prepared for image here into grey area. prepared by ian mcshane & john o’mahony august 2009...

Prepared for

IMAGE HERE INTO GREY AREA.

Prepared by Ian McShane & John O’Mahony

AUGUST 2009

Overseas Visitors Quantitative Research 2008/09

2J.9325

Introduction

This report presents the findings for the Overseas Visitor Survey for Fáilte Ireland and Horse Racing Ireland. Fieldwork began in June 2008 and concluded in May 2009.

A detailed questionnaire was addressed to overseas visitors at race meetings and 638 interviews were completed in total.

Observation studies also recorded the number of Irish attendees to provide a representational context: Over 6,000 observation records were made in total.

3J.9325

Key Objectives

The key objectives for the survey were as follows:

To accurately estimate the number of overseas visitors attending horse racing meetings in Ireland and their expenditure;

To establish the profile of these visitors in terms of their; country of residence, gender, age, socio-economic group and, their party size.

To determine the length of stay, accommodation usage and expenditure while in Ireland;

To establish which sources and quality of information prompted them to (a) visit Ireland and (b) attend the race meeting that they attended.

To gauge the likelihood of them attending future race meetings in Ireland.

4J.9325

Methodology

A number of key considerations were taken into account to ensure the representativeness of the data produced.

In brief, these considerations are as follows:

As wide a representation of Irish race meetings as possible were included within the sampling frame, so as to minimize as far as possible statistical sampling error.

The specific race meetings selected for the survey were as representative as possible of the total Universe of race meetings in terms of Type of Meeting, Time of Day, Day of Week (incorporating festivals in appropriate proportions).

A distribution of race meetings across different months of the year was also incorporated to the schedule, particularly as the volume of overseas visitor to Ireland varies from month to month.

Controls were set within this overall sampling frame by individual race course, so as to ensure that those courses which hold more regular meetings are represented to a greater degree than those holding relatively irregular meetings.

5J.9325

Methodology

Critically, the total Sample Universe was recruited to represent all attendees at Irish race meetings over the survey fieldwork period. The objective was to survey a representative sample of all such individuals as our starting point, with a representative sub-sample of non-Irish visitors emerging naturally from this total Sample Universe.

A systematic method of choosing respondents for interview at each individual race meeting was selected, referred to as the Very Next Person (VNP) technique. Interviewing was conducted at an agreed fixed point and the surveyor approached the very next person passing that point for interview.

If that person was identified as an Irish resident, their basic demographic details were recorded on a contact sheet.

If the person was a non-Irish visitor, the full interview was conducted.

During the later stages of the survey, this approach to recording Irish residents was revised to allow a short interview to be conducted with a small sample of respondents.

The overseas visitor dataset was weighted at analysis stage to reflect individual course attendance figures gathered by Horse Racing Ireland.

6J.9325

Sample Structure

7J.9325

Sampling StructureSpread Of Fieldwork

2008 2009

TotalEstimat

ed Target

June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May

No. of meetings held

33 37 42 29 30 25 22 15 16 20 30 40 334 (341)

Interviewing shifts

2 7 9 15 18 7 22 10 4 3 15 5 117 (114)

Irish contacts 108 385 493 825 990 462145

266

026

4 198 609 200

5,837 +809

=6,646

(6040)

Overseas full interviews

14 52 57 87 110 21 127 21 21 10 80 38 638 (800)

8J.9325

Irish Racecourses

9J.9325

Sampling StructureSpread Of Fieldwork

RACE MEETING DISTRIBUTION 2008-2009

2008 2009

TOTALSurvey TOTAL

June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar AprMay

Ballinrobe 1 2 2 1 1 7 2

Bellewstown 3 2 5 2

Clonmel 1 2 1 1 1 2 2 2 12 2

Cork 2 1 3 2 2 1 2 1 4 1 19 7

Curragh 4 2 3 4 1 1 2 17 5

Down Patrick 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 10 1

Down Royal 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11 1

Dundalk 1 1 2 5 4 1 1 2 4 2 23 3

Fairyhouse 3 3 2 3 1 3 2 1 4 22 11

Galway 4 3 3 2 12 5

Gowran 1 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 17 5

Kilbeggan 1 1 2 1 1 1 7 2

Killarney 4 2 3 9 2

Laytown 1 1 1

Leopardstown 3 3 1 1 1 1 4 2 1 2 1 1 21 17

Limerick 2 2 1 2 4 1 1 2 3 2 20 10

Listowel 1 7 8 3

Naas 2 2 1 2 1 2 2 1 1 1 15 4

Navan 2 1 2 2 3 1 2 2 1 1 17 6

Punchestown 3 2 2 1 2 3 3 16 16

Roscommon 2 2 2 2 1 9 1

Sligo 1 1 3 1 2 8 0

Thurles 1 3 1 3 2 1 11 3

Tipperary 3 2 2 1 1 2 1 12 3

Tralee 5 5 0

Tramore 4 1 1 1 2 9 3

Wexford 1 2 2 2 1 1 2 11 2

TOTAL 34 37 43 29 30 25 22 17 18 20 30 29 334 117

% 10 11 12 8 9 7 6 5 5 8 8 9

10J.9325

Irish Racecourse Attendees2008/09

11J.9325

9%

91%

Racecourse Attendees 2008/09Base: All observations and interviews (n=7,284)

Irish Attendees

Overseas Visitors

12J.9325

37%

63%

Racecourse Attendees 2008/09: Overseas Visitors vs Irish Attendees

Male

GENDEROverseas Visitors

Base: 638Irish Attendees

Base: 6,646

Female 36%

63% Male

Female

13J.9325

Racecourse Attendees 2008/09: Overseas Visitors Vs Irish Attendees

6%

22%

41%

44%

7%

25%

25%

28%

-24

25-44

45-64

65+

-29

30-44

45-59

60+

Mean: 44 43

AGEOverseas VisitorsBase: 638

Irish AttendeesBase: 6,646

14J.9325


48%

39%

13% 17%

32%

51%

1

2

3+

PARTY SIZE*

Reference only – Comparing slightly different questions:Overseas Visitors – “How would you best describe the party you travelled with to Ireland this time?”Irish Attendees – Observation: Party size.

Overseas VisitorsBase: 638


15J.9325


38%

24%

38%

35%

44%

46%

55%

21%

Overseas Visitors

Irish Attendees

Type of Meeting

Total Mixed

Total Flat

Total National Hunt

Total Festival

16J.9325


Afternoon

Evening

Overseas Visitors

Base: 638


Meeting Time

Mon-Wed

Thurs-Sun

Overseas visitors

Base: 638

Irish Attendees

Base: 6,646

Meeting Day

17J.9325


23% 24%

38% 40%

14% 11%

25%25%

Dublin

Rest of Leinster

Munster

Connacht/Ulster

Overseas visitors

Base: 638

Irish Attendees

Base: 6,646

Course Region

18J.9325

123,129

1,180,706

Estimated No. of Racecourse Attendances 2008/09

Attendances by Irish Attendees(91%)

Attendances by Overseas Visitors(9%)

Total: 1,303,835 attendancesAttendance Figures Source: Horse Racing Ireland

19J.9325

Irish Attendees

20J.9325

ResidenceBase: 737 (March ’09 – May ’09)

13%

87%

Rep. of Ireland

Northern Ireland

Q. Do you live in ROI or NI?(*This question was added to survey in March ’09)

21J.9325

Nights Away From HomeBase: 737 (March ’09 – May ’09)

Q. Have you or do you intend to spend one or more nights away from home either before or after this race meeting?(*This question was added to survey in March ’09)

82%

5%

13%

No

Don’t know

Yes

91646737Base:

2125Don’t know

378882No

42913Yes

%

NI

%

ROI

RESIDENCE

%

TOTAL

22J.9325

Overseas Visitors

23J.9325

Sample Profile: Overseas VisitorsBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

Mean: 44

Male

Female

Gender

Overseas visitors are predominantly Male, 40+ and middle class

Age

-34

35-54

55+

ABC1

C2DE

F

Class

24J.9325

Sample Profile: Month of AttendanceBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

17%

11%

33%

38%

21%

23%

41%

16%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

J un-Aug Sept-Nov Dec-Feb Mar-May

Total Attendance

Overseas Visitors

25J.9325

Weighted Sample Profile: Type of MeetingBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

38%

24%

38%

31%

20%

55%

5%

TOTAL MIXED

Festival Mixed

TOTAL FLAT

Festival Flat

TOTAL NATIONAL HUNT

Festival National Hunt

TOTAL FESTIVAL

26J.9325

Sample Profile: Country of ResidenceBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

60%

2%

6%

1%

4%

1%

18%

9%

4%

3%

7%

14%

6%

4%

1%

15%

4%

ANY BRITAIN

Britain – North East

Britain – North West

Britain – Yorkshire & the Humber

Britain – East Midlands

Britain – West Midlands

Britain – East of England

Britain – London

Britain – South East

Britain – South West

Britain – Wales

Britain - Scotland

USA

France

Australia

Germany

Other

%Spain 2Taiwan 1Sweden 1Mexico 1Japan 1Canada 1Italy 1Switzerland 1New Zealand 1Denmark 1

(All others less than 0.5%)

27J.9325

Planning the Trip

28J.9325

Planning the TripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

Q.2 And before you actually came to Ireland, which of these sources of information, if any, did you use at all in considering or planning this trip?

Q.3 And since you arrived in Ireland, which of the following sources of information, if any, have you used to help you plan your trip?

40%

23%

14%

13%

5%

3%

3%

2%

0%

1%

8%

46%

14%

Advice from friends/relations in own country

General internet search

Travel agent

Discover Ireland website

Horse Racing Ireland website

Other Irish travel/tourism website

Advice from local Irish people

Previous experience of Ireland

Irish Tourism Offices Overseas

Tourism Information Office Ireland

Others

None/DK

Any internet

Info. Used Before Trip

20%

7%

2%

6%

1%

36%

1%

0%

15%

2%

22%

21%

7%

Info. Used During Trip

29J.9325

Information Sources Used Before TripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

TOTALMONTH COUNTRY OF

RESIDENCE

Jun-Aug Sept-Nov Dec-Feb Mar-

MayAny

Britain USA Others

% % % % % % % %


40 46 37 59 22 41 43 38

General Internet Search 23 19 29 13 29 26 15 22

Travel agent 14 14 21 6 7 8 31 19

Discover Ireland website 14 21 11 8 8 11 23 18

Horse Racing Ireland website 13 8 11 17 25 15 9 10

Other Irish travel/tourism website 5 4 7 5 4 3 10 6

Advice from local people 3 0 2 1 11 3 1 3

Previous Irish Experience 3 1 1 2 15 5 1 2

Irish Tourism Offices Overseas 2 4 1 1 0 1 2 5

Airplane 1 1 2 0 - 1 - 0

Newspapers/Print 0 - 1 0 1 0 1 0

Tourist Information Offices in Ireland - - - - - - - -

None 8 12 3 6 8 7 9 9

Other 0 - 0 1 1 1 - -

Any Internet 46 46 48 36 50 46 43 48

30J.9325

Information Sources Used During TripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

TOTALMONTH COUNTRY OF

RESIDENCE

Jun-Aug Sept-Nov Dec-Feb Mar-

MayAny

Britain USA Others

% % % % % % % %

Advice from local people 36 32 42 49 24 37 38 33


20 23 21 31 8 18 19 27

Tourist Information Offices in Ireland 15 26 12 1 4 9 17 26

General Internet Search 7 3 12 10 5 6 14 6

Discover Ireland website 7 12 3 3 5 2 12 14

Horse Racing Ireland website 6 7 7 11 2 7 5 5

Travel agent 2 4 2 1 0 2 4 2

Other Irish travel/tourism website 1 2 0 2 - 1 - 3

Previous Irish Experience 1 1 0 - 6 2 - 1

Newspapers/Print 1 - 1 - 4 1 1 -

Advertising 1 1 0 1 - 0 - 1

None 22 19 17 8 46 30 15 7

Any Internet 21 22 21 25 12 16 31 25

31J.9325

Time Spent in IrelandBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

Q.4a How much time have you spent in Ireland so far on this trip?Q.4b And what is the total planned duration of your current trip to Ireland – from

the time you arrived to the time you return home?

Less than 24 hours

1– 3 days

4 – 6 days

At least a week

At least two weeksMore than two weeks

Time Spent So Far

5.0 Mean (days):

Total Planned Duration

8.9

32J.9325

Time in Ireland so far on this tripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

9%6%

2%

6%13%

7%

18%27%

26%

32%

39%

49%

28%22%

10% 14%4% 3%

1%5%17%

15%

26%

19%

Less than 24 hours

1– 3 days

4 – 6 days

At least a week

At least two weeksMore than two weeks

TOTALCountry of Residence

Mean (days): 5.0 3.4 7.7 7.4

Any Britain USA Others

33J.9325

Total Trip DurationBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

14%4%

26%

17%

12%

24%27%

27%

25%25%

31%

11% 16%14%20%

1%2% 4%

1%1%1% 2%

32%

27%

30%

5% 0% 1%Less than 24 hours

1– 3 days

4 – 6 days

At least a week

At least two weeks

More than two weeks

Don’t know

TOTALCountry of Residence

Mean (days): 8.9 6.6 12.1 12.7

Mean (days) when attended:

5.0 3.4 7.7 7.4

Any Britain USA Others

British considerably more likely to be on short breaks

34J.9325

On Package/Inclusive or Independent TripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

85%

15%

Independent

Package

Q.12 Are you travelling on a package/inclusive trip, that is, a trip where an inclusive price for fares to/from Ireland and at least one other element, such as accommodation, car hire, etc. was paid fully or partly in advance?"

35J.9325

On Package/Inclusive Base: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

15%

13%

5%

6%

10%

30%

17%

3%

19%

10%

25%

TOTAL PACKAGE

J un-Aug

Sept-Nov

Dec-Feb

Mar-May

Any Britain

USA

Other

0 - 3 days

4 days - 2 weeks

More than 2 weeks

5%

17%

4%

37%

9%

16%

To attend a race meeting(s)

Other

Dublin

Rest of Leinster

Munster

Conn/Ulster

MONTH:

COUNTRY:

TOTAL PLANNED DURATION:

REASON FOR VISIT:

COURSE REGION:

36J.9325

Reasons for Visiting Ireland

37J.9325

Reasons for Visiting IrelandBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

44%

25%

24%

6%

1%

6%

General

holiday/vacation/leisure

break

Visiting family/friends

To attend a race

meeting/race meetings

On business

Others

DK/not stated

Q.5 And which of these was the primary reason for this trip to Ireland?

38J.9325

Reasons for Visiting IrelandBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

TOTAL

COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE

TOTAL PLANNED DURATION

Any Britain USA Others 0-3 days 4 days –

2 weeks

More than 2 weeks

% % % % % % %

To attend a race meeting(s) 24 35 6 7 59 17 16

Any Other Reason (Summary) 78 66 97 95 43 84 88

39J.9325

Reasons for Visiting Ireland for Race MeetingBase: All for whom race meeting(s) is primary reason for trip (n=161) 41%

41%

23%

14%

9%

8%

5%

5%

17%

Quality of the horse racing

The fun/atmosphere of the race meetings

Friendliness/hospitality of the people

Proximity to country of residence

Professional interest

The view of the race track

The quality of the services/facilities at the race courses

Attending/invited as part of Corporate Hospitality event

Other

Q.6 And which of these best describes the reason you visited Ireland to attend a race meeting/meetings?

40J.9325

Professional Interest or Stake in IndustryBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

84%

16%

No

Yes

Q.7a And do you or any of your travelling party have a professional interest or stake in the horse racing industry?

41J.9325

Professional Interest or Stake in IndustryBase: All Overseas Visitors (n=638)

16%

17%

15%

14%

20%

5%

24%

21%

12%

13%

TOTAL

Male

Female

-34

35-54

55+

Total Mix

Total Flat

Total National Hunt

Total Festival

6%

19%

28%

19%

8%

13%

14%

28%

9%

5%

22%

Jun-Aug

Sept-Nov

Dec-Feb

Mar-May

Any Britain

USA

Other

Dublin

Rest of Leinster

Munster

Conn/Ulster

GENDER:

AGE:

TYPE OF MEETING:

MONTH:

COUNTRY:

COURSE REGION:

42J.9325

Influenced to Make This Trip By Stake in IndustryBase: All have professional interest in industry (n=117)

16%

12%

72%

Minor influence

Strong influence

Q.7b And did the fact that you or someone in your party had such a stake or interest in the industry have a strong influence, a minor influence, or no influence at all on your decision to make this trip to Ireland?

No influence

43J.9325

No. of Days Racing on Current TripBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

In Total

Q.8 How many days of racing will you attend at this particular race course during your current trip to Ireland?

Q.9 And in total how many days of racing will you attend in Ireland during your current trip, including any days spent at this race course?

Mean (days):

1.4 1.8

1

2

345

Don’t know

At Current Race Course

44J.9325

Total No. Days Racing on Current Trip – Mean Score (days)Base: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

1.8

1.7

1.9

1.8

1.6

1.7

1.6

2.4

1.8

2.1

1.5

1.6

TOTAL

Total Mix

Total Flat

Total National Hunt

Total Festival

J un-Aug

Sept-Nov

Dec-Feb

Mar-May

Any Britain

USA

Other

TYPE OF MEETING:

MONTH:

COUNTRY:

REASON FOR VISIT:

COURSE REGION:

2.3

1.6

1.9

2.0

1.5

1.6

To attend a race meeting(s)

Other

Dublin

Rest of Leinster

Munster

Conn/Ulster

Those who attend most days racing on any trip are from the USA, travel specifically for racing and attend in the spring.

45J.9325

Information Sources on Race MeetingBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

63%

12%

11%

6%

3%

2%

2%

1%

1%

8%

Word of mouth

Other internet site


Horse racing publications

Travel agent

Advertising

Previous Ireland experience

Betting office

Others

Don't know

Q.10 Thinking specifically of your visit to this race meeting, which of the following sources of information did you use in finding out about it?

46J.9325

Likelihood of Attending Future Race Meetings in IrelandBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

11%3%

13%4% 10%

27%

50%

79%

41%

2%4% 4%1%

5%

5%

9%9%

23%

Very likely

Quite likely

Neither likely nor unlikelyQuite unlikely

Very unlikely

Don’t know

TotalReasons for Visit

Q.11 Do you feel you are likely or unlikely to attend any more horse racing meetings during further trips to Ireland over the next three years or so?

To Attend a Race

Meeting(s)

Other Reason

Of those who didn’t visit Ireland primarily for racing, two-thirds (68%) are likely to attend a race meeting in Ireland in the future.

68%

47J.9325

83%

72%

66%

68%

86%

77%

53%

0-3 days

4 days - 2 weeks

More than 2 weeks

Dublin

Rest of Leinster

Munster

Conn/Ulster

Likelihood of Attending Future Race Meetings in IrelandBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

73%

65%

79%

70%

65%

80%

71%

85%

83%

55%

63%

60%

TOTAL (VERY/QUITE LIKELY)

Total Mix

Total Flat

Total National Hunt

Total Festival

J un-Aug

Sept-Nov

Dec-Feb

Mar-May

Any Britain

USA

Other

TYPE OF MEETING:

MONTH:

COUNTRY:

TOTAL PLANNED DURATION:

COURSE REGION:

Those most likely to attend in future are British, visited in the Spring on short breaks and attended in Rest of Leinster.

48J.9325

Current Trip to Ireland

49J.9325

No. Adults/Children in GroupBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

9%7%

25%

86%

0%

4%8%

43%

14%

0

1

2

3/4

5-10

11+

Adults Children

Q.13 How would you best describe the party you travelled with to Ireland for this trip?

Mean: 4.4 0.2

0

12+

50J.9325

Accommodation Types UsedBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

34%

31%

17%

8%

2%

3%

15%

Private home withfriends/family

Top grade (4-5 star)hotel

Guesthouse/B&B

Other hotel

Self-catering

Other

Don't know/None

Q.14 And what type/types of accommodation did you decide to stay in during this trip to Ireland?

1 in 3 stay in top grade hotel

51J.9325

Accommodation Types Used IBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

TOTAL

MONTH COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE

TOTAL PLANNED DURATION

Jun-Aug

Sept-Nov

Dec-Feb

Mar-May

Any Britain USA Others 0-3

days

4 days – 2

weeks

More than 2 weeks

% % % % % % % % % % %

Private home with friends/family

34 36 35 54 14 27 43 46 14 30 67

Top grade (4-5 star) hotel

31 17 42 21 47 36 31 20 52 32 3

Guesthouse/B&B 17 30 11 2 8 11 27 24 7 20 12

Other hotel 15 20 12 13 10 13 24 13 11 17 10

Self catering 8 10 5 3 12 9 7 5 3 8 14

Other 2 4 0 3 - 3 - 0 3 1 6

None 2 0 3 0 5 2 1 1 8 1 0

Don't know 1 - 0 4 3 2 - - 5 0 -

Top grade hotel users are mainly from UK, on short breaks, visiting in Spring and Autumn.

52J.9325

Accommodation Types Used IIBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

TOTAL

REASONS FOR VISIT COURSE REGION

To Attend a

Race Meeting

(s)

Others Dublin Rest of Leinster Munster Conn/

Ulster

% % % % % % %

Private home with friends/family

34 15 40 47 33 29 32

Top grade (4-5 star) hotel 31 44 27 27 40 37 13

Guesthouse/B&B 17 7 20 0 8 14 43

Other hotel 15 17 14 13 11 12 24

Self catering 8 6 8 8 10 7 5

Other 2 6 1 6 0 1 3

None 2 5 1 0 4 1 0

Don't know 1 3 0 3 1 2 -

Top grade hotel users are more likely to have visited for the racing and attended in Rest of Leinster and Munster.

53J.9325

Holiday ActivitiesBase: 118 (March ’09 – May ’09* Overseas Visitors)

28%

16%

14%

9%

8%

3%

10%

Visit tohistoric/cultural sites

Culturalevent/festival

Walking

Go to the pub

Golf

Visit to gardens

National Stud

Q.17 Besides visiting horse racing meetings, which of the following have you done or do you intend to do while on this holiday?*This question was added to survey in March ‘09

All others 2% or less

54J.9325

Expenditure in Ireland

55J.9325

How Many Adults/Children Covered By ExpenditureBase: Overseas Visitors (n=638)

Q.15a Firstly, how many adults aged 15 years and older, including yourself, will be covered by your expenditure on this trip?

Q.15b And how many children aged less than 15 years will be covered by your expenditure on this trip?

Mean: 2.4 0.2 2.6

Children

0

12+

0

1

2

3/4

5+

Adults

0

1

2

3/4

5+

Total

56J.9325

Average Spend at end of trip (€) – per total number of adults and children covered by expenditure

€

TOTAL 980

GENDER

Male 909Female 1108

AGE

-34 71735-54 115455+ 974

CLASS

ABC1 871C2DE 1254F 1107TYPE OF MEETINGTotal Mix 926Total Flat 876Total Nat Hunt 1096Total Festival 1114

€

TOTAL 980

MONTH

June – Aug 1025Sept - Nov 790Dec - Jan 912Mar - May 1263Country of ResidenceAny Britain 676USA 1314Others 1532Total Planned Duration0 to 3 days 5544 days to 2 weeks 822More than 2 weeks 2489Primary Reason for TripAttend race meeting 1117

Others 935

€

TOTAL 980

Professional Interest

Yes 1515No 887Total Days Racing Attended1 8522 9663+ 1549Total Covered by Spend1 10292 10603+ 789

Region

Dublin 775Rest Leinster 1149Munster 755Conn/Uls 1035

To estimate annual expenditure is respondents’ spend is divided by the number of adults and children covered by that expenditure. This chart

presents this calculation of average per capita spend by key sub sample groups.

57J.9325

Estimated Annual Value of Trip Overseas Race Meeting Visitor to the Irish Economy

There were 1,303,835 daily attendances across all Irish racecourse meetings over the twelve month period June 2008 – May 2009.

Of these attendances, an estimated 123,129 were accounted for by overseas visitors.

On the basis that the average overseas racecourse meeting visitor will attend 1.8 days of racing during their trip to Ireland, we have an estimated 68,405 overseas visitors to Ireland each year who attend at least one race meeting during their trip here.

When average spend is calculated by individual overseas visitors including the number of adults and children covered (avg. €980) the estimated annual expenditure is €67,036,900.

58J.9325

Summary & Conclusions

59J.9325


Overseas visitors comprised 9% of total attendees at Irish Race meetings during 2008/09. This translates to approximately 123,000 attendances from June 2008 to May 2009, with the average overseas racecourse visitor attending 1.8 days of racing during his/her 9 day trip to Ireland.

Overseas visitors are very similar to Irish attendees in terms of age and gender. They have a slightly greater propensity to attend festivals.

Three quarters of overseas visitors come from either the UK (60%) or the USA (14%).

Over half attend racecourses in Dublin (14%) or the Rest of Leinster (38%).

85% are independent travellers.

Overseas racecourse visitors typically travel to Ireland in pairs or in small groups (average group size is four adults). There are rarely children in the groups.

60J.9325


Personal advice and internet research dominate the sources of information used both before and during trips.

Over 1 in 10 use the Horse Racing Ireland website (13%) and the Discover Ireland website (14%).

Word of mouth is the critical source (61%) of information on the race meetings themselves. However, about 1 in 4 receive their information on the race meetings from a website.

Overseas racecourse visitors typically spend a second day at a race meeting during their trip and visit a racecourse about halfway into their holiday. Those who attend the most days of racing on their visits are likely to be from the USA, visit in the Spring and often attend in Munster.

The total average planned duration of the visit to Ireland is about a week and a half. However, British visitors are far more likely to be on short breaks.

61J.9325


About 1 in 4 overseas visitors claim attending a race meeting was the primary reason for their trip. However, half of all overseas visitors now claim they are very likely to attend horserace meetings during further trips to Ireland.

Of those who didn’t visit Ireland primarily for racing, two thirds (68%) now claim they are likely to attend a race meeting in Ireland in the future.

Those most likely to attend a race meeting in Ireland in the future are: British; visit in the Spring; are on short breaks; and attended course in the Rest of Leinster.

While the most used accommodation type is private homes with friends/family, close to 1 in 3 overseas visitors stay in top grade hotels.

These hotel users are mainly from the UK, on short breaks, visit in the Spring and Autumn, and have visited principally to attend race meetings.

The average total trip expenditure by the overseas racecourse visitor (excluding cost of travel) is just over €2,000 between roughly 2.5 people. The highest spenders specifically visit to attend race meetings, often festivals, and most regularly at courses in the Rest of Leinster.

62J.9325


On the basis that the average overseas racecourse meeting visitor will attend 1.8 days of racing during their trip to Ireland, we have an estimated 68,405 overseas visitors to Ireland each year who attend at least one race meeting during their trip here. When average spend is calculated by individual overseas visitors (avg €2,028) the estimated annual expenditure is €138,725,000. When calculated by the number of adults and children covered by expenditure (avg €980) the estimated annual expenditure is €67,036,900.

63J.9325

Appendix

64J.9325

Overseas Visitors Profile x Festivals 2008/09

TotalOversea

s Visitors

MEETING

26th-29th

June 08 Curragh

27th July 2nd Aug Galway

13th to 19th

September

Listowel

26th 29th December Leopardsto

wn

26th to 29th

December

Limerick

Sunday 12th-14th April

Fairyhouse

Tuesday 28th April 2nd May

Punchestown

Overseas visitors %

9 12 11 6 11 6 9 14

Gender:

Male 63 57 70 81 68 46 63 71

Female 37 43 30 19 32 54 37 29

Age (Average): 44 40 44 46 41 37 34 47

CLASS:

ABC1 71 71 67 62 86 69 80 58

C2DE 25 21 30 23 14 31 20 38

F 3 7 3 15 1 - - 4

Country of Residence:

Any Britain 60 36 38 45 46 86 72 92

USA 14 29 19 32 14 14 - 1

Others 26 36 43 23 39 - 23 8

Total Trip Duration Mean (DAYS)

8.9 10.1 9.2 9.0 8.7 6.3 3.8 5.8

Total Spend Mean (€)

2028 2153 2455 1994 2152 2202 2319 3743

65J.9325

Overseas Visitors Profile x Region REGION

Total Overseas Visitors

DublinRest of Leinster

Munster Conn/Ulster

Overseas visitors %

9 12 9 9 9

Gender:

Male 63 74 58 64 64

Female 37 26 42 36 36

Age (Average): 44 41 44 44 46

CLASS:

ABC1 71 91 69 67 68

C2DE 25 9 27 27 30

F 3 0 4 6 2

Country of Residence:

Any Britain 60 54 65 68 48

USA 14 12 11 15 18

Others 26 34 23 17 35

Total Trip Duration Mean (DAYS)

8.9 9.2 8.0 9.1 10.0

Total Spend Mean (€)

2028 1407 2504 1430 2175

66J.9325

Planning the Trip:Info Used During Trip x Info Used Before Trip PRE TRIP SOURCES USED

TOTAL

Advice from

friends/ relations in own country

Travel agent

Any Internet

Discover Ireland website


Other Irish travel/ tourism website

General Internet Search

Irish Tourism Offices

Overseas

None Other

Base 638 287 65 280 73 85 33 151 14 41 7

% % % % % % % % % % %


20 39 20 13 5 13 50 14 17 6 -

Travel agent 2 3 3 2 8 - - 0 1 - -

Discover Ireland website 7 4 12 14 35 2 3 8 17 - -

Horse Racing Ireland website 6 3 - 13 4 37 14 4 - - -

Other Irish travel/tourism website 1 1 3 2 - 2 11 1 - - -

General Internet Search 7 6 13 9 0 6 - 16 12 2 13

Advice from Local Irish People 36 40 42 32 42 27 24 27 61 38 6

Tourist Information Offices in Ireland 15 14 33 14 22 5 13 11 8 - -

Advertising 1 1 - 0 1 - - 1 3 - 25

Previous Irish Experience 1 - 2 1 - - - 1 - - -

Newspaper/Print 1 0 - 1 - 3 - 2 - - 26

None 22 12 9 23 15 24 19 33 1 56 43

Any Internet 21 13 22 36 38 46 28 25 29 2 13

67J.9325

Thank you

prepared for image here into grey area. prepared by ian mcshane & john o’mahony august 2009...

Documents

distribution of race

future race meetings

specific race meetings

irregular meetings

individual race meeting

horse racing meetings

overseas visitor survey

number of overseas visitors