Online tourism bookings up 13pc in 2007


10 Dec 2007

Web reservations portal GoIreland.com and its affiliate network have reported online bookings growth of 13pc in 2007.

Gulliver Ireland, which owns GoIreland.com, said more than 76,000 tourism bookings, valued at €15.5m, were made online during the year. Average booking value increased to €203.38, up from €196.62 last year.

Nearly half (45pc) of GoIreland.com’s bookings were domestically sourced, continuing the strong growth in online domestic bookings over the past few years. Some 17pc of bookings came from England and a further 12pc from the US.

Northern Ireland and France also made the top five country booking source list for 2007.

The hotel sector secured 54pc of GoIreland.com’s tourism bookings, while the B&B (32pc) and guesthouse (9pc) sectors also benefited.

Dublin (29pc), the south-west (16pc) and the west (15pc) were the three regions to secure the most bookings during 2007.

By Niall Byrne