Tourism Ireland’s CEO Niall Gibbons recently led a delegation of key island of Ireland industry partners to Mumbai and Delhi as part of Tourism Ireland’s 2016 Sales Mission. The Sales Mission showcased the island of Ireland as a holiday destination and created further awareness of Ireland’s tourism products and offerings amongst the travel trade in India.
The objective of the India Sales Mission was to engage with Indian travel professionals who are currently selling the island of Ireland, or who have potential to promote the destination in the India market. The event featured a programme of workshops, presentations and networking events.
Gibbons said, “Our sales mission is a key element of our promotional programme in India. It gave our tourism partners a platform to inform and influence the Indian travel trade about what the island of Ireland has to offer and, importantly, encourage them to include the destination in their brochures and programmes. Tourism Ireland is committed to growing visitor numbers to the island of Ireland from India and our sales mission played a significant role in helping us achieve this goal.”
Siobhan McManamy, director of markets, Tourism Ireland, added, “The theme of the India Sales Mission was screen tourism and we are promoting the island of Ireland through Game of Thrones and Star Wars which have been filmed in Ireland. Fans of the Game of Thrones series from across India are now familiar with locations such as Dark Hedges in Country Antrim and Cairncastle. Our goal was to reach out to the fan base of the series in India and showcase the locations in Northern Ireland and encourage Indian travellers to experience Northern Ireland as well as the local cuisine, restaurants and hospitality of Irish people.”
Aisling McDermott, regional marketing manager – Asia and the Middle East, Tourism Ireland noted, “The British Irish Visa Scheme, the improved air access to Ireland, its proximity to the UK and the easy availability of Indian food make Ireland an ideal destination for the Indian traveller.”
For 2016 and beyond, Tourism Ireland will promote “Ireland’s Ancient East” – Ireland’s latest tourism initiative – which will leverage upon historical and cultural assets in the east and south of Ireland. MCDermott added, “We will also continue to promote the self-drive touring products of the Wild Atlantic Way and the Causeway Coastal Route to the growing number of Indian travellers looking for self-drive holidays. 2016 has been Northern Ireland’s Year of Food – giving more tourists an appetite to visit Northern Ireland. Tourism Ireland has been highlighting and celebrating our food scene, promoting Northern Ireland food.”
