Tourism | Business Post

Canadian investor takes 3.5% stake in Hostelworld

A subsidiary owned by Prem Watsa has bought just over four million shares in the Irish hostel-booking company, at a cost of about £4m

The Big Interview

‘In times of crisis, you want to be in control of your destiny’ – Gary Morrison of Hostelworld

Travel restrictions led to losses of €17.3 million for Dublin-headquartered Hostelworld in 2021 but now, with business almost back to pre-pandemic levels, its chief executive Gary Morrison is looking to the future and to other markets such as the over-35 solo traveller

Dermot O’Leary and Laura Whitmore among influencers employed by Tourism Ireland in €1.7m campaign

State’s tourism agency has for years brought celebrities and journalists to Ireland for ‘familiarisation visits’ designed to win positive media coverage

Analysts to upgrade Hostelworld forecasts as recovery continues

Booking demand into Europe is almost back to 2019 levels and in some places has even exceeded them, and all destinations are seeing an uptick

‘Closing the restaurant was heartbreaking; you feel like you’re letting people down’: Hospitality sector faces into an uncertain summer

Many in the industry are struggling due to increased costs and staff shortages, yet others are more upbeat about the prospects for a recovery in business over the next few months

Energy costs ‘impossible’ to predict, says Dalata chief

Dermot Crowley, chief executive of Ireland’s largest hotel group, assumes that energy costs for the group will be ‘multiples’ of its €10 million spend in 2019

Roz Purcell and Greg O’Shea among Fáilte Ireland influencers paid tens of thousands

State tourism agency has paid around €180,000 to influencers for social media campaigns selling different parts of Ireland

Fáilte Ireland says a third of tourism workers are new to sector

Agency plans to help upskill and retain new staff as hotels, restaurants and other businesses rush to fill an estimated 40,000 job vacancies

Travel: To visit Memphis is to be absorbed by its rich musical lore, its vivid political history and its marvellous cuisine

Domestic visits to Memphis ended up being 10 per cent above the US national average last year. It was also named one of the world’s greatest places by Time magazine

Hospitality groups lobby for new overseas recruitment campaign to bring in skilled workers

Fáilte Ireland reports that there are 40,000 vacancies in hospitality, while lobby groups call for improvements in the work permit and visa regime

Ian Guider: More flights won’t rescue tourism industry if there’s nothing to see here

With much-loved cultural venues in Dublin disappearing at an alarming rate, it’s time we took a long, hard look at what draws tourists to Ireland in the first place

More than €350,000 in Covid-19 arts grants returned

Cabinet will meet tomorrow to decide on the gradual winding down of restrictions

Eoghan O’Mara Walsh: Don’t bet against resilient Irish tourism bouncing back from Covid-19

The sector has a long record of strength in adversity, and can weather this crisis if the government gives it the right kind of assistance

Travel: High adventure finds its natural home in the Swiss Alps

Isabel Conway experiences an idyllic and ski-free Swiss adventure holiday perfect for the slope-shy, from e-biking to deer-spotting to making your own paté

Tourists to be provided with ‘carbon calculators’

The Minister for Tourism is due to bring the report of the sustainable tourism working group to cabinet for approval tomorrow

New tourism trail aims to unlock equestrian and racing heritage

Fáilte Ireland is seeking expressions of interest from businesses to create an equine-themed tourism trail, focused on Kildare and Tipperary

Comment: Tourism can take off due to relaxation of US travel ban

Recovery cannot be taken for granted and is dependent on pro-tourism and pro-aviation policies from government

Tourism Ireland under siege over naming of Derry

The agency was criticised after a social media competition referred to Seamus Heaney’s birthplace as Londonderry

Galway to be rebranded in bid to attract more tourists

The joint venture between Galway’s city and county councils is part of an overall plan to increase the value of tourism to the area to €735m

All in a Bay’s work: How a hotel group is hoping to make a 145-acre site a centrepiece of Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands

The Hodson Bay Group has bought a swathe of land on the shores of Lough Ree and two islands to build an eco-tourism venture which, it hopes, will tap into holidaymakers’ increasing demand for outdoor activities