Irish whiskey tourism has continued its strong post-pandemic recovery, with a new report finding distilleries reporting good increases in staff and visitor numbers.
According to The Irish Whiskey Association (IWA), 93% of distillery visitor centres across Ireland have seen an increase in visitor numbers since the start of this year.
Currently 29 of the whiskey distilleries operating in Ireland have visitor centres. This year has seen a strong rebound in visitors from key overseas markets like the UK, North America, France and Germany.
Nearly 60% of distilleries have boosted their staff numbers since the start of this year, the IWA said.
Director of the Irish Whiskey Association, Eoin Ó Catháin, said: “This survey has given fresh insight into the challenges – and the opportunities – facing the Irish Whiskey sector in 2023. It is heartening, in particular, to see a strong rebound in the number of visitors and that our members are growing their staff numbers to meet this demand.
“Irish Whiskey has long supported local communities and it’s encouraging to see this continue. The thousands of visitors that distillery tours attract right across the island drive much-needed economic activity for other businesses in the local area.
“After a turbulent number of years, this demonstrates the strength of the Irish Whiskey sector, whose export value exceeded one billion euros for the first time in 2022, and the value it adds to the Irish economy in being a key player in tourism offerings and the promotion of our heritage and culture.”
“The survey demonstrates the reasons why collaborative engagement with key policy-makers and government is so crucial to the success of Ireland’s whiskey distilling industry. The need for forward-thinking policies and support for this sector of growth has never been clearer.”
