Pictured: An outdoor ad on the busy Gran Via in Madrid.

Tourism Ireland has partnered with Iberia Express to grow Spanish tourism in the south of Ireland.

Flights from Cork to Madrid are being promoted to tourists in a campaign highlighting Cork Airport as a key gateway to both the Wild Atlantic Way and Ireland’s Ancient East. Millions of potential ‘culturally curious’ Spanish visitors are being targeted through this campaign, which includes radio ads targeting 1.4m listeners over a two-week period, eye-catching outdoor ads on Madrid’s Gran Via and metro stations, online ads and social media activity through the Iberia Express Facebook and Twitter channels.

According to Tourism Ireland, Spain is the fifth largest market for Irish tourism. Figures have grown ‘significantly’ over 17 years, rising from 90,000 Spanish visitors in 2000 to a record 443,200 last year. The organisation aims to capitalise on this growth through a range of promotional programmes in 2018.

“We are delighted to partner with Iberia Express, to highlight ease of access from Madrid to Cork and to help grow tourist numbers from Spain this year,” said Barbara Wood, Tourism Ireland’s Spain Manager. “As an island, the importance of convenient, direct, non-stop flights cannot be overstated – they are absolutely critical to achieving growth in inbound tourism.”