Belfast Expected To Deliver Most Successful Tourism Year

Belfast is on track to deliver its most successful tourism year to date, according to Visit Belfast.

The organisation which promotes the city locally, nationally and internationally, also said that figures for July and August showed no slowdown in visitor interest, with hotels experiencing buoyant demand during the peak summer months.

It said its Visitor Services team, which operates the flagship Belfast Welcome Centre in the city centre, in addition to two Tourist Information Centres in both key local airports, handled a record 340,000 enquiries between January and June, a third more than last year, as visitor numbers for July and August rose by a fifth and a quarter respectively.

Cllr Deirdre Hargey, Chair, Belfast City Council's Growth and Regeneration Committee, said: "Belfast's tourism figures for the year to date are hugely encouraging for the development of the city's tourism industry and should mean record success for the year as a whole.

"Belfast's fast-growing appeal continues to attract increasing numbers of visitors from around the world, and, as a result of successfully developing tourism over the past decade, the city is well-positioned to take full advantage of even more growth.

"Tourism attracts more than 6.5 million visitors to the city each year, contributing more than £450 million annually to the local economy while supporting more than 10,000 jobs. Working closely with Visit Belfast, and with all our partners, we aim to build on the success achieved to date and to maximise the opportunities for the full year ahead and beyond."