Tourism Ireland aims to double overseas tourism revenue for Northern Ireland by 2035

It unveiled its marketing strategy and plans recently at a meeting in Belfast attended by Economy Minister Conor Murphy and hundreds of tourism industry leaders from across the Province.

In 2025, Tourism Ireland will roll out an extensive and targeted programme of activity benefiting regions across Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland.

Given that sustainable development remains at the core of Tourism Ireland’s plans for the year ahead, there will be continued focus on attracting tourists who have ‘value adding tourism traits’ – people who are likely to see more, do more, enjoy more and therefore spend more when they visit.

New for 2025 is ‘Slow Tourism Month’. Tourism Ireland will enable more exploration, with trip ideas that allow for dwell time in communities and scenery and that can be enjoyed using sustainable modes of transport, winning overnight stays across regions.

Tourism Ireland will also unveil a new global advertising campaign across 13+ overseas markets this year.

The organisation will refresh and build on the strong foundations of its ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign featuring two of the Derry Girls – to make the island of Ireland stand out as a ‘bucket list’ destination.

Speaking at the launch, Economy Minister Conor Murphy said: “I believe strongly in the importance and value of tourism as a driver for sustainable economic growth in communities across the North.

“I have just launched the Tourism Vision & Action Plan, developed by the industry, for the industry. Targeting increased growth from overseas visitors is vital to its success and Tourism Ireland’s marketing activity across key markets will be the key driver in attracting those visitors and contributing towards my goal for tourism expenditure from overnight visitors to exceed £2 billion by 2035.

“Since taking up office, I have ensured that appropriate levels of funding have been restored to Tourism Ireland.

“The extent and aspirations of the plans outlined today are a direct consequence of this enhanced support, allowing Tourism Ireland to do more and to reach further in attracting key visitors here.

“I very much welcome Tourism Ireland’s marketing plans and their work to ensure the North is showcased on the international stage and that this part of our island is a destination of choice for overseas visitors, who can bring value for communities, workers and businesses right across this region.”

Alice Mansergh, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, said: “Overseas tourism to Northern Ireland delivered £672 million in revenue in 2023 and, importantly, helped to support around 70,000 jobs across Northern Ireland.

“Over half of all visitor spend comes from those travelling to Northern Ireland from overseas. We’re ambitious to support growth for local Northern Ireland businesses, the economy and communities and are targeting growing overseas visitor spend in Northern Ireland to £1.3 billion by 2035.

“In any industry there are risks to mitigate and tourism is no different. This year we will need to take account of the added step that the introduction of the UK’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme will bring, as well as the passenger cap at Dublin Airport.

“However, there is also enormous potential ahead and we are ambitious for growth.

“In 2025 we will focus on increasing the value of overseas tourism, sustainably supporting economies, communities and the environment – and will do so by inspiring overseas visitors and strengthening strategic partnerships.

“We will be launching a new campaign across 13+ overseas markets to win hearts, minds and trips.

“We will be collaborating with air and sea carrier partners to support demand for routes to Northern Ireland.

“With 80 per cent of visitors researching and booking trips online, we will be sharing daily inspiration with our 7.5 million followers on social media and supporting 10 million deep research visits on our website, increasingly optimised for AI.

“Working with broadcasters around the world, we look forward to TV shows featuring reasons to visit airing to key audiences.

“Sporting moments like The Open at Royal Portrush present a key opportunity, with promotional activity already under way.

“Festivals throughout Northern Ireland create additional moments to spotlight, as we win holidays from overseas visitors to grow the benefits of tourism across the year.”

Causeway Coast and Glens Council’s Destination Manager Kerrie McGonigle said it was delighted to work in partnership with Tourism Ireland.

“I was pleased to join partners from key organisations for the launch of Tourism Ireland’s 2025 Marketing Plan, and I look forward to welcoming many overseas visitors to our borough this year,” she said.