Niche tourism opportunities

There are several niche tourism markets in Northern Ireland.

What is niche tourism?

Niche tourism is tourism that is tailored to the needs or interests of a particular audience. This could mean targeting a tourism experience at groups with particular hobbies such as hiking. It could involve providing services to meet the needs of groups such as dog-owners or cyclists. You can take advantage of niche tourism by creating experiences for those with interests such as literature or local food. 

Niche tourism provides a way for your business to stand out from competitors. It allows you to appeal strongly to particular market segments. Niche tourism audiences may be large or small. Consider the value of a niche tourism sector by researching how large the audience is and how much they typically spend.  

Key niche tourism markets in Northern Ireland 

Important local niche tourism markets include:

• activities and nature-based tourism
• golf tourism
• food tourism
• craft tourism
• sustainable tourism
• cultural and heritage tourism
• screen tourism (such as Game of Thrones)
• business tourism

This is not an exhaustive list, but simply gives a 'flavour' of the range of niche markets currently represented in Northern Ireland.