Overseas trips to Ireland up by 11% this quarter

The number of visits to Ireland between May and July rose by more than 11 per cent compared to the same period last year, new Central Statistic Office figures show.

In the three-month period, more than 2.3 million trips to Ireland were made, an increase of 231,100 compared to the same period in 2013.

Trips among North American travellers increased by 16.6 per cent compared with last year, with 488,100 residents making the trip in the three months to July.

However, the highest number of visitors hailed from across the Irish sea with the number of trips made by British residents increasing by 8.5 per cent to 836,700 visitors.

The extra 66,000 UK residents who visited Irish shores between May and July has reversed the trend of previous years.

Between 2011 and 2012, the number of UK visitors had dropped by 3.6 per cent, which was not recovered last year.

The number of trips made by residents of European countries other than the UK increased by 9.7 per cent to 833,800 while trips made by other overseas visitors increased by 16.8 per cent to 157,300.

The total number of overseas trips made by Irish residents fell slightly during the same period by 0.7 per cent to 1,985,800.

Full list of CSO figures.