The final report from the Grow Dublin Taskforce, ‘Destination Dublin – A Collective Strategy for Growth to 2020’ was launched this morning by Lord Mayor, Oisín Quinn and Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Leo Varadkar.
The new plan for tourism in Dublin envisages a best case scenario where:
- Visitor numbers could grow by 7% a year
- Visitor spending increase by 8.6% a year
- Spending by international visitors would almost double to just under €2.5bn by 2020
The report was developed by the Grow Dublin Taskforce, a tourism group representing Dublin tourism and business interests tasked with the role of identifying how the city and county could deliver substantial growth by 2020.
While emphasising that tourism is important to Dublin in terms of revenue and jobs, the report finds that the capital is underperforming and has slipped behind its main city competitors in Europe. So while over the last three years the city has shown the beginnings of a recovery, a real awareness of Dublin and all that it can offer is not fully appreciated – particularly in those market segments which hold the most potential for growth in international visitor numbers.
The strategy set out by the report offers a roadmap for growing Dublin’s tourism in the years ahead – including identifying those market segments with most promise, outlining the need for a new brand and more modern image for the city and stressing the need for all interests in Dublin to come together to ensure that tourism can fulfil its true potential.
Welcoming the report, the Lord Mayor Óisin Quinn said -
“The launch of the Grow Dublin Taskforce Report is the result of a very successful collaboration between Dublin City Council, Fáilte Ireland and a number of other stakeholders. Dublin is a fantastic tourist destination with lots to offer any visitor. The taskforce understood the importance of getting the right message to the right people as the first step to success. The work of the Grow Dublin Taskforce, along with the roadmap now provided by the ‘Collective Strategy for Growth to 2020’, plots a clearly defined route which will help us stay on course to achieve further visitor growth and greater economic success for the city over the coming years.”
Officially launching the report, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Varadkar stated,
“2013 was a really good year for tourism in Dublin. The city was thronged with tourists and our hotels were full throughout summer. The common narrative is that the recovery in tourism has been stronger and faster in Dublin and that Dublin is doing much better than the rest of the country. That may be true but it misses the point.
“Dublin is not in competition with the rest of Ireland for international visitors. It is in competition with other cities like Barcelona, Amsterdam and Vienna. There is no reason why we should not aspire to doing even better than them. That’s what today is all about. Dublin’s tourist offering is unique, it is a young, vibrant, happening city with rich culture and heritage nestled between the wide open spaces of Dublin Bay and the mountains. We have a lot to offer and want to welcome many more visitors in the years to come.”
Speaking about how this report will impact on the work of Fáilte Ireland, Shaun Quinn, CEO added,
”As the Taskforce sets out, Dublin is in danger of standing still with its brand becoming a bit stale. Meanwhile, our competitor cities overseas have been reinventing themselves. This report is therefore a very timely wake-up call to our capital.
“Already, many of the key recommendations contained within this report are currently being implemented by Fáilte Ireland and others to reposition Dublin and improve its appeal. However, it will take more than one tourism organisation and the four local authorities to achieve the potential set out in this report. The success of Dublin as a tourism destination will also be dependent on tourism operators, sports, arts and culture interests and the wider business community working closely together as never before.”
Dublin could double tourism revenue to €2.5bn by 2020
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