Kilkenny hoteliers today welcomed the setting up by Minister Hanafin of an industry-wide group to oversee and drive actions on measures to support tourism in Ireland.
Damian Lynch, chairman of the South East branch of Irish Hotels Federation (IHF ), states that tourism must remain to the fore of Government policy and decision making if Ireland’s largest indigenous industry is to play its full role in the recovery of the Irish economy.
In particular, Mr Lynch welcomed the commitment shown by Minister Hanafin in chairing the Renewal Implementation Group and the Government’s acknowledgement of the importance of maintaining investment in overseas marketing.
Mr Lynch was also pleased with the appointment of John Raftery, chairman of the IHF marketing committee, to the Group.
Commenting on disappointing overseas visitor numbers for May, Mr Lynch stated that the figures from the Central Statistics Office offer little comfort to Kilkenny’s tourism sector and serve to highlight further the severe trading environment that hotels and guesthouses across the county continue to face. With hotel occupancy levels at historic lows, Mr Lynch states that maintaining investment in international marketing must remain a priority into 2011, particularly for the important British market which has collapsed over the last two years.
