Last reviewed 7 September 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the source named next to it; where two official series disagree, the difference is stated.
Dublin is Ireland's capital, its dominant visitor destination and — through Dublin Airport — the gateway for the vast majority of the country's tourists. In 2025 a record 36.4 million passengers used Dublin Airport, while Ireland as a whole welcomed 6.4 million overseas visitors who spent an estimated €5.5 billion, according to the Central Statistics Office. The city is also home to Ireland's most-visited paid attraction, the Guinness Storehouse, which drew 1.65 million visitors in 2024. The figures below come from official sources — the CSO, daa (Dublin Airport's operator), Fáilte Ireland and industry bodies — and are the latest available as of September 2026. Momentum has returned this year: foreign visits were up 13% in January–July 2026 and Dublin Airport had its busiest month ever in July 2026.
Key Dublin tourism statistics
- A record 36.4 million passengers travelled through Dublin Airport in 2025, up 5.1% on 2024 (daa).
- July 2026 was the busiest month in Dublin Airport's history, with 3,839,635 passengers; close to 22 million passengers used the airport in January–July 2026, up 5.2% year on year (daa via RTÉ).
- Dublin Airport handled 84% of the record 43.5 million passengers who used Irish airports in 2025 (CSO).
- Ireland welcomed 6.4 million overnight foreign visitors in 2025, who spent €5.5 billion (CSO).
- In January–July 2026, 3.9 million foreign visitors came to Ireland — up 13% on the same period of 2025 and level with 2024 — spending €4.52 billion excluding fares (CSO, Inbound Tourism July 2026).
- The Guinness Storehouse attracted 1.65 million visitors in 2024 — Ireland's most-visited attraction for the 15th successive year (AVEA via Travel Extra).
- Fáilte Ireland puts the average daily rate in Dublin hotels at €174 — up 23% in six years — with occupancy of 83.2% (Travel Extra).
- The North American market was worth €1.933 billion to Irish tourism in 2025, at €1,282 per visit (ITIC).
- Tourism employs 226,800 people across Ireland (ITIC).
How many tourists visit Ireland — and Dublin?
- Ireland received 6.4 million overnight foreign visitors in 2025, down 3% on 2024's peak of 6.6 million but 2% above 2023, per the CSO's Inbound Tourism series.
- Foreign visitor spend was an estimated €5.5 billion in 2025, down 9% on 2024's €6 billion but 1% ahead of 2023.
- Visitors stayed 47.9 million nights in Ireland in 2025, an average of 7.5 nights per trip.
- 40% of 2025's visitors came for holidays, leisure and recreation, 35% to visit friends and relatives, and 15% for business (CSO).
- 2026 has started strongly: 676,300 foreign visitors completed trips in July 2026 (+5% on July 2025), spending €681 million (+9%), and North America supplied 30% of July's visitors but 44% of their spending (CSO).
- 2024 was the high-water mark: almost 6.6 million overseas visitors (+5% on 2023) spending €6 billion (+11%), per Tourism Ireland.
- Fáilte Ireland describes Dublin as Ireland's key access point and its leading city-break destination; for comparison with other capital-city visitor economies, see our London tourism statistics.
Dublin Airport: Ireland's gateway
- Dublin Airport handled 36,402,926 passengers in 2025 — a record — up from 34.6 million in 2024 and just 8.3 million in pandemic-hit 2021 (CSO Aviation Statistics).
- daa operated 255,000 flights in 2025 (+5%), and the busiest day of 2025 — Sunday 10 August — saw 130,427 passengers; 215 days of the year topped 100,000 passengers (daa).
- Growth has continued into 2026: just under 18 million passengers used the airport in the first half of 2026 (+6%), a new single-day record of 136,375 passengers was set on Sunday 28 June 2026, and July 2026 became the busiest month ever with 3,839,635 passengers — the 16th consecutive month of growth, helped by FIFA World Cup traffic to North America (RTÉ; RTÉ).
- London-Heathrow was the top route with 1,825,433 passengers in 2025, ahead of Amsterdam-Schiphol (1,332,261) and Manchester (1,148,219) — see our Manchester tourism statistics for the view from the other end of that route.
- The airport's US pre-clearance facility processed over 2 million passengers in a 12-month period for the first time in 2025 (daa).
- Growth has collided with planning: a 32 million annual passenger cap, imposed in 2007 as a condition of building Terminal 2, was stayed by the High Court pending an EU Court of Justice case. The Dublin Airport (Passenger Capacity) Act 2026, signed into law on 17 July 2026, lets the Minister for Transport amend or revoke the cap once An Coimisiún Pleanála completes environmental assessments and a public consultation; on 5 August 2026 daa formally asked for the limit to be raised to 40 million, and a final order is not expected before 2027 (RTÉ).
- On daa's terminal-only basis, 2024 traffic was 33.3 million passengers, +4% on 2023 (daa).
Where Dublin's visitors come from
- Great Britain remains the largest source of visitors to Ireland at 38% in 2025, ahead of Continental Europe (33%), North America (24%) and the rest of the world (5%) (CSO).
- North America punches far above its weight on spend: the market was worth €1.933 billion in 2025, with North American visitors spending €1,282 per visit (ITIC).
- US visitor numbers rose 4% and Canadian numbers 8% in 2025, even as overall volumes dipped (ITIC).
- In 2024, North America was the standout growth market, with visitor spending up 19% on 2023 (Tourism Ireland).
- Transatlantic access is a structural advantage: Dublin is one of the few European airports with US pre-clearance, which handled over 2 million passengers in 2025 (daa).
Dublin hotels: occupancy and room rates
- Fáilte Ireland research puts Dublin's hotel average daily rate at €174, an increase of 23% over six years, with occupancy at 83.2% — making Dublin the second-strongest performing city in the EU for hotel occupancy (Travel Extra).
- In September 2025, Dublin hotels ran at 83.5% occupancy with an ADR of €175 (-1%) and RevPAR flat at €146, helped by a strong concert and sports calendar including the Aer Lingus College Football Classic (Horwath HTL market update).
- Dublin hotel occupancy rose 1.5% across 2025 as a whole (ITIC).
- Nationally, Fáilte Ireland and STR data put Ireland's 2025 hotel average daily rate at €174 (+3%), with occupancy edging up to 78.4% from 77.8% and RevPAR at €136; August 2025 peaked at €202 (The Irish Times).
- Supply is expanding: around 5,400 new rooms are forecast for Dublin by 2029 (+19%), with 2025 openings including the 245-room citizenM St Patrick's and the 183-room Moxy Dublin Docklands (Horwath HTL).
- For how a comparable UK city market performs, see our Liverpool tourism statistics.
Top attractions: Guinness Storehouse leads
- The Guinness Storehouse welcomed 1.65 million visitors in 2024, Ireland's most-visited attraction for the 15th successive year, according to figures from attractions body AVEA reported by Travel Extra; the Cliffs of Moher and Dublin Zoo completed the top three fee-charging attractions.
- Fáilte Ireland's Visitor Attractions Survey counted 1,595,372 Guinness Storehouse visitors in 2024, of whom 87% were international (Hospitality Ireland).
- Dublin Zoo recorded 1,165,009 visitors in 2024, up 0.3% on 2023 and back to 91.5% of pre-pandemic levels (Travel Extra).
- The Phoenix Park Visitor Centre drew an estimated 2.1 million visits in 2024, though it sits outside the main survey tables (Travel Extra/AVEA).
Visitor economy, jobs and outlook
- Irish tourism — overseas and domestic combined — was worth €8.89 billion in 2025 and supports 226,800 jobs nationwide (ITIC).
- Foreign visitors spent 47.9 million nights in Ireland in 2025; with Dublin the main gateway and city-break hub, the capital captures a large share of that demand (CSO).
- The fate of Dublin Airport's 32 million passenger cap is the single biggest capacity decision facing Irish tourism: the enabling Act became law in July 2026, daa has applied for a 40 million limit, and the Court of Justice of the EU's final ruling on the cap's legality is still awaited after an Advocate General's opinion in February 2026 supported it (RTÉ).
- December 2025 pointed to momentum returning: 524,100 foreign visitors (+34% year on year) spent €427 million excluding fares (CSO).
- That momentum carried into 2026: foreign visits were up 13% in January–July 2026 (CSO), and ITIC forecasts tourism revenue growth of 5–7% over the coming 12 months on the back of a stable global economy and extra air access (ITIC).
- For how travellers are booking trips like these, see our online travel booking statistics.
Sources
- CSO — Inbound Tourism, December 2025 (full-year 2025 figures)
- CSO — Inbound Tourism, July 2026 (January–July 2026 year to date)
- CSO — Aviation Statistics, Quarter 4 and Year 2025
- daa — Record 36.4 million passengers through Dublin Airport in 2025
- daa — 33.3m passengers through Dublin Airport's terminals in 2024
- RTÉ — Record 36.4m passengers used Dublin Airport last year (passenger cap)
- RTÉ — Dublin Airport passenger numbers up 2% in June 2026 to 3.6 million (record first half)
- RTÉ — Dublin Airport records busiest month on record in July 2026
- RTÉ Brainstorm — When will the new Dublin Airport passenger cap come into effect? (September 2026)
- The Irish Times — Hotel room rates rise 3% in 2025 (Fáilte Ireland/STR)
- Tourism Ireland — Comment on overseas tourism figures for 2024
- ITIC — Irish Tourism Review 2025 & Outlook 2026
- Travel Extra — Dublin hotel average daily rate reaches €174 (Fáilte Ireland)
- Horwath HTL — Ireland Hospitality, Tourism & Leisure Market Update, September 2025
- Travel Extra — Guinness Storehouse most visited attraction for 15th year (AVEA)
- Travel Extra — Dublin Zoo visitor numbers 2024
- Hospitality Ireland — Top 10 most popular tourist attractions in Ireland (Fáilte Ireland survey)
