A new strategy aimed at promoting Ireland as a whiskey tourism destination will be unveiled this week.
The campaign, which has national and local government support, is targeting massive tourism growth, building on the 653,277 tourists who visit an Irish whiskey distillery each year and increasing this figure to 1.9m by 2025. The Irish Whiskey Association is seeking to capitalise on a whiskey renaissance that is in full swing. Exports continue to drive Irish beverage exports, with double-digit growth in 2015. Annual whiskey exports are valued at €410m.
The industry is calling for an internationally-marketed Irish whiskey trail, along the lines of Tourism Ireland’s ‘Wild Atlantic Way’ and ‘Ireland’s Ancient East’.
The new strategy also calls for greater investment support for tourism infrastructure around distilleries and the promotion of Irish whiskey festivals.
Tourism Ireland has said 10.5m people will have visited Ireland by the end of 2016, with numbers up from nine million last year.
Article Source: http://tinyurl.com/kbwqb42
