Tourism Ireland’s new campaign set to ‘win hearts’ around the world!

Tourism Ireland’s new global campaign – ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ – is going live around the world this week. Specially timed to coincide with this week’s St Patrick’s Day celebrations, the new ads will be seen in some of our key tourism markets, including GB and Germany, followed by France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the Nordic countries. The campaign will continue to be rolled out in other markets over the coming weeks, including in the United States.

 The ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign is all about celebrating the different ways in which the island of Ireland fills the hearts of our visitors and of locals – and inviting potential holidaymakers to come and experience those for themselves. It’s an advocacy-led campaign – with the advocates, or personalities starring in the ads, sharing the things about Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland which fill their hearts and dialling up what differentiates the island of Ireland from other destinations. The new ads will shine a light on our characters and culture, through engaging personal anecdotes told by those who love it best – its stars, locals and visitors.

The first ads of the new campaign feature actresses Saoirse-Monica Jackson and Jamie-Lee O'Donnell, from Derry Girls, and Sharon Horgan, from Bad Sisters. On St Patrick’s Day, Tourism Ireland’s new ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign will be rolled out in GB with a special TV ‘mega spot’. At 21:00, a bespoke 60-second ad will air on more than 100 channels across GB, including ITV, Channel 4, Dave and Channel 5 – reaching more than 7.7 people.

Niall Gibbons, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, said: “As people everywhere around the world celebrate St Patrick’s Day, we are delighted to roll out our new ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign this week. It will highlight our rich and authentic experiences, breath-taking landscapes and, in particular, our warm welcome – encouraging people to put the island of Ireland on their holiday ‘wish-list’ for 2023.

“Our aim is to deliver ‘stand-out’ for Northern Ireland in the hugely competitive international marketplace. Our ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ campaign will position the island of Ireland as a place that fills the heart and restores the spirit. Our people and welcome are key differentiators for the island of Ireland from our competitor destinations; and this campaign puts them front and centre.”

The ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ ads will run on multiple channels – including TV, cinema, social media, online and outdoor. The ads will also be shared on Tourism Ireland’s social media platforms, including YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok.

St Patrick’s Day traditionally marks the real start of the tourism season and, as we continue to rebuild overseas tourism to Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland this year, it offers a unique opportunity to launch the new ‘Fill your heart with Ireland’ global campaign – as Tourism Ireland capitalises on our heightened profile around the world during this St Patrick’s Day period.

The campaign will deliver over 100 million impressions (opportunities to see) in the first half of 2023. An additional 50 million impressions will be delivered in the second half of this year.