Inchydoney Lodge Spa on US blitz itinerary

Inchydoney Lodge & Spa

The West Cork-based Inchydoney Lodge and Spa is part of a delegation of Irish tourism interests visiting the US this month.

Tourism Ireland’s series of ‘Jump into Ireland’ sales blitzes kicked off last week in Washington DC, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

It involved a busy schedule of business-to-business events, including a 60-minute travel TV show format highlighting Ireland to the influential American audience, as well as networking sessions with travel and lifestyle journalists.

The platform is designed to showcase and sell Cork – and Ireland in general – to important travel decision-makers in each city. I

t was also a useful opportunity to highlight the ease of access from the US to the island of Ireland – including the new Aer Lingus flight from Washington DC to Dublin, beginning in May.

Similar ‘Jump into Ireland’ events will take place in Atlanta (Georgia), Charlotte and Tampa (Florida) later this month; Minneapolis (Minnesota), Denver and Dallas (Colorado), in September; and in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and San Francisco, in November.

Alison Metcalfe, Tourism Ireland’s head of North America, said that in 2014 over one million American visitors came to Ireland, spending more than USbn.

‘Our ambition for 2015 is to grow visitor numbers from the US by a further 6% and we look forward to working closely with our valuable industry partners, in both the US and Ireland, to achieve that target,’ she said.

‘The outlook for the year ahead is positive, particularly given that the number of airline seats from the United States to Ireland is set to grow by 14% in the peak summer season months, making it that much easier to get to the island of Ireland from 11 gateways across the US.’

The ‘blitz’ will also be building on the hugely positive reaction to the launch last year of the Wild Atlantic Way touring route.