Ed Sheeran teams up with Tourism Ireland for new campaign to attract British visitors
Ed Sheeran has talked about his deep connection to Ireland and why it's the perfect place for British tourists to visit in a new video.
Alongside X-Factor presenter Dermot O'Leary, Ed assured fans and prospective visitors that Ireland is the ideal destination.
In a video from Tourism Ireland, Ed explains how travelling to Ireland during his youth to visit family helped to influence his music.
"I definitely have more of a connection with an Irish crowd.... I was into Irish music but the guy who made me wanna write songs is Irish."
The video follows official CSO figures for the first half of 2018 which confirm a growth of 6.7% in overseas visitors to Ireland - 307,000 more arrivals than the record first half of 2017.
Tourism Ireland says most tourism companies here "will be affected by Brexit", so it is continuing to defend "our share of this most competitive market."
During the video, Ed revealed that although Cork was his favourite Irish gig, it's Dingle which is his favourite place to visit.
"If you're travelling to Ireland to do touristy things, go and see Dingle Bay - and if you want to live in Ireland for a bit, live in Wexford".
