Flashing the plastic is becoming more popular again among Irish travellers abroad, according to figures from Visa Europe, with spending using Visa cards overseas rising by 8% in 2015, to €1.35bn, following on recovery from recession and intense competition for passengers among airlines.
As a result, €3.75m million is spent daily by Irish Visa cardholders across the globe. The bulk of spending takes place over the summer, with more than 40% (€548m) spent as tourists take their holidays between June and September.
In addition to summer being a popular time for spending, the figures also show the surge in popularity of winter breaks, as overall spending in October, November and December has increased on average 9% year on year.
Philip Konopik of Visa said: “We saw a significant increase in spending by Irish Visa cardholders abroad last year, highlighting the growth in foreign travel as the economy recovers.
“We’ve benefited from this as tourists and business travellers are increasingly opting to use their cards instead of having to convert cash. As a result we have launched a new version of our Travel Tools app to help people locate the nearest ATM and check the level of card acceptance at their destination."
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The ten most popular destinations, by level of spend with Visa debit, credit and prepaid cards in 2015, were:
- Britain – €400.7m (down 4%)
- Spain – €214.6m (up 22%)
- USA – €165.7m (up 5%)
- France – €110.7m (up 4%)
- Italy – €66.5m (up 25%
- Portugal – €47m (up 8%)
- Germany – €33m (up 20%)
- Netherlands – €27m (up 30%)
- United Arab Emirates – €22m (up 19%)
- Australia – €21.7m (down 5%)
There was a significant rise in spending at European destinations, with Spain (+22%), Italy (+25%), Germany (+20%) and the Netherlands (+30%) seeing the largest levels of growth. Factors such as increased access via new flight routes also saw Iceland to see a 97% increase in spending by Irish travellers.
