Like many countries around the world, Ireland’s economy took a big hit back in 2008. But while other countries have been able to slowly pick up the pieces, Ireland’s unemployment rate remains at a high 14%, and the number of foreign visitors to the country has dropped dramatically. To combat the stigma surrounding the country and to raise revenue, the country launched a tourism campaign called The Gathering to bring tourists to Ireland in 2013. The campaign is targeted at the 70 million people of Irish decent who live abroad, specifically the half of those who reside in The United States and Canada.
So what is The Gathering all about? It relies on the initiatives of individuals and organizations to host events or “gatherings” all over the country. Those who want to post an event can create an account on the website and register their event, at which time it will be searchable by date and by location in Ireland via an interactive map. There are hundreds, maybe even thousands of events happening all over the country this year, ranging from clan gatherings, to pipe band championships, to lamb festivals, to choral festivals and every other Irish type of event that you could imagine (even a redhead convention). Visitors are encouraged to plan their trips to Ireland around which events they wish to attend. For example, someone with the last name Arthurs would probably be interested in attending the Arthurs clan gathering, and would plan their travel accordingly.
Where’s England??
As you zoom in you can find more events
The website also has a section that features daily stories about the different gatherings that are happening. One recent story was written about the Tolkien Burren Society Festival. Apparently Tolkien spent a lot of time in Ireland, and it is believed that the Burren inspired The Lord of the Rings.
So has this campaign actually worked? Apparently, yes, at least to some extent. Visits to Ireland by North Americans rose by 17% in the first quarter of 2013. Tourism is at an all time high compared to 2009 and years since, but still hasn’t quite made it back to the numbers that Ireland saw in early 2008 just before the crash. It’s still too early to tell whether or not this campaign will be able to bring in enough tourists to set it back to pre-crash level, but I think it’s safe to say that it is off to a good start.
Destination Consumer 