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• A Brief History Of Irish...

A Brief History of Irish Travellers, Ireland’s Only Indigenous Minority

After a long battle, Irish Travellers were finally officially recognised as an indigenous ethnic minority by Ireland’s government in early March 2017. Here, Culture Trip takes a look at the origins of the Irish Travelling community and how the historic ruling came about. At the time of the 2011 census , there were around 29,500 Irish Travellers in the Irish Republic , making up 0.6% of the population. The community was found to be unevenly distributed across the country, with the highest number living in County Galway and South Dublin. Although – as the name suggests – Irish Travellers have historically been a nomadic people, the census showed a majority living in private dwellings.

Throughout Irish history, the Travelling community has been markedly separated from the general Irish population, resulting in widespread stereotyping and discrimination. The same year as the census, a survey conducted by Ireland’s Economic and Social Research Institute found that Irish Travellers suffer widespread ostracism; this and other factors have been shown to contribute to high levels of mental health problems among Irish Travellers. Indeed, the 2010 All Ireland Traveller Health Study found their suicide rate to be six times the national average, accounting for a shocking 11% of Traveller deaths.

Through the 2011 census, members of the Travelling community were also found to have poorer general health, higher rates of disability and significantly lower levels of education as compared to the general population, with seven out of 10 Irish Travellers educated only to primary level or lower.

Because of a lack of written history, the exact origins of the Irish Travelling Community have been difficult to clarify. Although it had been hypothesised, until relatively recently, that Irish Travellers may be linked to the Romani people, a genetic study released in February of this year revealed this connection to be false.

The study found that Travellers are of Irish ancestral origin, but split off from the general population sometime around the mid-1600s – much earlier than had been thought previously. In one widely quoted finding, the DNA comparisons conducted in the course of the research found that while Irish Travellers originated in Ireland, they are genetically different from ‘settled’ Irish people, to the same degree as people from Spain.

The results of the study, conducted by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, University College Dublin, the University of Edinburgh and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, contributed significantly to Irish Travellers being officially designated an ethnic minority, defined as a group within a community with different national or cultural traditions from the main population.

Speaking to RTE on the day of the ruling, former director of the Irish Traveller Movement Brigid Quilligan said, ‘We want every Traveller in Ireland to be proud of who they are and to say that we’re not a failed set of people. We have our own unique identity, and we shouldn’t take on all of the negative aspects of what people think about us. We should be able to be proud and for that to happen our State needed to acknowledge our identity and our ethnicity, and they’re doing that today.’

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

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Who Visits Ireland?

Tourism Statistics - Who Does What Where in Ireland

Ever wondered who actually visits Ireland? Here are the statistics, gleaned from publications by Fáilte Ireland ...

Visitors to Ireland - Their Country of Origin

Just under 7,600,000 visitors are on domestic trips (Irish and Northern Irish vacationers) and just under 6,400,000 foreign visitors add to the throng.

Largest national groups are

• Great Britain with nearly 1,600,000 visitors,
• the USA with around 870,000 guests,
• Germany providing nearly 300,000 tourist,
• France accounting for a slightly lower number and
• nearly 190,000 Italians.

Favorite Irish Areas for Overseas Tourists

• South-West Ireland,
• the West of Ireland,
• the Shannon Region and
• South-East Ireland.

What does the Average Tourist Spend Money on in Ireland?

Europeans spend their money in these proportions:

• 34% for food and drink,
• 32% for bed and board ,
• 16% for shopping,
• 8% for internal transport and
• 4% for sightseeing and entertainment.

North Americans spend their money in these proportions:

• 31% for food and drink,
• 28% for bed and board,
• 18% for shopping,
• 10% for internal transport and
• 6% for sightseeing and entertainment.

How do Tourists get to Ireland?

Travel to Ireland is, as expected, dominated by air travel.

Europeans arrive by these means:

• 73% by air from Europe,
• 16% by air from Great Britain,
• 7% by ferry from Great Britain and
• 4% by ferry from mainland Europe.

North Americans arrive by these means:

• 54% directly on transatlantic flights,
• 33% by air from Great Britain,
• 8% by air from Europe,
• 4% by ferry from Great Britain and
• less than half a percent by ferry from mainland Europe.

What Accommodation do Visitors Prefer in Ireland?

Europeans stay at these accommodations:

• 23% in self-catering accommodation,
• 19% with friends or relatives,
• 18% in guesthouses and B&Bs,
• 17% in hotels,
• 5% in hostels and
• 4% are camping or using a caravan.

North Americans stay at these accommodations:

• 36% in hotels,
• 20% with friends or relatives,
• 19% in guesthouses and B&Bs,
• 13% in self-catering accommodation,
• 4% in hostels and
• less than one in twohundred are camping or using a caravan.

Favorite Activities of Tourists in Ireland

1. Hiking and Hillwalking , 2. Golf , 3. Angling, 4. Cycling and 5. Equestrian Sports

What is the Typical Vacationer?

A couple, older than 44 years and earning money in a white-collar job.

• 20% under 25 years,
• 18% 25 to 34 years,
• 17% 35 to 44 years and
• 44% older than 44 years.
• Professional Status
• 56% white-collar workers,
• 23% managerial or professional staff,
• 16% skilled workers and
• 4% unskilled workers.
• Travel Groups
• 41% couples,
• 24% individual tourists,
• 18% families and
• 17% other adult groups.

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What are you looking for?

75+ interesting ireland travel & tourism statistics (latest 2024 data).

The island of Ireland is becoming one of the most important destinations in Europe's travel and tourism landscape. With magical sceneries and truly endless things to do in Ireland , it truly is a treasure trove of otherworldly charms.

Made up of the Republic of Ireland, as well as Northern Ireland which is part of the UK. This island is the birthplace of many illustrious writers including Oscar Wilde. It is also known for the lavish landscape and stunning medieval castles.

So, it should not be a surprise that millions of people visit Ireland each year. In fact, the island welcomed 17.3 million overseas arrivals to its air and sea ports in 2022 .

The tourism sector is becoming a more and more integral part of the Irish economy and lifestyle. 5.6% of all employed people in Ireland actually work in the travel industry.

We have compiled some of the most interesting statistics about travel and tourism in Ireland, from the number of tourists it receives each year to how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted Irish tourism.

Let’s dive right in!

Sources: After each stat, I have referenced where the data was gathered and curated from. For a full list of all articles and sources used in this roundup, please head to the bottom of the post. At the time of publication, these are the most up-to-date statistics available. Little data was gathered in 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Travellerspoint

Ireland Tourism Key Findings

• Ireland welcomed 17.3 million overseas arrivals to its air and sea ports in 2022
• There were 738,000 overseas tourists who visited Ireland in August 2023 for at least 1 night.
• Total tourism on the island of Ireland generated £7.8 billion of revenue in 2019
• International tourism contributed around £5.1 billion of that amount, while residents from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland spent £2.7 billion
• Nearly 70% of all international tourists in Ireland are from the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany or France
• 50% of visitors to Ireland come for holidaying purposes, while 1 in 3 people come to visit friends or relatives. 14% come for business visits
• The average overseas tourist spends £451 per trip and stays for 7.3 nights
• Outbound trips from Ireland rose from 2021, but remained slightly below the peak in 2019, at around 8.8 million outbound trips in 2022.
• The most popular tourist destination in Ireland is Dublin , followed by the South West and Northern Ireland
• The tourism sector in Ireland contributed more than 127,100 jobs in 2018, and this number is expected to rise dramatically by 2028
• For every €1 million spent on overseas marketing, Ireland enjoys €41 million in economic return

Overseas Tourism in Ireland Statistics

How Popular is Ireland Among International Tourists?

1. In 2022, the Republic of Ireland received nearly 17.3 million overseas arrivals to air and sea ports.

[TourismIreland]

In 2022, overseas arrivals to the Republic of Ireland (this includes residents of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland) were only at 86% of the 2019 levels.

2. There were 738,000 overseas tourists who visited Ireland in August 2023 for at least 1 night.

260 thousand of these overnight visitors came from Great Britain, 273 thousand were from mainland Europe , while 165 thousand were from North America.

4. In August 2023, international tourists spent a total of 7,338,000 nights in Ireland.

The tourism market that spends the most nights in Ireland is mainland European (3.28 million nights in August 2023).

5. In 2019, international tourism in Ireland generated around £5.1 billion in revenue.

The island of Ireland generated €5.9 or £5.1 billion from tourist expenditure in 2019.

6. 50% of visitors to Ireland come for holidaying purposes.

Half of all overseas visitors to Ireland are holiday makers, 32% are visiting friends or on a family trip , 14% are coming on business visits, while 4% are visiting for other purposes.

7. The average overseas tourist spends £451 per trip and stays for 7.3 nights.

The average spend by an overseas tourist in 2019 was £451, while the average length of stay was 7.3 nights.

8. International spending accounted for 76.4% of the total travel and tourism expenditure in Ireland in 2022. 

Meanwhile, domestic spending made up 23.6% of the total travel and tourism expenditure in Ireland in 2022.

9. Nearly 70% of all international tourists in Ireland are from the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany or France.

Ireland receives the most tourists from Great Britain (42%), followed by the US (15%), Germany (7%), and France (5%) .

10. 29% of all international tourists stay with friends or relatives when visiting Ireland.

11. North American tourists travel more extensively than tourists from other places.

They usually include an average of 2.5 regions in their trip compared to the 1.9 region of overseas tourists as a whole.

12. More than half of all overseas vacationers to Ireland are at least 35 years old.

Tourists from mainland Europe tend to be younger (47% are below 35 years old) whereas tourists from Other Areas are typically older, with 62% being above 35 years old.

Learn more about age-specific travel trends in our Millennial Travel Statistics .

13. 67% of all holiday makers in 2019 were coming to the Island of Ireland for the first time ever.

This was a huge increase from only 59% in 2009.

14. The most popular tourist destination in Ireland is Dublin (59% of all overseas visitors), followed by the South West (21%) and Northern Ireland (20%).

15. border, which includes cavan, donegal, leitrim, monaghan, and sligo, was the least popular region for overseas visitors. it welcomed 768,000 visitors in 2019., irish tourism for great britain visitors.

How Many British Tourists Visit Ireland?

16. Great Britain remains Ireland’s top market source for travel and tourism.

Britain is the most important market for Ireland in terms of tourists and nights.

17. 42% of all overseas trips to Ireland come from Great Britain.

18. in 2019, 4.8 million tourists from great britain visited ireland..

Great Britain is the world's 4th largest outbound market making around 93 million trips annually, 5% of which is to the island of Ireland.

19. Among those, 83% are from England, 14% from Scotland, and 4% from Wales.

Scotland makes up 14% of all British tourists that travelled to Ireland in 2019.

20. Most British tourists stay between 1 to 3 nights in Ireland, while only 10% stay for more than 9 nights.

For most tourists from Great Britain (58%), the ideal length of trip to Ireland is between 1 and 3 nights. Only 10% of British tourists stay for 9 nights or longer.

21. Tourists from Great Britain generate up to £1.3 billion, which is one-fourth of Ireland’s total tourist revenue.

In 2019, Ireland made €1.4 or £1.3 billion in revenue from British tourists alone, which accounts to 25% of the island’s tourism revenue.

22. Ireland is the 6th most popular outbound destination among tourists from Great Britain.

23. food & drink represents the largest portion of holiday spending in ireland by uk visitors..

38% of all holiday expenditure by British tourists goes towards food & drink. Followed by accommodation, shopping, then transport.

American Tourists in Ireland

How Do American Visitors Contribute to Ireland’s Tourism Sector?

24. The USA contributes the most out of all overseas markets in Ireland in terms of revenue, and 2nd in terms of tourists.

The United States of America is the largest source of overseas revenue for Ireland and the 2nd most important source of tourists after Great Britain.

25. In 2019, there were 1.7 million tourists coming to Ireland from the United States of America. This number has grown by 61% since 2014.

The United States has the largest outbound market in the world. In 2019, 43% of outbound trips from the US were to Europe and 9% of these included a visit to Ireland.

26. American tourists spent £1.4 billion in Ireland in 2019.

This amount has grown by 71% since 2014.

27. The average expenditure of an American tourist in Ireland is £797 per visit. 36% of this is typically spent on food & drink.

For an average trip to the island of Ireland by an American holidaymaker, they would spend £797. With food & drink being the largest portion of expenditure, followed by accommodation, shopping and transport.

28. The average length of stay for American tourists in Ireland is 8 nights.

29% of American tourists stay for 6-8 nights in Ireland.

29. During summer of 2019, Ireland airports welcomed 217 departures per week from the US.

This is almost 55,000 direct air seats per week leaving from the US to Ireland.

30. US vacationers make up 22% of all vacationers arriving in Ireland in 2019.

31. the island of ireland is the 8th most popular destination on the us holiday maker’s travel bucket list., domestic and outbound tourism in ireland.

How popular is Ireland among domestic tourists?

32. In 2022, there were 13.2 million domestic trips in Ireland, which is an increase from 2019.

[Failte Ireland]

13.2 million trips to Ireland were made in 2022 by domestic tourists, which is a slight increase from 2019 (11.6 million trips).

33. Nearly 1 in 2 of these domestic trips was a holiday trip.

Nearly half of the total domestic trips made to Ireland in 2022 were for holidaying purposes.

34. 4.56 million domestic trips in Ireland were made to visit friends and relatives.

Meanwhile, 528 thousand were business trips.

35. 31% of overnight holidaymakers in Ireland stayed in hotels, while 12% stayed in holiday homes.

Hotels are the most popular accommodation choice among domestic tourists in Ireland. Meanwhile, 12% of them stay in holiday homes. Airbnb statistics have yet to be confirmed for Ireland tourism.

36. The most popular time to visit Ireland for domestic holiday makers is between July and September, with 40% of all domestic trips in Ireland made during this period.

The second most popular time is April to June (27%).

37. Outbound trips from Ireland rose from 2021, but remained slightly below the peak in 2019, at around 8.8 million outbound trips in 2022.

38. tourists from ireland spent almost 8.6 billion euros in 2022 on overseas trips, the highest figure between 2013 and 2022., 39. the number of domestic day trips in ireland rose in 2022, reaching 16.17 million trips..

Motivation for Visiting Ireland

Why do tourists come to Ireland?

40. 50% of visitors to Ireland come for holidaying purposes, while 1 in 3 people come to visit friends or relatives. 14% come for business visits.

[TourismIreland] 

14% of all visitors to Ireland come for business purposes.

41. One of the most popular activities to do in Ireland is hiking or cross country walking, which engaged around 2,392,000 overseas visitors in 2019.

Nature-oriented activities remain the most popular among both domestic and overseas visitors to Ireland alike, with hiking or cross country walking being a favourite for overseas tourists.

42. 361,000 overseas tourists in 2019 were involved in cycling activities while in Ireland.

43. the internet is the biggest source of information for tourists planning a trip to ireland.

Most overseas visitors to Ireland use the internet to plan their trip . On the other hand, one-fourth of them also rely on guide books, while only 14% plan with the help of travel agents.

This shows the increasing role of online booking in travel .

44. 39% of overseas holiday makers in Ireland in 2019 came as a couple, while 1 in every 5 visited alone.

About 20% of all leisure visitors to Ireland are solo travellers .

Employment in the Irish Travel Industry

How many people are involved in the tourism sector in Ireland?

45. The tourism sector in Ireland contributed more than 127,100 jobs in 2018. This is about 5.6% of the total employment in Ireland.

In 2018, there were 127,100 people employed in the Irish tourism sector, which is around 5.6% of all employment in Ireland.

46. The Statista Research Department forecasts that this number will rise to 180,400 by 2028.

47. In 2022, the number of direct and indirect contribution of travel and tourism to employment in Ireland was 129.5 thousand, or 6.9% lower than 2019 (139.1 thousand jobs).

48. every €1 million in tourist expenditure can support 27 jobs in the tourism sector in ireland..

Failte Ireland estimates that every €1 million spent by tourists in Ireland can support 27 jobs in the country’s travel industry.

Tourism and Ireland’s Economy

How does the tourism sector affect the economy in Ireland?

49. From 2012 to 2018, travel and tourism has overall increased its contribution to the GDP of Ireland.

50. in 2018, the tourism industry made €17.9 billion contribution to ireland’s gdp, which is roughly 5.4% of the country’s total gdp..

51. By 2028, this amount is expected to increase to €26 billion.

Statista forecasts that the Irish tourism sector will contribute up to €26 billion in GDP for the country’s economy.

52. In 2019, total tourism on the island of Ireland generated £7.8 billion.

53. overseas visitors remain the most important source of tourists for the island of ireland, contributing to around £5.1 billion..

Visitors from the US are the most important source in terms of tourist revenue for the island of Ireland.

54. Meanwhile, residents of the Republic of Ireland spent £2 billion in expenditure and those from Northern Ireland contributed £666 million.

Domestic tourists from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland also contribute a significant amount of tourism revenue.

55. Every euro spent on tourism in Ireland generates 23c in tax.

56. travel and tourism contributed, both directly and indirectly, 14.9 billion euros to ireland’s gdp in 2022..

This is unfortunately lower than the pre-pandemic levels of 15.9 billion euros in 2019.

57. In terms of travel spending, the highest share of travel and tourism spending in Ireland in 2022 comes from leisure spending (57.5%).

The other 42.5% is from business spending, which is a higher proportion compared to to 2019, when business spending made up only 29.8% of the total travel and tourism spending in Ireland.

Tourist Attractions in Ireland

What are the most popular tourist attractions in Ireland?

58. 4 out of the top 10 free (and 4 out of the top 10 paid) attractions in Ireland are found in Dublin.

Dublin is home to 4 of the 10 most popular free and paid attractions in Ireland. This includes the Guinness Storehouse, Dublin Zoo, Book of Kells, and St Patrick’s Cathedral for the paid attraction.

There are also the National Gallery of Ireland, National Botanic Gardens, National Museum of Ireland Archaeology, and Irish Museum of Modern Art for the free attractions.

59. Guinness Storehouse in Dublin is the top paid tourist attraction in Ireland, which received 1.7 million visits in 2019 alone.

60. Free attractions are actually less popular in Ireland, with the most visited free attraction, Castletown House Parklands in Kildare, receiving 966 thousand visits in 2019.

Effects of the covid-19 pandemic in ireland.

How did the recent Coronavirus pandemic impact tourism in Ireland?

61. In March 2020, overseas arrivals (air and sea) in Ireland decreased by 56.7% from the previous year.

[Central Statistics Office]

In March 2020 when Covid-19 began to directly impact Ireland and the UK, international arrivals in Ireland fell by 56.7% from March 2019.

61. When the pandemic caused a sudden collapse in international travel in April 2020, the number decreased by 99.1%.

There were only 16,100 arrivals in Ireland in April 2020, compared to 1.7 million in April 2019. This is a substantial decrease of 99.1%.

63. One year later in April 2021, there was a 331.2% increase in overseas arrivals in Ireland.

The most recent statistics of overseas travel in Ireland shows that air and sea travel are slowly recovering from the year-long travel ban and restrictions. It still hasn’t regained its levels before the pandemic, but is an improvement from 2020.

64. June 2021 sees 57,100 overseas arrivals, which is a 180% increase from previous year.

While this number is steadily increasing, it is still far below the pre-pandemic arrival level of 1.9 million in June 2019.

65. A recent study shows that 42% of global holiday makers expect their next European holiday to be in 2022.

66. when choosing a travel destination in europe for future plans, the most desirable elements for most holiday makers include beautiful scenery and history and culture..

Holiday makers around the world admit that when choosing a European travel destination for their post-Covid plan, the most important elements are beautiful scenery and rich history and culture. The island of Ireland abounds with both of these.

Accommodation & Travel in Ireland statistics

How many hotels are there in Ireland?

67. The Irish hotel industry is valued at €3.9 billion and ranked 10th in Europe in 2023 (of 27 total EU countries).

[IbisWorld]

The market size of the hotel industry in Ireland has decreased by an average of 1.6% per year between 2018 and 2023.

68. In 2023, there are 56,468 people employed in the hotel industry in Ireland.

This is an average of 26.7 employees per hotel.

69. There are 1,583 hotel businesses in Ireland as of 2023.

70. in ireland, the hotel occupancy was 81% between january and september 2023, up +1% from the january to september 2019 period., 71. hotel occupancy for january to september 2023 in northern ireland was 76%, or an increase of +4% compared to january to september 2019., 72. in the period of january-september 2023, the average daily rate (adr) for a hotel room in ireland was €174., 73. meanwhile, the adr for a hotel room in dublin was €186 per night, or €12 higher than the country average..

While hotels in Dublin tend to be on the expensive side, it is still a beautiful destination for backpackers .

74. By December 2023, Cork and Dublin airports are expected to return to 123% and 106% of their respective December 2019 seat capacities. 

This shows a positive recovery on the demand for air travel around the world following the pandemic in 2021.

75. Meanwhile, Belfast City Airport and Belfast International Airport are predicted to reach 119% and 117% of their December 2019 seat capacities respectively. 

76. During January-September 2023, ferry passengers to and from the island of Ireland was at 95% of January-September 2019 levels.

This includes 89% for the Republic of Ireland and 102% for Northern Island.

Final Thoughts

The tourism sector in Ireland contributes to 5.4% of the island’s total GDP and this amount is only expected to rise from now on.

Since reaching 17.3 million overseas arrivals in 2022, there is reason to believe that interest in visiting Ireland for holidaying purposes will only grow, especially as the effects of the pandemic have subsided.

In spite of setbacks from Covid-19 and the dramatic fall in number of arrivals this past year, the natural and cultural appeal of Ireland will continue to impress!

We’ve tried to be as comprehensive as we can with this post. Hopefully, it can help you understand more about tourism in Ireland.

Did we miss any crucial statistics about travel and tourism in Ireland?

Drop us a comment below!

And here are some other statistics you might enjoy...

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Who are the Irish Travellers in the US?

They're one of ireland's oldest and most marginalized minorities but who are the irish travellers in the us.

One of Ireland's oldest and most marginalized minorities but how much to do you know about Irish Travellers in America?

In Ireland, nearly everybody is aware of the existence of the Irish Travellers  — they’re one of Ireland’s oldest and most marginalized minority groups, known for their itinerant lifestyle, distinct dialects and oft-questioned traditions.

However, many people know that there are also communities of Irish Travellers in America.

A few times each year, a headline will pop up about Irish Travellers in the US. Sometimes it’ll be from a local newspaper in South Carolina or Texas; on rarer occasions, such as the bust of a high-profile rhinoceros horn smuggling ring, it’ll be in Bloomberg Businessweek . Except for the occasional story expressing interest in the culture or history of the Travellers, the articles are typically from the crime section — detailing a theft or scam, or local concern that the Travellers have arrived in the area.

But if you don’t happen to live in those areas or catch those headlines, and if you missed out on that one famous episode of "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding," you’d be easily forgiven for not having any idea that the Irish Travellers have lived in the US for generations. They’re not recognized as a distinct ethnic group by the US Census, and, what’s more, Irish Americans  have never claimed them under the umbrella of the Irish diaspora.

What little we do know about the Irish Travellers here in America comes from those very news articles, and from a scant number of books and documentaries.

There are believed to be anywhere from 7,000 to 40,000 Irish Travellers in the US, though most estimates lie closer to the 10,000 mark. The Travellers here descended from groups who left Ireland around the time of the Great Hunger and settled in the US, carving out a similar lifestyle to the one they followed in Ireland.

Like their counterparts in Ireland, Irish Travellers in the US speak their own dialects of Cant, Shelta, or Gammon, which can include elements of Irish, Gaelic, English, Greek, and Hebrew.

Also similar to their Ireland-based counterparts, the American Irish Travellers identify as strictly  Catholic  and adhere to their own traditions and mores. The men travel and work and the women raise the children. Many of the women are promised to their future husbands in arranged marriages when they are very young.

Their primary trade is repair work, often categorized as dubious in nature (though the fairness of that generalization has been called into question). But the US Irish Travellers have also, over the years, amassed fortunes through a unique internal economy based on life insurance policies.

As Paul Connolly, who made a documentary about Irish Travellers in the US for the Irish channel TV3 in 2013, told The Journal : “Most of the income comes from insurance. . . In America, there’s a clause which allows you to insure anyone with a blood connection — and as they have intermarried for generations, there’s a likelihood there will be a blood connection.

"So they’ve worked out a way of profiting from this, and that, according to the Travellers I’ve spoken to, is how they make their money and how they’re so wealthy. Some of the more morbid characters we came across referred to it as ‘Death Watch’.”

Perhaps the most notorious instance of this system gone awry took place in 2015, when Anita Fox, a 69-year-old Irish Traveller woman in Texas, was found stabbed to death. Police later identified the perpetrators as Gerard and Bernard Gorman, who held a $1 million life insurance policy in Fox’s name.

There are Irish Traveller enclaves in Texas, in the Houston and Fort Worth areas, as well as in South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Florida, with smaller settlements found in rural New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Many of the groups identify based on where in the US their ancestors first based themselves, such as the Ohio Travellers, Georgia Travellers, Texas Travellers, and Mississippi Travellers.

The largest-known Irish Traveller community in the US is in Murphy Village, South Carolina, which, as noted in a report by the Florida Ancient Order of Hibernians, is home to approximately 1,500 people with only 11 different surnames.

According to a 2002 article in the Washington Post , “The Irish Travelers who settled in the United States in the 19th century migrated to different parts of the country and established their own clan groups, often with little intermingling across regions.

“The Sherlocks, O'Haras and others settled [in Murphy Village] in the 1960s, on land around a Catholic church whose pastor, the Rev. Joseph Murphy, became the patron and namesake of the growing community just outside the town of North Augusta.”

Far from a caravan or mobile home community, Murphy Village has become home to an increasing number of suburban “McMansions” in recent decades, as the US Irish Travellers build permanent homes, which they use as a base between travels and for holidays. In this regard, its closest Irish counterpart is Rathkeale, Co. Limerick, which was the subject of a New York Times story in 2012 , chronicling the massive homecoming that takes place every Christmas.

“The Riches,” a serial drama about a contemporary Irish Traveller family in the US, starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver, aired on FX for two seasons, in 2007 and 2008.

H/T Slate , The Journal , The Washington Post , Florida AOH .

* Originally published in Sept 2016.

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The number of Travellers attaining Junior and Leaving Certificates, and hence progressing to higher-level education remains well below the levels of non-Traveller peers. Low levels of attainment and the lack of validation of the Traveller way of life within the education system are a key concern of Traveller parents and within the Traveller community.

The ITM was involved in the development of a National Traveller Education Strategy in 2006. However, the key challenge is to ensure that the effective implementation of its recommendations are achieved. The long-term legacy that ITM envisages is that Travellers will be attending all levels of education and have confidence in their identity within a whole school environment where diversity is valued and where more Travellers view education as one of the valid means to fulfil their own potential.

The 2011 Census, only 8% of Travellers complete education to Leaving Certifiate Level, compared with 73% for non-Travellers. Only 1% of Travellers aged 25-64 have a college degree compared with 30% for non-Travellers. Travellers are more likely to leave school early, with 28% of Travellers leaving before the age of 13, compared with 1% of non-Travellers (source ESRI A Social Portrait of Travellers in Ireland ).

Historically Travellers were often marginalised in the education system. Into the 1990s Travellers were often educated through segregated provision. Evidence has shown that Traveller-only schools and Traveller-only classes have produced poorer outcomes for Travellers, with many leaving school without any formal qualifications and with low levels of literacy and numeracy.

Segregated provision of education for Travellers also led to huge stigmatisation, given that the Government policy stated that “where the number of itinerant [sic] children, by itself, would not warrant the establishment of a special class, it may be possible to establish a class for educationally retarded children, or to provide remedial teaching, which could also serve the needs of itinerant children requiring assistance” (Educational facilities for the children of Itinerants, 1970). However the same State document saw special classes and schools for Travellers as a temporary measure and that “when the children are prepared and ready for placement in ordinary classes they should be encouraged to make the transition and should be assisted in overcoming their initial difficulties; and arrangements for transfer should be made after consultation with the parents and with the teachers and managers involved”.

Yet, despite this document seeing segregation as a temporary measure, Traveller-only classes did not end in Ireland until 2004 and one Traveller-only school still exists. Segregated education failed consistently in that Travellers who were forced into Traveller-only schools or classes left education with sub-standard outcomes, were stigmatised for attending “special classes” and also permitted the barriers that existed between Travellers and settled people to persist, in that children from both ethnic groups that attending the same school were denied any opportunity to develop friendships and learn about each other’s heritage and background, which has had hugely detrimental effects over the last thirty years for Irish Society and its attempts to deal positively with diversity.

There are no national statistics for Traveller attainment in literacy or numeracy, and only recently was there an assessment to see whether anecdotal evidence from Traveller organisations regarding poor outcomes for Travellers in education were borne out. The Survey of Traveller Education Provision (2006)  showed that the levels of achievement of Traveller pupils were not on a par with their non-Traveller peers. An analysis of standardised test results showed that 67.4% of Travellers were reading at or below the lowest 20% quartile and in numeracy, 62.1% of Travellers surveyed were in the lowest 20%. Some Traveller parents expressed their deep concerns about the low attainment of their children, particularly in relation to reading standards. The inspectors observed that pupils were frequently assigned low-level tasks that did not challenge and extend them sufficiently. Many pupils did not engage in whole-class activities especially in such areas as History, Geography or Science. The survey also drew attention to the poor retention rate of Traveller pupils at post-primary level, with many pupils leaving school early and without qualifications.

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• Ethnicity facts and figures homepage Home

Gypsy, Roma and Irish Traveller ethnicity summary

Updated 29 March 2022

1. About this page

2. the gypsy, roma and traveller group, 3. classifications, 4. improving data availability and quality, 5. population data, 6. education data, 7. economic activity and employment data.

• 8. Home ownership data data
• 9. Health data

This is a summary of statistics about people from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller ethnic groups living in England and Wales.

It is part of a series of summaries about different ethnic groups .

Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) is a term used to describe people from a range of ethnicities who are believed to face similar challenges. These groups are distinct, but are often reported together.

This page includes:

• information about GRT data and its reliability
• some statistics from the 2011 Census
• other statistics on the experiences of people from the GRT groups in topics including education, housing and health

This is an overview based on a selection of data published on Ethnicity facts and figures or analyses of other sources. Some published data (for example, on higher education) is only available for the aggregated White ethnic group, and is not included here.

Through this report, we sometimes make comparisons with national averages. While in other reports we might compare with another ethnic group (usually White British), we have made this decision here because of the relatively small impact the GRT group has on the overall national average.

The term Gypsy, Roma and Traveller has been used to describe a range of ethnic groups or people with nomadic ways of life who are not from a specific ethnicity.

In the UK, it is common in data collections to differentiate between:

• Gypsies (including English Gypsies, Scottish Gypsies or Travellers, Welsh Gypsies and other Romany people)
• Irish Travellers (who have specific Irish roots)
• Roma, understood to be more recent migrants from Central and Eastern Europe

The term Traveller can also encompass groups that travel. This includes, but is not limited to, New Travellers, Boaters, Bargees and Showpeople. (See the House of Commons Committee report on Tackling inequalities faced by Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities .)

For the first time, the 2011 Census ethnic group question included a tick box for the ethnic group ‘Gypsy or Irish Traveller’. This was not intended for people who identify as Roma because they are a distinct group with different needs to Gypsy or Irish Travellers.

The 2021 Census had a ‘Gypsy or Irish Traveller’ category, and a new ‘Roma’ category.

A 2018 YouGov poll found that 66% of people in the UK wrongly viewed GRT not to be an ethnic group, with many mistaking them as a single group (PDF). It is therefore important that GRT communities are categorised correctly on data forms, using separate tick boxes when possible to reflect this.

The 2011 Census figures used in this report and on Ethnicity facts and figures are based on respondents who chose to identify with the Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group. People who chose to write in Roma as their ethnicity were allocated to the White Other group, and data for them is not included here. Other data, such as that from the Department for Education, includes Roma as a category combined with Gypsy, with Irish Traveller shown separately.

The commentary in this report uses the specific classifications in each dataset. Users should exercise caution when comparing different datasets, for example between education data (which uses Gypsy/Roma, and Irish Traveller in 2 separate categories) and the Census (which uses Gypsy and Irish Traveller together, but excludes data for people who identify as Roma).

Finally, it should be noted that there is also a distinction that the government makes, for the purposes of planning policy, between those who travel and the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller ethnicities. The Department for Communities and Local Government (at the time, now the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities) planning policy for traveller sites (PDF) defines "gypsies and travellers" as:

"Persons of nomadic habit of life whatever their race or origin, including such persons who on grounds only of their own or their family’s or dependants’ educational or health needs or old age have ceased to travel temporarily, but excluding members of an organised group of travelling showpeople or circus people travelling together as such."

This definition for planning purposes includes any person with a nomadic habit, whether or not they might have identified as Gypsy, Roma or Traveller in a data collection.

The April 2019 House of Commons Women and Equalities Select Committee report on inequalities faced by Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities noted that there was a lack of data on these groups.

The next section highlights some of the problems associated with collecting data on these groups, and what is available. Some of the points made about surveys, sample sizes and administrative data are generally applicable to any group with a small population.

Improving data for the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller populations, as well as other under-represented groups in the population is part of the recommendations in the Inclusive Data Taskforce report and the key activities described in the ONS response to them. For example, in response to recommendation 3 of the report, ONS, RDU and others will "build on existing work and develop new collaborative initiatives and action plans to improve inclusion of under-represented population groups in UK data in partnership with others across government and more widely".

Also, the ONS response to recommendation 4 notes the development of a range of strategies to improve the UK data infrastructure and fill data gaps to provide more granular data through new or boosted surveys and data linkage. Recommendation 6 notes that research will be undertaken using innovative methods best suited to the research question and prospective participants, to understand more about the lived experiences of several groups under-represented in UK data and evidence, such as people from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller groups.

4.1 Classifications

In some data collections, the option for people to identify as Gypsy, Roma or Traveller is not available. Any data grouped to the 5 aggregated ethnic groups does not show the groups separately. Data based on the 2001 Census does not show them separately as there was no category for people identifying as Gypsy, Roma or Traveller. As part of our Quality Improvement Plan, the Race Disparity Unit (RDU) has committed to working with government departments to maintain a harmonised approach to collecting data about Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people using the GSS harmonised classification. The harmonised classification is currently based on the 2011 Census, and an update is currently being considered by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

In particular, RDU has identified working with DHSC and NHS Digital colleagues as a priority – the NHS classification is based on 2001 Census classifications and does not capture information on any of the GRT groups separately (they were categorised as White Other in the 2001 Census). Some of these issues have been outlined in the quarterly reports on progress to address COVID-19 health inequalities .

Research into how similar or different the aggregate ethnic groups are shows how many datasets are available for the GRT group.

Further information on the importance of harmonisation is also available.

4.2 Census data

A main source of data on the Gypsy and Irish Traveller groups is the 2011 Census. This will be replaced by the 2021 Census when results are published by the ONS. The statistics in this summary use information from Ethnicity facts and figures and the Census section of ONS’s NOMIS website.

4.3 Survey data

It is often difficult to conclude at any one point in time whether a disparity is significant for the GRT population, as the population is so small in comparison to other ethnic groups.

Even a large sample survey like the Annual Population Survey (APS) has a small number of responses from the Gypsy and Irish Traveller ethnic group each year. Analysis of 3 years of combined data for 2016, 2017 and 2018 showed there were 62 people in the sample (out of around 500,000 sampled cases in total over those 3 years) in England and Wales. Another large survey, the Department for Transport’s National Travel Survey, recorded 58 people identifying as Gypsy or Traveller out of 157,000 people surveyed between 2011 and 2019.

Small sample sizes need not be a barrier to presenting data if confidence intervals are provided to help the user. But smaller sample sizes will mean wider confidence intervals, and these will provide limited analytical value. For the 2016 to 2018 APS dataset – and using the standard error approximation method given in the LFS User Guide volume 6 with a fixed design factor of 1.6 (the formula is 1.6 * √p(1 − p)/n where p is the proportion in employment and n is the sample size.) – the employment rate of 35% for working age people in the Gypsy and Traveller group in England and Wales would be between 16% and 54% (based on a 95% confidence interval). This uses the same methodology as the ONS’s Sampling variability estimates for labour market status by ethnicity .

A further reason for smaller sample sizes might be lower response rates. The Women and Select Committee report on the inequalities faced by Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities noted that people in these groups may be reluctant to self-identify, even where the option is available to them. This is because Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people might mistrust the intent behind data collection.

The RDU recently published a method and quality report on working out significant differences between estimates for small groups using different analytical techniques.

4.4 Administrative data

While administrative data does not suffer from the same issues of sampling variability, small numbers of respondents can mean that data is either disclosive and needs to be suppressed to protect the identity of individuals, or results can fluctuate over time.

An example of this is the measure of students getting 3 A grades or better at A level . In 2019 to 2020, no Irish Traveller students achieved this (there were 6 students in the cohort). In 2017 to 2018, 2 out of 7 Irish Traveller students achieved 3 A grades, or 28.6% – the highest percentage of all ethnic groups.

Aggregating time periods might help with this, although data collected in administrative datasets can change over time to reflect the information that needs to be collected for the administrative process. The data collected would not necessarily be governed by trying to maintain a consistent time series in the same way that data collected through surveys sometimes are.

4.5 Data linkage

Linking datasets together provides a way of producing more robust data for the GRT groups, or in fact, any ethnic group. This might improve the quality of the ethnicity coding in the dataset being analysed if an ethnicity classification that is known to be more reliable is linked from another dataset.

Data linkage does not always increase the sample size or the number of records available in the dataset to be analysed, but it might do if records that have missing ethnicity are replaced by a known ethnicity classification from a linked dataset.

An example is the linking of the Census data to Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data and death registrations by the ONS. The ethnicity classifications for GRT groups are not included in the HES data, and are not collected in the death registrations process at the moment. So this data linking gives a way to provide some information for Gypsy and Irish Travellers and other smaller groups. The report with data up to 15 May 2020 noted 16 Gypsy or Irish Traveller deaths from COVID-19.

RDU will be working with ONS and others to explore the potential for using data linking to get more information for the GRT groups.

4.6 Bespoke surveys and sample boosts

A country-wide, or even local authority, boost of a sample survey is unlikely to make estimates for the GRT groups substantially more robust. This is because of the relatively small number in the groups to begin with.

Bespoke surveys can be used to get specific information about these groups. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities list of traveller sites available through their Traveller caravan count statistics can help target sampling for surveys, for example. Bespoke surveys might be limited in geographical coverage, and more suitable for understanding GRT views in a local area and then developing local policy responses. An example of a bespoke survey is the Roma and Travellers in 6 countries survey .

Another method that could be useful is snowball sampling. Snowball sampling (or chain-referral sampling) is a sampling technique in which the respondents have traits that are rare to find. In snowball sampling, existing survey respondents provide referrals to recruit further people for the survey, which helps the survey grow larger.

There are advantages to snowball sampling. It can target hidden or difficult to reach populations. It can be a good way to sample hesitant respondents, as a person might be more likely to participate in a survey if they have been referred by a friend or family member. It can also be quick and cost effective. Snowball sampling may also be facilitated with a GRT community lead or cultural mediator. This would help bridge the gap between the GRT communities and the commissioning department to encourage respondent participation.

However, one statistical disadvantage is that the sampling is non-random. This reduces the knowledge of whether the sample is representative, and can invalidate some of the usual statistical tests for statistical significance, for example.

All data in this section comes from the 2011 Census of England and Wales, unless stated otherwise.

In 2011, there were 57,680 people from the Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group in England and Wales, making up 0.1% of the total population. In terms of population, it is the smallest of the 18 groups used in the 2011 Census.

Further ONS analysis of write-in responses in the Census estimated the Roma population as 730, and 1,712 people as Gypsy/Romany.

Table A: Gypsy, Roma and Traveller write-in ethnicity responses on the 2011 Census

Source: Census - Ethnic group (write-in response) Gypsy, Traveller, Roma, GypsyRomany - national to county (ONS). The figures do not add to the 57,680 classified as White: Gypsy/Traveller because Roma is included as White Other, and some people in the other categories shown will have classified themselves in an ethnic group other than White.

An ONS report in 2014 noted that variations in the definitions used for this ethnic group has made comparisons between estimates difficult. For example, some previous estimates for Gypsy or Irish Travellers have included Roma or have been derived from counts of caravans rather than people's own self-identity. It noted that other sources of data estimate the UK’s Gypsy, Roma and Traveller population to be in the region of 150,000 to 300,000 , or as high as 500,000 (PDF).

5.1 Where Gypsy and Irish Traveller people live

There were 348 local authorities in England and Wales in 2011. The Gypsy or Irish Traveller population was evenly spread throughout them. The 10 local authorities with the largest Gypsy or Irish Traveller populations constituted 11.9% of the total population.

Figure 1: Percentage of the Gypsy or Irish Traveller population of England and Wales living in each local authority area (top 10 areas labelled)

Basildon was home to the largest Gypsy or Irish Traveller population, with 1.5% of all Gypsy or Irish Traveller people living there, followed by Maidstone (also 1.5%, although it had a smaller population).

Table 1: Percentage of the Gypsy or Irish Traveller population of England and Wales living in each local authority area (top 10)

28 local authorities had fewer than 20 Gypsy or Irish Traveller residents each. This is around 1 in 12 of all local authorities.

11.7% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people lived in the most deprived 10% of neighbourhoods , higher than the national average of 9.9% (England, 2019 Indices of Multiple Deprivation).

81.6% of people from the Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group were born in England, and 6.1% in the other countries of the UK. 3.0% were born in Ireland and 8.3% were born somewhere else in Europe (other than the UK and Ireland). Less than 1.0% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people were born outside of Europe.

5.2 Age profile

The Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group had a younger age profile than the national average in England and Wales in 2011.

People aged under 18 made up over a third (36%) of the Gypsy or Irish Traveller population, higher than the national average of 21%.

18.0% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people were aged 50 and above , lower than the national average of 35.0%.

Figure 2: Age profile of Gypsy or Irish Traveller and the England and Wales average

Table 2: age profile of gypsy or irish traveller and the england and wales average, 5.3 families and households.

20.4% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller households were made up of lone parents with dependent children , compared with 7.2% on average for England and Wales.

Across all household types, 44.9% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller households had dependent children, compared with an average of 29.1%.

8.4% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller households were made up of pensioners (either couples, single pensioners, or other households where everyone was aged 65 and over), compared with 20.9% on average.

All data in this section covers pupil performance in state-funded mainstream schools in England.

At all key stages, Gypsy, Roma and Irish Traveller pupils’ attainment was below the national average.

Figure 3: Educational attainment among Gypsy, Roma, Irish Traveller and pupils from all ethnic groups

Table 3: educational attainment among gypsy, roma, irish traveller and pupils from all ethnic groups.

Source: England, Key Stage 2 Statistics, 2018/19; Key Stage 4 Statistics, 2019/20; and A Level and other 16 to 18 results, 2020/21. Ethnicity facts and figures and Department for Education (DfE). Figures for Key Stage 2 are rounded to whole numbers by DfE.

6.1 Primary education

In the 2018 to 2019 school year, 19% of White Gypsy or Roma pupils, and 26% of Irish Traveller pupils met the expected standard in key stage 2 reading, writing and maths . These were the 2 lowest percentages out of all ethnic groups.

6.2 Secondary education

In the 2019 to 2020 school year, 8.1% of White Gypsy or Roma pupils in state-funded schools in England got a grade 5 or above in GCSE English and maths, the lowest percentage of all ethnic groups.

Gypsy or Roma (58%) and Irish Traveller (59%) pupils were the least likely to stay in education after GCSEs (and equivalent qualifications). They were the most likely to go into employment (8% and 9% respectively) – however, it is not possible to draw firm conclusions about these groups due to the small number of pupils in key stage 4.

6.3 Further education

Gypsy or Roma students were least likely to get at least 3 A grades at A level, with 10.8% of students doing so in the 2020 to 2021 school year. 20.0% of Irish Traveller students achieved at least 3 A grades, compared to the national average of 28.9%. The figures for Gypsy or Roma (61) and Irish Traveller (19) students are based on small numbers, so any generalisations are unreliable.

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer exam series was cancelled in 2021, and alternative processes were set up to award grades. In 2020/21 attainment is higher than would be expected in a typical year. This likely reflects the changes to the way A/AS level grades were awarded rather than improvements in student performance.

6.4 School exclusions

In the 2019 to 2020 school year, the suspension rates were 15.28% for Gypsy or Roma pupils, and 10.12% for Irish Traveller pupils – the highest rates out of all ethnic groups.

Also, the highest permanent exclusion rates were among Gypsy or Roma pupils (0.23%, or 23 exclusions for every 10,000 pupils). Irish Traveller pupils were permanently excluded at a rate of 0.14%, or 14 exclusions for every 10,000 pupils.

6.5 School absence

In the autumn term of the 2020 to 2021 school year, 52.6% of Gypsy or Roma pupils, and 56.7% of Irish Traveller pupils were persistently absent from school . Pupils from these ethnic groups had the highest rates of overall absence and persistent absence.

For the 2020 to 2021 school year, not attending in circumstances related to coronavirus (COVID-19) was not counted toward the overall absence rate and persistent absence rates.

Data in this section is from the 2011 Census for England and Wales, and for people aged 16 and over. Economic activity and employment rates might vary from other published figures that are based on people of working age.

47% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people aged 16 and over were economically active, compared to an average of 63% in England and Wales.

Of economically active people, 51% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people were employees, and 26% were self-employed. 20% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people were unemployed, compared to an average for all ethnic groups of 7%.

7.1 Socio-economic group

Figure 4: socio-economic group of gypsy or irish traveller and average for all ethnic groups for people aged 16 and over, table 4: socio-economic group of gypsy or irish traveller and average for all ethnic groups for people aged 16 and over.

Source: 2011 Census

31.2% of people in the Gypsy or Irish Traveller group were in the socio-economic group of ‘never worked or long-term unemployed’. This was the highest percentage of all ethnic groups.

The Gypsy or Irish Traveller group had the smallest percentage of people in the highest socio-economic groups. 2.5% were in the ‘higher, managerial, administrative, professional’ group.

15.1% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller people were small employers and own account workers. These are people who are generally self-employed and have responsibility for a small number of workers.

For Gypsy or Irish Travellers, who were 16 and over and in employment, the largest group worked in elementary occupations (22%). This can include occupations such as farm workers, process plant workers, cleaners, or service staff (for example, bar or cleaning staff).

The second highest occupation group was skilled trades (19%), which can include farmers, electrical and building trades. The Gypsy or Irish Traveller group had the highest percentage of elementary and skilled trade workers out of all ethnic groups.

7.2 Employment gender gap

The gender gap in employment rates for the Gypsy or Irish Traveller group aged 16 and over was nearly twice as large as for all ethnic groups combined. In the Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group, 46% of men and 29% of women were employed, a gap of 17%. For all ethnic groups combined, 64% of men and 54% of women were employed, a gap of 10%.

This is likely to be due to the fact that Gypsy or Irish Traveller women (63%) were about 1.5 times as likely as Gypsy or Irish Traveller men (43%) to be economically inactive, which means they were out of work and not looking for work.

7.3 Economic inactivity

There are a range of reasons why people can be economically inactive. The most common reason for Gypsy or Irish Travellers being economically inactive was looking after the home or family (27%). This is higher than the average for England and Wales (11%). The second most common reason was being long term sick or disabled (26%) – the highest percentage out of all ethnic groups.

8. Home ownership data

Figure 5: home ownership and renting among gypsy or irish traveller households and all households, table 5: home ownership and renting among gypsy or irish traveller households and all households.

Source: England, 2011 Census

In 2011, 34% of Gypsy or Irish Traveller households owned their own home, compared with a national average of 64%. 42% lived in social rented accommodation, compared with a national average of 18%.

In 2016 to 2017, 0.1% of new social housing lettings went to people from Gypsy or Irish Traveller backgrounds (429 lettings).

In 2011, a whole house or bungalow was the most common type of accommodation for Gypsy or Irish Traveller households (61%). This was lower than for all usual residents in England and Wales (84%).

Caravans or other mobile or temporary homes accounted for 24% of Gypsy or Irish Travellers accommodation, a far higher percentage than for the whole of England and Wales (0.3%).

The percentage of people living in a flat, maisonette or apartment was 15% for both Gypsy or Irish Travellers and all usual residents in England and Wales.

In 2011, 14.1% of Gypsy and Irish Traveller people in England and Wales rated their health as bad or very bad, compared with 5.6% on average for all ethnic groups.

In 2016 to 2017, Gypsy or Irish Traveller people aged 65 and over had the lowest health-related quality of life of all ethnic groups (average score of 0.509 out of 1). The quality of life scores for the White Gypsy or Irish Traveller ethnic group are based on a small number of responses (around 35 each year) and are less reliable as a result.

Ethnicity facts and figures has information on satisfaction of different health services for different ethnic groups. For the results presented below, the Gypsy or Irish Traveller figures are based on a relatively small number of respondents, and are less reliable than figures for other ethnic groups.

In 2014 to 2015 (the most recent data available), these groups were the most satisfied with their experience of GP-out-of-hours service , with 75.2% reporting a positive experience.

In 2018 to 2019, they were less satisfied with their experience of GP services than most ethnic groups – 73.0% reported a positive experience.

They were also among the groups that had least success when booking an NHS dentist appointment – 89.0% reported successfully booking an appointment in 2018 to 2019.

The Gypsy or Irish Traveller group were also less satisfied with their access to GP services in 2018 to 2019 – 56.9% reported a positive experience of making a GP appointment, compared to an average of 67.4% for all respondents.

Publication release date: 31 January 2022

Updated: 29 March 2022

29 March 2022: Corrected A-level data in Table 3, and All ethnic groups data in Table 4. Corrected the legend in Figure 1 (map).

31 January 2022: Initial publication.

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Americans who have traveled internationally stand out in their views and knowledge of foreign affairs

Do people who travel think differently about the world? A new Pew Research Center survey suggests they do.

Americans who have traveled internationally are more interested in and knowledgeable about foreign affairs, feel closer to others around the world, and favor a more active foreign policy, according to the survey of 3,576 U.S. adults conducted in spring 2023. We also surveyed people in 23 other countries about their international travel habits.

This analysis examines international travel with a focus on Americans’ travel, including which Americans travel abroad and how their interest in the world and views of international affairs differ from others.

For this analysis, we surveyed 3,576 U.S. adults from March 20 to March 26, 2023; 3,581 U.S. adults from March 21 to March 27, 2022; and 10,606 U.S. adults from June 14 to June 27, 2021. Everyone who took part in these surveys is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the ATP’s methodology .

For non-U.S. data, this report draws on nationally representative surveys of 27,285 adults conducted from Feb. 20 to May 22, 2023. All surveys were conducted over the phone with adults in Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Surveys were conducted face-to-face in Hungary, Poland, India, Indonesia, Israel, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. In Australia, we used a mixed-mode probability-based online panel.

Here are the June 2021 survey questions and responses used in this analysis. Those for the March 2022 survey may be found here , as well as those for the March 2023 survey .

How many Americans have traveled internationally?

Roughly three-quarters of Americans (76%) have visited at least one other country, including 26% who have been to five or more. About a quarter (23%) have not traveled internationally, though most in this group say they would if they had the opportunity.

Related:  How experience with international travel varies across 24 countries

To analyze how Americans’ travel experiences relate to their attitudes on other questions, we placed people into three categories:

• Globe-trotters have traveled to at least five other countries. About a quarter of the U.S. public (26%) falls into this category.
• Casual travelers have traveled to between one and four other countries. Half of Americans fall into this category.
• Nontravelers have never left the United States. This category includes 23% of Americans.

Compared with Americans, people in many European nations are more likely to have traveled to five or more other countries. For instance, 88% of Swedes have done so.

However, international travel is much less common in many middle-income nations. It is strongly correlated with a nation’s gross domestic product per capita. (For more on international travel and views about global engagement, read “Attitudes on an Interconnected World.” )

Who travels internationally?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, older people are more likely than younger people to have traveled internationally. Americans ages 65 and older are more than twice as likely as adults under 30 to fall into our globe-trotter category (37% vs. 17%).

Income is even more strongly related to travel than age. Two-thirds of upper-income Americans have traveled to at least five countries, compared with 9% of Americans with lower incomes.

Similarly, Americans with a postgraduate degree are far more likely to be globe-trotters than those with a high school education or less (59% vs. 10%).

Residents of suburban and urban areas generally have more international travel experience than people who live in rural areas.

There are no significant partisan differences when it comes to international travel: 26% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents qualify as globe-trotters, as do 28% of Republicans and GOP leaners.

Do travelers know more about the world?

Globe-trotters are especially likely to say they are interested in foreign affairs and follow international news. Casual travelers, in turn, are more likely than nontravelers to do so.

Globe-trotters are also the most knowledgeable about international affairs. In 2022, we conducted an international affairs quiz , asking Americans 12 questions related to international news. On average, globe-trotters got 8.2 of the 12 questions correct, compared with 6.4 for casual travelers and 4.2 for nontravelers.

Is international travel related to views of global engagement?

International travel experience is also linked to Americans’ views about international affairs and their feelings of connection to other people around the world.

When asked which comes closest to their view, 57% of globe-trotters say the U.S. should be active in world affairs, while 43% say the U.S. should pay less attention to problems in other countries and concentrate on problems at home. In contrast, most casual travelers and nontravelers say the U.S. should focus on problems at home.

In all three groups, at least half of respondents say that when the U.S. is making foreign policy, it should take other countries’ interests into account – even if that means making compromises. But globe-trotters are especially likely to hold that view.

Globe-trotters are also particularly likely to say they feel close to people around the world, with 42% saying so. By comparison, 34% of casual travelers and 30% of nontravelers say this.

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Richard Wike is director of global attitudes research at Pew Research Center

Janell Fetterolf is a senior researcher focusing on global attitudes at Pew Research Center

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The Border ‘back door’: why are so many migrants crossing into the State from Northern Ireland?

The perception of a leaky border comes against a backdrop of simmering tensions and mounting political pressure on migration.

A protest at the International Protection Office on Mount Street Lower, Dublin, recently. Photograph: Tom Honan

“Rwanda threat is pouring migrants into Ireland,” screamed the headline on the front page of Friday’s Daily Telegraph.

Leaning on quotes from Tánaiste Micheál Martin, the Tory-leaning British broadsheet picked up on the surprising statistic disclosed by the Irish Government this week that 80 per cent of recent asylum seekers arriving into the State had crossed over the Border from Northern Ireland.

The newspaper jumped on Martin’s linking the influx to the UK government’s controversial policy of threatening to deport migrants to the central African nation of Rwanda, a policy that was passed by Westminster on Tuesday.

“Maybe that’s the impact it was designed to have,” Martin was quoted by the Telegraph as saying.

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[  New laws needed to deal with asylum seekers arriving into State from North, says Taoiseach  ]

The report gave voice to concerns about an open border into the Republic and the impact of a contentious immigration policy in a neighbouring country and the movement of migrants into this one.

“Irish people like a degree of common sense,” Taoiseach Simon Harris told the Oireachtas finance committee on Wednesday. “It is important in the weeks and months ahead to show the people of this country that we have a rules-based migration system.”

Harris was speaking the day after his Minister for Justice Helen McEntee put in a patchy performance at the Oireachtas justice committee, which gave rise to several key moments.

She was unable to give a clear answer to Independent TD Michael McNamara over why asylum seekers had not been returned to countries willing to accept them, and then made the stark assertion that formed the basis of the Telegraph’s story three days later: more than 80 per cent of people seeking asylum in the State are believed to be coming across the Border.

Voters who apparently want to believe that the system is rules-based and common sense may have been left scratching their heads. The idea of a leaky Border back door – or of a system that is not fast enough or efficient in dealing with failed applications – is anathema to the prevailing political winds on immigration.

The Daily Telegraph's front page on Friday, April 26th

McEntee had given an otherwise confident defence of Ireland’s decision to opt in to the EU’s migration and asylum pact over three hours before the committee.

But colleagues at Cabinet now see her moving centre stage as the debate on migration spreads beyond accommodation.

“The politics has moved to Justice and away from [Minister for Integration] Roderic [O’Gorman],” says one Minister, with McEntee now facing the prospect of being the political fulcrum.

With 100,000 refugees and asylum seekers now in State-provided housing, there is a new emphasis on the Border – how people move into the country, and what happens afterwards.

It comes against a backdrop of simmering tensions on migration that boil over with increasing frequency. Pressure on the migration is now unprecedented.

The belief that a huge percentage of people are coming across the Border has been discussed in senior Government circles for some weeks now

The 80 per cent figure is not a hard data point. After McEntee’s assertion, even officials on the British side were grasping around trying to figure out what it was based on.

Asked for comment, the British embassy issued a fairly terse one-line statement, saying there remained a high level of co-operation on migration, asylum and border security between the UK and Ireland.

The figure is in fact an extrapolation from the percentage of people who claim asylum at the International Protection office on Mount Street, Dublin, which has shot up in recent months, rather than at a port of entry. It is a sort of proxy measurement, based on the strong view among officials in the Department of Justice that the overwhelming majority claiming asylum in Mount Street can only be coming across the Border.

Department of Justice figures suggest 5,161 applications had been made to the end of March, meaning more than 4,100 were made at Mount Street, with the overwhelming majority supposedly coming from Northern Ireland. Given the Border is open, one official said: “We will never have accurate numbers.”

The belief that a huge percentage of people are coming across the Border has been discussed in senior Government circles for some weeks now. However, getting a firm answer on what is driving it is difficult.

A Government source working in the area says the assumption is that many who are presenting – many of whom are Nigerians – had some sort of status in Britain, whether a visa or asylum.

The prospect of the UK’s Rwanda policy – where asylum seekers are flown to the east African country while being processed – coming into effect is another.

A third source says officials have speculated that changes to family reunification rules in the UK for lower-skilled migrant workers could be encouraging family members to come here and travel back to Britain.

Another suggestion is simply that with asylum seekers travelling to the UK in huge numbers, a small percentage of that is going to trickle across to Ireland.

Others believe that word-of-mouth effects spread quickly and there may be some theory about Ireland or its system behind the rise, or that bad actors – people smugglers and organised crime gangs – may be engineering passage to Ireland across the Border.

The truth is probably that all of the above, and other factors, form a potent cocktail.

Security sources say – in a view mirrored in political circles – that part of the reason is the effectiveness of Garda operations overseas, checking documents at embarkation at key airports. The feeling is this has forced people away from airports and airlines to an extent, but given the scale of migratory pressures, that flow is merely dispersed elsewhere. This presents a different problem.

Gardaí can inspect trains and buses, but the length of the Border and sheer number of crossing points – an argument emphasised by the Irish side during clashes over Brexit – stack the odds against them.

“The airport piece is actually easier than the North-South piece,” says one security source.

[  Visa-free travel from South Africa may end under immigration plan  ]

Similarly, as pressure begins to mount over the number of people the state actually deports, the gardaí will point to the challenge of actually locating people who have been in the State for many years if, as some expect, the political system begins to demand more action on this front.

The hard political truth, however, is that the Coalition must now be seen to be doing something about it.

“We have a serious systems failure around processing times and upholding the rules as we have them,” says a Cabinet source, criticising the Department of Justice for being “completely hands off”, failing to develop capacity or structures over years and appearing “overwhelmed, ineffective and inefficient”.

Since the elevation of Harris as Taoiseach, Government rhetoric on immigration has shifted away from the perennial problem of accommodation, and towards firmer measures that might reduce the flow into the State – in keeping with an emphasis Harris had when he was in the Department of Justice.

'Common sense': Taoiseach Simon Harris has flagged a change in official attitudes to migration. Photograph: Sam Boal/Collins

The Taoiseach said as much on Thursday, emphasising that the accommodation situation “is an outworking of our migration policy”. This chimes with the “back to basics” and “common sense” threads to Harris’s nascent premiership.

Consistent with his style, there has been a steady drumbeat of policy announcements or flagged interventions. These include further countries being added to the “safe country” list for accelerated processing; new legislation to “fix” the current situation where people coming from the UK cannot be immediately returned due to an Irish High Court ruling that the UK cannot be designated a safe third country; the inclusion of countries (Nigeria, in the first instance) with high numbers of asylum seekers for faster processing alongside safe country applicants; a mooted suspension of visa-free travel from South Africa – something that is said to have been on Harris’s to-do list in Justice but that languished since.

Sources in Government Buildings say to expect more announcements in the coming weeks, a focus on trying new things, on pace and on new deterrent measures.

And yet, for all the urgency and dizzying ambition, room for manoeuvre is limited.

Overhauling something as complex as immigration policy is difficult to do quickly, and Harris has 11 months at most until the next general election.

[  More than 80% of asylum applicants now coming from UK via Northern Ireland, says McEntee  ]

The migratory trends seem tidal, and continues despite changes on the ground. Fewer single men and more families are coming since the State ran out of capacity to house all who arrive, but the overall number is shooting up.

Similarly, the department has made significant strides in improving decision times on applications and appeals – something seen as key to suppressing numbers arriving from certain jurisdictions – but overall the trend line still reaches skyward.

McEntee indicated last week that returns to the UK could resume after a relatively quick legislative fix – but if the Rwanda policy comes into full effect, would the Irish courts stand over sending people back? Could the Government?

The relentless pace of the migration story shows no signs of yielding. Quite the opposite.

On Thursday night, gardaí clashed with protesters in Harris’s Wicklow constituency. Next week the Oireachtas justice committee will embark on expanded hearings into the migration pact. With Dáil and Seanad motions on the opt-in shifted back a week, the Rural Independents have put down a motion objecting to the pact, heralding more news cycles and scrutiny, which the Government, in its defence, says it welcomes.

On Monday, McEntee will meet her British counterpart James Cleverly, with Harris promising closer co-operation between the Garda and the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the two governments. Against the backdrop of a rapidly shifting challenge – and McEntee’s comments – they will have much to discuss.

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Overseas Travel

• Overseas Travel February 2020
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Statistical tables at a glance

• Overseas Trips to and from Ireland by Statistic, Month and Trips
• Overseas Trips to Ireland by Quarter and Area of Residence

February 2020

Trips to ireland increased by 4.1% in february 2020.

There were 615,200 trips to Ireland by overseas residents in February 2020, an increase of 4.1% compared to 12 months earlier. See tables 1 and 2.

Trips by residents of Great Britain increased by 9.3% to 282,100 while trips by residents of European Countries other than Great Britain (Other Europe) increased by 4.3% to 217,800.  Trips by residents of USA and Canada to Ireland decreased by 6.3% to 81,300 while trips to Ireland from Other Areas decreased by 8.1% to 33,900. See tables 1 and 2 .

Irish residents made 559,000 overseas trips in February 2020, an increase of 0.5% compared to one year earlier . See tables 1 and 2.

The total number of trips (Irish residents’ trips overseas plus trips to Ireland) in February 2020 increased by 2.4% to 1,174,200 when compared to twelve months earlier.  See tables 1 and 2.

In the two months to the end of February 2020, the total number of trips to Ireland increased by 2.2% when compared with the same period in 2019.   Irish residents' trips overseas during the same period increased by 1.3%.    See tables 3 and 4.

Central Statistics Office Skehard Road, Cork T12 X00E, Ireland

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Ireland plans to send asylum seekers back to UK under emergency law

Taoiseach wants to reduce arrivals through Northern Ireland amid concern that Sunak’s Rwanda plan is driving people to Ireland

Ireland and Britain are on a collision course over asylum seekers, with Dublin vowing to send arrivals to Ireland back to the UK and London insisting it will not accept any.

A diplomatic row erupted on Sunday after the taoiseach, Simon Harris, asked the justice minister, Helen McEntee, to bring proposals to cabinet next week to allow the return of inadmissible international protection applicants to the UK, amid concern that Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda plan was rerouting asylum seekers from Britain.

“This country will not in any way, shape or form provide a loophole for anybody else’s migration challenges,” Harris said on Sunday. “Other countries can decide how they wish to advance migration. From an Irish perspective, we intend to have a firm rules-based system where rules are in place, where rules are in force, where rules are seen to be enforced.”

The planned legislation follows a claim by Sunak that the Conservative party’s deterrence was working, and after it emerged that 80% of recent asylum seekers to Ireland came via the land border with Northern Ireland.

A UK government source said it would not accept any asylum seekers from Ireland without a wider deal with Brussels. “We won’t accept any asylum returns from the EU via Ireland until the EU accepts that we can send them back to France. We are fully focused on operationalising our Rwanda scheme and will continue working with the French to stop the boats from crossing the channel.”

Ireland had previously designated the UK a “safe third country” to which asylum seekers could be returned but last month the Irish high court ruled that this breached EU law, impeding further returns.

McEntee said she would shore up Ireland’s controls and discuss the return of refugees with James Cleverly and other British officials during a visit to London on Monday.

“That’s why I’m introducing fast processing, that’s why I’ll have emergency legislation at cabinet this week to make sure that we can effectively return people to the UK and that’s why I’ll be meeting with the home secretary to raise these issues on Monday,” she told RTÉ.

In an interview with Sky News on Sunday, Sunak said the Rwanda legislation signed into law last week was already having an impact because people were worried about coming to the UK.

“Illegal migration is a global challenge, which is why you’re seeing multiple countries talk about doing third-country partnerships, looking at novel ways to solve this problem, and I believe will follow where the UK has led.”

Last week, a protest in County Wicklow over proposed refugee accommodation led to violent clashes with police who used shields and sprays and arrested six people. Police said rocks and other missiles were thrown and they recovered an axe.

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There have been protests and arson attacks on proposed refugee accommodation centres and demonstrations outside ministers’ homes, fuelling anxiety over far-right agitation.

At a speech in County Monaghan the taoiseach said warning signs around the abuse of public figures should be taken seriously. “We have had too many warnings and we need to take them seriously before the unthinkable happens.”

Ireland has taken in more than 100,000 refugees, about three-quarters from Ukraine. There is an acute housing crisis that has driven up rents and homelessness and fuelled anti-immigrant sentiment. A riot last November wrecked parts of central Dublin.

• Immigration and asylum
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• Rishi Sunak
• Simon Harris

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