Tourist spend rises 5%, says CSO

20/07/2005 - 11:20:48
Foreign visitors to Ireland spent 5% more in the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year, according to figures published today by the Central Statistics Office.

The CSO said these visitors spent €711m in the first quarter of the year, while Irish people spent €857m over the same period during trips abroad.

The figures showed that the number of visits abroad undertaken by Irish people increased by 16% to more than 1.2 million between January and March, while the number of visits to Ireland was also up 6% over the same period.

Tourism Minister John O'Donoghue has welcomed the statistics, but has expressed concern about a fall off in business in the guesthouse and B&B sector.