|
|
Derry hotel numbers slightly down
31.07.09
THERE was a slight drop
in Derry hotel occupancy figures last year but 2008
remained a "relatively good year" for tourism, the
AGM of the Derry Visitor and Convention Bureau has
heard. The first quarter of 2009 however, has shown
a slight improvement - up from 53% to 56% from
January to March.
Total enquiries to the Tourist Information Centre
(TIC) in 2008 were down 4% but there was an increase
of 16% in counter enquiries by international
visitors. "This firmly establishes our belief that
the city and region’s product offering had truly
international appeal," said Bureau sales and
marketing manager, Karen Henderson.
Hotel occupancy figures decreased from 69% to 65% in
2008 but this remains above the Northern Ireland
average. Meanwhile, hotel occupancy was 56% compared
to 53% for the first quarter of 2009 - again above
the Northern Ireland average. |
Derry Mayor Councillor
Paul Fleming who is also chairperson of DVCB said
Derry was now an ideal short break destination
within the island of Ireland. "The DVCB has produced
a Short Breaks Brochure to promote price-led midweek
and weekend break offers which are featured on
various websites. I am pleased to see that over 15%
of visitors who stayed in the hotels were from the
Republic of Ireland market of which many of those
visitors would have availed of a short break visit
to the city.”
Meanwhile, Tourism Ireland reported that the first
six months of 2009 was ‘one of the toughest’ periods
for tourism on the island of Ireland |
 |
and indeed for tourism
worldwide. Key growth markets for Derry however, are
Europe and Great Britain which represent 27% and 21%
respectively, according to enquiries last year at
the local tourist office.
Bureau visitor services manager Odhran Dunne
outlined a number of initiatives over the last year
supported by the Western Regional Tourism
Partnership (WRTP). These included tourism training,
a local food directory, a visitor passport Sscheme
and market research for the region. "DVCB welcomes
the new Derry City Council Tourism Development
Strategy and together we must strive towards
ensuring that our visitors have a world class
visitor experience in this city," said Mr Dunne. |
|
