish Army on standby repeatedly mentioned.

Another briefing on July 8th said US media was particularly focused on “travel chaos” in Europe with airlines and airports struggling to cope with demand.

From France, there was feedback that holidaymakers were now staying closer to home or staycationing due to “rising inflation”.

Tour operators in Belgium and the Netherlands flagged the possibility of cancelled bookings for Irish holidays “due to the number of hotel changes and extended travel distances required” for trips.

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A paper from July 15th noted an article saying tourism prices were rising most quickly in Ireland and Italy, while there was continuing coverage of baggage issues at Dublin Airport.

Those airport issues as well as flight cancellations were having a particular impact in the US, with trade sources saying they were “undermining travel confidence”.

A report from July 22nd said coverage of Dublin Airport was now turning positive after it was listed as one of the best airports for “delays/cancellations” that month.

US concerns over airport issues continued with trade sources there also lamenting “the lack of availability of hotel, car rental and golf tee time capacity” for bookings.

Another report a week later explained how the value of the US dollar compared to the euro made travel to parts of the EU a relative bargain.

However, a CNBC article highlighting this had noted that airfares to Ireland remained “largely unchanged” while average hotel costs in Dublin were $249 (€249) a night – higher than Nice, Amsterdam, Athens, and Berlin.

Another widely syndicated piece had detailed how car hire prices in Ireland “rose more than anywhere else in the world” and were up 267 per cent.

Tourism Ireland did, however, note a small decline in the number of social media complaints about Ireland and that they represented just 2 per cent of online engagement.

An information note from Tourism Ireland said: “These reports are not the opinion of Tourism Ireland; they are a compilation of coverage and feedback from our overseas markets, to help monitor potential reputation risks to the island of Ireland.

“They are intended to reflect the conversation about costs in the tourism industry generally and the island of Ireland specifically.”

The reports were compiled by Tourism Ireland’s strategy and insights team for the organisation’s own use and were released under the Freedom of Information Act.