Irish residents took 3.1 million overnight trips outside of Ireland in Quarter 1 (Q1) 2026, reflecting a 5% increase compared with Q1 2025.
Holiday was the primary purpose of overnight trips outside of Ireland (56%) in Q1 2026, ahead of Visiting Friends/Relatives (23%) and Business (11%).
The average length of stay on overnight trips outside of Ireland decreased from 4.7 nights in Q1 2025 to 4.5 nights in Q1 2026.
Irish residents spent a total of 6 million nights on domestic trips in Q1 2026, up 9% compared with the number of nights spent in Q1 2025.
The Household Travel Survey is carried out by CSO to measure national tourism (i.e. domestic and outbound tourism by Irish residents) and this release contains estimates of the numbers of domestic and outbound overnight trips and same day visits made by Irish residents.
Statistics on foreign visitors to Ireland are sourced from the CSO Passenger Survey, which is carried out at Irish airports and seaports, and presented in the Inbound Tourism series. Note that the Inbound Tourism series does not capture data on residents of Northern Ireland.
To gain a better understanding of internal tourism in Ireland (i.e. both domestic and inbound tourism), users should refer to both Household Travel Survey (for domestic travel data) and Inbound Tourism (for inbound visitor data), noting that at present figures for residents of Northern Ireland are not included in either series.
In Q1 2026, the main reason for taking domestic overnight trips was for holiday purposes (40%) followed by visits to friends or relatives (37%). Travel for business purposes made up 7% of total domestic overnight trips.
In Q1 2026, the main accommodation type reported for domestic overnight trips was Hotel stays in 43% of trips, while stays with Friends/Relatives were the main accommodation type in 38% of trips.
In Q1 2026, just over two-fifths of domestic overnight trips were taken in the Southern region (Clare, Tipperary, Limerick, Waterford, Kilkenny, Carlow, Wexford, Cork, Kerry) (43%), while the Northern & Western (Sligo, Donegal, Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon), and the Eastern & Midland (Dublin, Wicklow, Kildare, Meath, Louth, Longford, Westmeath, Offaly, Laois) regions made up 29% and 28% respectively.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (16 June 2026) published Household Travel Survey Quarter 1 2026.
Commenting on the release, Aaron Costello, Statistician in the Tourism and Travel Division, said: “The figures provide information on domestic and outbound travel by Irish residents in the months of January, February, and March (Q1) 2026.
Domestic Trips
Domestic overnight trips increased by 6% in Q1 2026 compared with Q1 2025.
The number of nights spent on domestic overnight trips taken in Q1 2026 was up by 9% compared with the same period in 2025. Visits to friends or relatives accounted for the largest share of domestic nights at 39%, followed closely by holiday purposes at 38%. Business travel represented 5% of all overnight stays.
Outbound Trips
The total number of overnight trips outside of Ireland in Q1 2026 rose by 5% compared with Q1 2025.
Irish residents spent a total of 13.9 million nights on overnight trips outside of Ireland in Q1 2026. The distribution of these nights was led by holiday purposes, accounting for 59% of the total. Visits to friends or relatives represented 23% of the nights, while business-related travel made up 7%.
The average length of stay for overnight trips outside of Ireland was 4.5 nights, versus 4.7 in Q1 2025.”