Tourism Welcomes €226M Funding

Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland have welcomed tourism funding of €226m in Budget 2025.

CEO of Fáilte Ireland Paul Kelly said:

“The funding secured by Minister Catherine Martin for Fáilte Ireland will enable us to continue our vital work in promoting sustainable development within the tourism industry. The specific allocation for Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland to commence developing Ireland’s positioning as the ‘Home of Halloween’ will help us attract more visitors during this unique cultural celebration. In addition, the incremental funding allocated for Business Events will enable the implementation of some of the elements of a new Business Events strategy for Ireland.

“These initiatives will support our strategic objectives of driving seasonality and regionality, ensuring a more balanced distribution of tourism throughout the year and across different regions. Capital investment is crucial for enhancing Ireland’s tourism offering. This funding allocation will allow us to continue to develop and improve tourism amenities, ensuring that Ireland remains a top destination for visitors, offering world-class attractions and experiences that will benefit both tourists and local communities.”

Alice Mansergh, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, said:

“We welcome the funding for overseas tourism allocated in Budget 2025, which demonstrates the Government’s continued commitment to Irish tourism.

“Tourism is an industry that supports 300,000 jobs right across our island, with around 200,000 of those jobs dependent on overseas tourism. This year, overseas tourism is likely to be worth €6.5 billion. Our aim is to grow revenue by an average +5.6% per year to 2030. As we look to the year ahead, there are, of course, certain risks to mitigate – including the Dublin Airport cap, the cost of living and competitiveness on the ground.

“We estimate that for every €1 invested by Tourism Ireland in overseas marketing, about €25 comes back to the economy from overseas visitors’ spend on the ground in Ireland.”

Minister Catherine Martin said:

“The tourism sector has been through severe challenges in recent years, and funding of over €226 million in 2025 will build and sustain core capacity in the industry. This allocation will support the work of Fáilte Ireland on enhancing the tourist experience and assisting tourism businesses in Ireland through work in areas such as festivals, digital transformation and sustainability. It will also assist Tourism Ireland in marketing Ireland overseas as a compelling visitor destination.”

These measures are coupled with the new €170 million Power Up Grant, announced by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and consisting of a flat grant of €4,000 for commercially rateable premises in the retail and hospitality sectors. This will support the hospitality sector to deal with increased energy costs in recent years, in particular electricity costs.

The Tourism Marketing Fund allocation of €61.4 million will support Tourism Ireland’s major marketing campaigns overseas. These campaigns support the extension of the tourism season and regional growth and include a new sustainability campaign.

Budget 2025 also includes a specific allocation of €3.2 million to support tourism businesses, including a new Business Events Strategy; additional funding under the Regional Cooperative Access Scheme to encourage new access and maximise the potential of existing services to the regions; and funding to support the tourism agencies to continue to develop and promote Ireland as the Home of Halloween.

2025 will also see a continuation of Government capital support for the development and enhancement of the tourism product. €36.5 million in capital funding is allocated to Fáilte Ireland to continue its work in this area and on new projects.