Tourism Ireland, in association with Visit Britain and Visit Scotland, will host 2012 travel trade workshops in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Kuwait from the 12th – 16th of February. Building on recent promising developments in direct access routes between the UAE and Ireland, the workshops are designed to further enhance Ireland’s visibility and awareness among travel trade partners for 2012.
The recent launch of daily Emirates flights from Dubai to Dublin in conjunction with Etihad’s existing 10 flights per week from Abu Dhabi to Dublin have strengthened ties between the UAE and Ireland. The Visa Waiver scheme, which entitles holders of a category C British Visit Visa to enter Ireland once they have entered the UK, is also contributing to Ireland’s popularity as a destination for UAE travellers. These developments have encouraged even more Irish suppliers to come to the UAE and participate in the 2012 workshops as part of an annual sales mission. This year suppliers from Ireland will include top five star hotels, leading golf courses, luxury DMC’s and a designer shopping village.
In addition, Tourism Ireland will announce a busy programme of events and attractions for Ireland in 2012 at the workshops. Among these highlights will be the Volvo Ocean Race finale in Ireland, echoing the success of the Volvo Ocean Race Abu Dhabi stopover in January. 6 Arab dhows will be transported to the finale in Galway Ireland as part of the cultural exchange. Northern Ireland will also unveil the 2012 ‘Your Time, Our Place’ campaign which includes celebration of the centenary of the Titanic’s maiden voyage. Ireland’s National Day, St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th will see the UAE join the global ‘greening’ phenomenon- where iconic buildings are turned green to salute Ireland. This year Tourism Ireland plans to host a series of quirky publicity and trade events, as well as the anticipated greening of Burj Al Arab.
To promote and highlight the many new developments for 2012, Tourism Ireland is rolling out a new global advertising campaign ‘Jump into Ireland’. The new campaign is designed to reflect the immersive nature of a holiday in Ireland with iconic experiences and warm, friendly people.
Niall Gibbons, chief executive of Tourism Ireland, said: “We are targeting further growth in 2012 and our goal is to welcome over 9 million overseas visitors to the island by 2015, exceeding the record year for tourism of 2007. The new campaign will play a major role in this effort as part of an extensive overseas marketing programme.”
