Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 8 September 2022
479. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if she will engage with inbound tour operators in respect of the shortfall in tourist-designated accommodation for the year-end 2022 and 2023 season. [42353/22]
View answerGiven the level of pent up demand for international travel and the level of advance bookings, as the tourism industry recovery has begun there has been inevitable additional pressure on hotel capacity and pricing. Next year will present its own challenges as the pent-up and deferred demand might be dissipated and the current cost of living issues impact on demand.
The distorting effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the provision of accommodation for those fleeing war in Ukraine make it difficult to definitively assess the long-term supply and demand situation but there seems to be a clear need for additional tourism accommodation supply in specific areas, particularly in Dublin.
My Department officials have engaged with many stakeholders including the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation (of which the Incoming Tour Operators Association - ITOA - is a member) and the Irish Hotels Federation in order to further understand underlying issues surrounding the recovery of the tourism sector and to emphasise the importance of maintaining a strong value proposition. There is also ongoing engagement through meetings of the Hospitality and Tourism forum, which I co-chair with the Tánaiste. The ITOA is a member of this forum and the next meeting is scheduled to take place next week.
