Irish outbound travel — analysis (November 2025)

Executive summary

Irish residents are an active outbound travel market. In 2024 Irish households took roughly 13.7 million outbound overnight trips (81.2 million outbound bed-nights), and outbound travel continued to rise into 2025. Air travel is the dominant mode for overseas trips; Ireland’s low-cost carrier Ryanair together with Aer Lingus and increasing capacity at Dublin Airport shape most outbound routes. Popular short-haul European destinations include the UK, Spain, Portugal and France, while the United States and other long-haul destinations remain important for higher-value trips. The macroeconomic backdrop is one of modest-to-robust growth with low unemployment but some exposure to external shocks (multinational sector volatility); headline inflation has moderated compared with the post-pandemic spike. Sources: CSO household travel and labour releases, Dublin Airport and OECD.

How Irish travellers go abroad (mode, frequency, trip purpose)

Mode of travel: The overwhelming majority of outbound international overnight trips by Irish residents are made by air — Ireland’s island geography and strong air connectivity mean planes are the primary choice for travel to continental Europe, the UK and beyond. Dublin Airport (plus regional airports Cork, Shannon) handled record passenger volumes in 2024–2025, reflecting both outbound resident travel and inbound tourism. Source: Dublin Airport

Trip frequency & purpose: In 2024 Irish residents made 13.7 million outbound overnight trips (annual figure) with an average outbound trip length of ~5–6 nights depending on quarter; holiday/leisure is the main purpose (majority), followed by visits to friends/relatives and business travel. Outbound trips rose across 2023–2025 in most quarters.
Source: Research Finland

Leading airlines and connectivity

Ryanair: the dominant low-cost carrier for Irish travellers — Ryanair carried record passenger volumes in 2024–2025 and is a principal provider of short- and medium-haul seats from Ireland to most European destinations. Ryanair’s large network and low fares make it the single most important carrier for outbound Irish leisure travel. Source: Reuters

Aer Lingus: the Irish flag carrier (IAG group) provides a mix of short-haul European services and long-haul transatlantic routes (important for premium and long-haul outbound demand). Aer Lingus and partner airlines also provide direct links to North America and selected European hubs. Source: IAA

Airport capacity: Dublin Airport is the country’s main hub (over ~34–36 million passengers in 2024–2025 rolling annual figures) and therefore central to outbound connectivity; regional airports (Cork, Shannon) also contribute important capacity and point-to-point routes to Europe. Capacity constraints and planning caps have been a policy discussion topic because they can limit seat availability and fares. Source: Dublin Airport

Most popular destinations

United Kingdom remains the largest single outbound market by volume (frequent short trips, visits to friends/relatives).

Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, France) are consistently top holiday choices for Irish holidaymakers — Spain (including the Balearics and the Canaries) frequently tops surveys as the number-one European holiday destination.

United States & North America: important for long-haul trips and among the highest-spending outbound segments.
These destination patterns are reflected in market reports and airline travel-trend surveys and the CSO outbound distribution (large share to EU destinations and the UK).

Spending by Irish travellers

Aggregate activity: CSO travel surveys and related industry reports show strong outbound volumes (millions of trips and tens of millions of bed nights), but official CSO household travel releases present spending detail primarily for domestic trips and summary outbound trip counts/nights; detailed national estimates of total outbound spend by residents can be compiled from multiple sources (household travel surveys + card/credit data + tourism balance figures). The CSO reported large volumes of outbound nights (81.2 million nights in 2024) which imply substantial outbound expenditure overall.
Source: Resarch Finland

Per-trip / per-visitor characteristics: Short-haul European leisure trips (UK, Spain, Portugal, France) tend to have lower per-trip spend compared with long-haul trips (United States, long-haul leisure and business). Business travel is a small but valuable share of outbound nights. Industry sources (tourism trade reports and airline trend releases) record that long-haul travellers generate notably higher per-trip spending. Source: ITIC

Note on spending data: while CSO supplies robust information on volumes, nights and some expenditure categories (especially domestic), a consolidated, single-line figure for “total Irish resident outbound spend in 2024/2025” is not always published in one place; tourism economists typically combine CSO HTS data with card transaction and national accounts data to estimate total resident expenditure abroad. If you want a precise total outbound-spend figure, I can compile an estimate from CSO HTS, Balance of Payments and payment-card datasets (requires pulling those datasets together).
Source: Research Finland

Demographics & macroeconomic context (key indicators)

All figures below reference the official/national and international sources indicated.

Population: Ireland’s population is estimated at about 5.3–5.4 million in 2025 (CSO April 2025 population estimates). Population growth has continued, supported by natural increase and net migration.

Labour & employment: Employment levels remain strong; the unemployment rate was around 4.8–5.0% in mid–to-late-2025 (Labour Force Survey / monthly unemployment releases). The labour market is relatively tight (low unemployment), though some sectors face skill shortages.

GDP & growth outlook: Ireland’s headline GDP growth is volatile because of the large multinational sector; the OECD projects robust growth in 2025 (e.g., ~3.7% in some OECD scenarios) but moderated growth thereafter, and it uses modified domestic demand as a clearer domestic-activity indicator. The economy is exposed to global trade risks and multinational profit volatility, which can make headline GDP swings large. Source: OECD

Inflation: Headline inflation has moderated compared with the immediate post-pandemic peak; the CSO CPI showed annual inflation in the low single digits in 2025 (e.g., CPI ~2–3% in recent monthly releases), though short-term monthly variation occurs. Source: Research Finland

Inequality (Gini): Ireland’s most recent Gini coefficient places it among moderate inequality OECD peers; the World Bank / OECD publish the Gini index for Ireland (use latest available survey year for a precise number). Source: World Bank Open Data

Ageing: Ireland’s population is ageing (increasing numbers and shares aged 65+), although Ireland remains comparatively younger than many other EU countries because of higher fertility and immigration; nonetheless the 65+ cohort has grown substantially in absolute terms in recent years. Source: EMN

Implications for tourism marketers and inbound destination promotion

Air connectivity is decisive. To capture Irish outbound demand you need seat access, attractive schedules and price/value propositions (low-fare short-haul offers work well for mass leisure; differentiated product and partnerships are needed for long-haul higher-spend travellers). Source: Reuters

Target high-volume markets (UK, Spain, Portugal, France) for short-haul campaigns, and US/Canada for premium long-haul offers. Campaigns timed to Irish school-holiday windows and bank holidays deliver disproportionate returns.
Source: Research Finland

Leverage direct flights and Irish diaspora links. VFR (visiting friends & relatives) travel to/from the UK and North America remains important — offers that combine family engagement and local experiences do well. Source: Research Finland

Price sensitivity & value orientation. A large portion of Irish leisure demand is price-sensitive; low-cost fare promotions, bundled packages (flight + hotel + experience), and flexible booking terms help convert travel intent. Ryanair/Aer Lingus network dynamics will often determine short-term seat availability and price elasticity. Source: Reuters

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