Business events are big business for Ireland, and Tourism Ireland took that message directly to the German market this week. On 18 June the agency’s ‘Meet in Ireland’ showcase rolled through Frankfurt and Cologne, bringing ten Irish conference and incentive specialists face-to-face with 25 leading German planners. Delegates from Aloft Dublin City, the RDS, Visit Belfast and other suppliers pitched Ireland’s compact geography, seamless air access and growing stock of purpose-built venues. Corporate buyers heard about Dublin’s Convention Centre, Belfast’s ICC and the island’s increasingly diverse luxury-resort inventory. Ireland’s selling point, organisers stressed, is its ability to combine world-class infrastructure with “off-season” authenticity—think team-building surf clinics on the Wild Atlantic Way or executive retreats in castle estates.
Why does this matter for global mobility managers? Germany is Ireland’s third-largest meetings market, generating high-value weekday traffic that helps airlines sustain year-round frequencies. More corporate events translate into more intra-company travel, project-based assignments and, ultimately, work-permit flows.
![Tourism Ireland Courts German Meetings Planners in Dual-City Roadshow]()
For companies dispatching teams to Ireland, ensuring the right paperwork is in place can be a headache. VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) streamlines the process, offering an online portal where German planners and corporate travellers can check Irish visa requirements, submit applications, and track approvals in real time—helping firms avoid last-minute snags and keeping mobility programmes running smoothly.
The showcase also highlighted Ireland’s simplified VAT reclaim rules for conferences, which can shave up to 20 % off total event costs—an important factor for procurement teams. Tourism Ireland sees business events as a pillar of its strategy to spread tourism benefits beyond the peak season and beyond the capital. Fáilte Ireland has earmarked €10 million for regional convention bidding grants through 2028, while Northern Ireland’s Executive is promoting Belfast as a “tech-ready” conference hub aligned with its cybersecurity cluster. The German roadshow is expected to generate £7 million in confirmed event bookings over the next 18 months, according to preliminary estimates from Tourism Ireland.
Why does this matter for global mobility managers? Germany is Ireland’s third-largest meetings market, generating high-value weekday traffic that helps airlines sustain year-round frequencies. More corporate events translate into more intra-company travel, project-based assignments and, ultimately, work-permit flows.
For companies dispatching teams to Ireland, ensuring the right paperwork is in place can be a headache. VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) streamlines the process, offering an online portal where German planners and corporate travellers can check Irish visa requirements, submit applications, and track approvals in real time—helping firms avoid last-minute snags and keeping mobility programmes running smoothly.
The showcase also highlighted Ireland’s simplified VAT reclaim rules for conferences, which can shave up to 20 % off total event costs—an important factor for procurement teams. Tourism Ireland sees business events as a pillar of its strategy to spread tourism benefits beyond the peak season and beyond the capital. Fáilte Ireland has earmarked €10 million for regional convention bidding grants through 2028, while Northern Ireland’s Executive is promoting Belfast as a “tech-ready” conference hub aligned with its cybersecurity cluster. The German roadshow is expected to generate £7 million in confirmed event bookings over the next 18 months, according to preliminary estimates from Tourism Ireland.
