Ireland Hotel, Tourism & Leisure Market Update – Nov 2023

The latest edition of the Horwath HTL Ireland Hotel, Tourism & Leisure Market Update is released.

Tourism performance
In 2023, the Irish tourism industry continued to experience remarkable recovery, marked by a positive trajectory in visitor numbers and economic impact.  

Hotel transactions
In the first half of 2023 there were over €135 million of hotel transactions. The buyer profile is a mix of private investors, family offices and hotel groups. The second half of the year looks to be even busier.

Hotel supply
Dublin is still undersupplied in terms of hotel bedrooms, with around 25,000 in the city centre and around 2,500–3,000 rooms due over the next couple of years. However, the long-term pipeline outlook is constrained due to rising construction costs, lack of development finance and market uncertainty.

Hotel performance
The Irish hotel sector continues to recover post COVID-19 with a combination of pent-up demand and a reduction in available rooms within the market. While average room rates are considerably higher than in 2019, uncertainty remains around cost inputs due to inflation and legislative changes including the increase in the minimum wage to €12.70 in 2024.

Hospitality news
At the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation conference in September, ITIC projected tourism earnings in 2030 could rise to €15 billion, employing up to 350,000 people and yielding up to €3.5 billion annually to the Exchequer. It also estimated that increased capacity would require 14,000 additional tourist accommodation rooms and up to seven million additional seats on air and sea transport.