Tourism Ireland Capitalizes on the Emerald Isles Resounding Yes to Same-Sex Marriage
by Heather Cassell
There is a pot of pink gold at the end of Ireland’s rainbow after the Emerald Isle overwhelmingly said, “I do,” with the public’s 62% vote in favor of same-sex marriage referendum May 22.
After becoming the 21st country to legalize same-sex marriage, the island nation is rolling out the welcome mat with a new LGBT travel campaign.
Tourism Ireland along with other Irish travel industry leaders were surprised by the positive global attention from the same-sex marriage referendum.
However, they immediately recognized the potential and kicked into high gear to attract LGBT travelers to the Emerald Isle for honeymoons and weddings with the launch of “Ireland Says ‘I do’” global tourism campaign, according to the national tourism bureaus May 24 news release.
“There is a pink pound and the pink euro and they tend to be more affluent and with more disposable income,” Fáilte Ireland’s Alex Connolly. “It is certainly a market we want to have more of and the weekend’s story played very well. I think that we were focused on the referendum, that then it dawned on everyone about the potential.”
“There is a market there,” says Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, pointing out New York’s successful campaign after marriage equality was passed in the New England state. “This [campaign] is very much dipping our toe in the water.”
Ireland is hoping that Americans, Australians, Brits, Canadians, French, Germans, Italians, the Nords, and Spanish will flock to magical Ireland to experience all that the Emerald Isle has to offer from Pride to matchmaking festivals, such as The Outing.
The Outing, an offshoot of the Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival which takes place August 28 – October 4, is the world’s first-ever LGBT matchmaking festival. The Outing, now in its third year, is October 2 – 4.
Travelers can find information about visiting Ireland at Tourism Ireland’s official visitors website, www.Ireland.com.
To book your trip to Ireland, contact Heather Cassell at Girls That Roam Travel at Travel Advisors of Los Gatos at 408-354-6531at or .
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