A group of influential travel incentive buyers from Canada, are currently in Ireland on a ‘Meet in Ireland’ familiarization trip, and are being shown around Kerry and Cork to learn more on how they can programme these counties for future high-end incentive programmes for their corporate clients in Canada. The visit is hosted by Fáilte Ireland’s Meet in Ireland team, in collaboration with Tourism Ireland and locally with the Kerry and Cork Convention Bureaux. For the majority of the Canadian buyers, this was their first time to travel to Ireland. 

Fáilte Ireland’s Meet in Ireland Manager Ciara Gallagher said: 

“Business Tourism continues to be one of the most lucrative forms of tourism, with visitors travelling to Ireland for business purposes, spending almost three times more than the average visitor. Last year alone, Fáilte Ireland secured business events worth €162m, accounting for a total of 101,250 international delegates. One of our core priorities for the years ahead is to grow the regional spread of these delegates so that every part of Ireland benefits from business tourism.

Incentive planners are looking for truly unique Destination Experiences for reward and recognition programmes.  Infrastructure, access and value for money and safety are some of the top factors they are considering when choosing a destination for their corporate clients.”  

A bespoke itinerary was designed for the group to showcase what Kerry has to offer and included a cycling tour of the Killarney National Park and House, taking in the Lakes of Killarney and Ross Castle from St Mary’s Cathedral.  A visit to Muckross traditional farm and site visits to a number of Kerry hotels including the Killarney Park Hotel, the Great Southern Hotel and The Europe.  While in Cork the group went on a historical walking tour including Cork Gaol and UCC, the Jameson Midleton Experience and onto to Fota Island Resort and a site visit to Hayfield Manor before heading to Dublin for a show around of its leading venues and facilities.

Kerry Convention Bureaux Sales Manager, Becky Hargrove, said:

“Kerry is a spectacular place to inspire, engage and motivate business tourism delegates. Whether it’s an association or corporate meeting or a high-end incentive, we offer unrivalled facilities in idyllic locations throughout our region. 

She added “In the past five years, Kerry has welcomed over 220 conferences/ meetings and 180 incentives with more than 120,000 delegates from over 25 different countries. As a business tourism destination, you won’t find another conference or incentive destination that marries professionalism and cutting-edge technology with such rich cultural history, spectacular natural scenery and abundance of activities,”