Profits at the Irish arm of the world’s largest online travel platform, TripAdvisor, last year increased by 8.5pc to €533,069.

According to new accounts, accumulated profits at TripAdvisor Ireland Ltd last year increased to €1.62m from €1.09m.

The profits of €533,069 follow profits of €491,297 in 2017.

Numbers employed by the firm increased to 72 from 65.

The cash pile at the company last year increased to €2.83m from €1.8m.

Shareholder funds at the company went up to €3.97m from €3.12m. 

The firm’s office lease costs here last year increased to €559,960 from €412,022, while non-cash depreciation costs totalled €213,723.

Separate accounts for the Dublin-based Lonely Planet Global Ltd show that operating profits declined by 24pc to €958,000 last year.

This followed revenues at the firm declining by 3.5pc to €36m from €37.4m.

Former editor of the ‘Sunday Tribune’ Nóirín Hegarty is a director of the company, and Ms Hegarty has the role of vice-president of digital content at Lonely Planet.

The accounts show that a tripling in interest costs to €1.77m last year resulted in the firm recording a pre-tax loss of €821,000.

The interest costs included €1.4m in foreign exchange losses. In 2016, the Dublin-based firm assumed the role of master publisher for Lonely Planet in the ‘rest of the world’ market. The firm paid a dividend of €2.83m last year. Staff numbers increased from 17 to 23, and staff costs increased to €1.19m.

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