Irish Republic
Note on IPS
Please note, 2024 data from the International Passenger Survey is badged as ‘official statistics in development’ and estimates are subject to future change as further improvements to the methodology are introduced. The ONS are not endorsing comparisons with previous years. See the ONS website for more information.
Irish Republic
Travellers from the Irish Republic made 11.5 million outbound visits in 2024, with a total international tourism expenditure of US$12.7 billion.
In 2024, the UK welcomed 2.9 million visits from the Irish Republic. During the travellers’ visits, their total expenditure was £1.0 billion, with an average spend of £356 per person.
Visitor characteristics
- In 2024, 28% of visitors from the Irish Republic were aged 55 and over compared to the market average of 23%.
- 9% of all visits from the Irish Republic and 15% of visits to friends and relatives (VFR) were made by UK nationals in 2024.
- Visitors from the Irish Republic spend just 26% of nights in London. The next highest share of nights, 21%, are spent in England’s North Country.
- Half of Irish visitors to Britain reside in Dublin.
- 33% of holiday visitors (excluding British expats) are making a repeat visit to Britain (within ten years).
- 97% of departing visitors (excluding British nationals) are either ‘likely’ or ‘extremely likely’ to recommend a visit to Britain.
Explore the inbound data in full
Use our visualisations to see data from this market in greater depth and clarity. Compare annual statistics, and filter by age group, gender, trip duration and more. Includes seasonality, trip purpose and regional spread of visitors to UK destinations. This data is based on the International Passenger Survey, conducted by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Please click on the button below and select the market you are interested in.
Global context
Top-level statistics relating to tourism expenditure and popular destinations for this market. For greater detail on inbound tourism flows from this market to the UK, see our data visualisations.
| Measure | 2024 |
| International tourism expenditure (US$bn) | 12.7 |
| Global rank for international tourism expenditure | 30 |
| Number of outbound visits (m) | 11.5 |
| Most visited destination | United Kingdom |
Access to Britain from the Irish Republic
The key routes and transport modes that connect this market with the UK.
| Measure | 2024 |
| Weekly aircraft departures | 968 |
| Weekly seat capacity | 152,038 |
| Airports with direct routes in Irish Republic | 6 |
| Airports with direct routes in Britain | 23 |
- In 2024, the majority of Irish visitors (90%) travelled to Britain by air, with 10% travelling via sea (IPS).
- 51% of seat capacity on direct flights to the UK are to London airports.
- Following the COVID-19 pandemic, scheduled flight seat capacity on non-stop flights from Ireland to the UK was 96% of pre-pandemic levels.
- Ferries sail from two ports in Ireland (Rosslare and Dublin) to three ports in Wales (Fishguard, Pembroke and Holyhead). There are 43 weekly sailings from Dublin to Holyhead which are operated by Irish Ferries & Stena Line, though the timetable often increases during the high season.
To see entry requirements for visitors to the UK from Ireland click here.
To see rates for Air Passenger Duty charged on passengers flying to Ireland from the UK click here.
Further resources
Where visitors from Ireland to the UK reside in their own country
How we source this information
We work with a number of data sources to provide a rich and insightful picture of our key inbound source markets. This includes, but is not limited to, data provided by Oxford Economics, the UNWTO, Apex, Anholt-Ipsos Nation Brands Index and from our own surveys and ad-hoc research. The largest share of the data come from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) by the ONS.
Visit our About the International Passenger Survey page for more information on how the data is collected and analysed.
