No room at the inn: Killarney battles to keep tourist crown

Hoteliers are hoping that the hundreds of American tourists staying in higher-end accommodation this year will be impressed.

In reality, away from the glitz and the glamour, Killarney is in for a bumpy ride this summer season. More than a third (36%) of all Fáilte Ireland tourism registered beds in Kerry are now contracted by the Government to house refugees. This means thousands of beds previously used to cater for domestic, and overseas visitors are not available this year.

Killarney is not alone in this. As of April 4, 35% of all beds across the regions in Ireland were unavailable to the tourism economy (this figure drops to 28% when Dublin is included). In its recent briefing, ITIC, the tourist industry representative body, said accommodation supply shortages are ‘biting’. It warned that the shortage was leading to frustrated demand and price inflation in available accommodation.

In Killarney, the pressure for beds is particularly acute. According to CSO statistics from June, there are 2,302 Ukrainians in the Killarney electoral area — the highest numbers in any district in the country. Hostels, hotels, guesthouses have all signed up for lucrative long-term Government contracts. The adjoining Kenmare/Killorglin area — a tourist hinterland for Killarney — has 2,244 Ukrainians.

Taken together, this means just short of 4,600 tourist beds have been removed from Kerry’s key tourist accommodation sector, with serious knock-on effects for restaurants, bars, and activity-based tourism

The removal of so much accommodation is not something tourist bosses, particularly hotel bosses, in Killarney are keen to discuss, preferring as always to stress the positive.

However, the shortage means high demand, which means available accommodation can command high prices. A quick search earlier this week of the popular tourist accommodation website Booking.com for Friday, June 30, to Sunday, July 2, for two people shows limited availability.

Hotel Killarney, which has reverted from being a Ukrainian/ direct provision centre, is charging €488; The Lake Hotel is €610. On the Woodlawn/Muckross Rd, it is €383 for Earl’s Court House, and in Scott’s Hotel in the town centre it is €470. The Aghadoe Heights will set you back €889.00. However, while guesthouses and hotels are able to command high prices, downstream businesses restaurants, bike hire, cafes and shops, jarveys are all reporting a mixed season.

Hundreds of unregistered beds have also been taken out of the self-catering sector in Killarney amid a determined and controversial crackdown by Kerry County Council on short-term lets. However, the Irish Self-Catering Federation (ISCF) says that, as a result, the message went out that Ireland was closed,

The British market “has not shown up” and the German market has all but collapsed with cancellations flooding in. Some is due to air access issues — while Irish tourists who book late are scarce so far, according to Máire Ní Mhurchú, chairwoman of the ISCF, which represents about half the 18,000 self-catering properties in the country.

She says the cost of car hire is also an issue. Americans who have booked are cancelling because of the cost and the availability of larger cars to hire. Americans like to combine a break in self-catering with a few days in the capital but the cost of hotels is “prohibitive”.

“Crumbling” is the word Ms Ní Mhurchu uses to describe rural tourism dependent on the self-catering sector this year.

“Dublin does not seem to understand the importance of tourism to rural Ireland,” she said.

On Killarney’s High St Paul Treyvaud, chef of Treyvaud’s restaurant, says the impact of so much accommodation contracted to the Government in and around Killarney is being keenly felt since early this year.

“Hotels full of refugees are doing well,” he says. “Other hotels are doing well because of the basic law of supply and demand. But business on the street are down 40% because accommodation is down 40%. Yes, the American market has been strong, but only in the 60% of accommodation that is available.”

His 20-year-old restaurant has been lucky because it is well established but business even for him has been “patchy” in June.

Mayo GAA fans who wanted to come to Killarney for their side’s game against Kerry recently and eat in his restaurant told him they could not because they were unable to find anywhere to stay.

“The hotels are full. But the spin off businesses are suffering,” Treyvaud says.

Killarney’s hop-on, hop-off double-decker Big Red Bus takes tourists from the town to Ross Castle, Muckross Abbey and other beauty spots. June figures are about the same as last year, operator Pat Moynihan says.

Last Saturday morning the bus, which has eight runs a day, had tourists from all over the world — Americans, Romanians, Italians, and Irish, as well as Ukrainians. Pat describes the business as “a little erratic” this year.

“But June can be up and down,” Pat says.

There is plenty to do in Killarney so the bus ride is not the only activity, he points out.

One town centre bike hire operator admits privately that he is “down 50%” on bike hire on last year.

“The middle of the road is missing,” he says of this year’s season. There is a change in clientele and, with accommodation scarce and at a premium, families are finding Killarney too dear, he said.

Jarveys also think the shortage of accommodation and the prices being charged are affecting the market. Speaking with town and Muckross jarveys, they all say the same thing: Private clients are not around. Tour buses and hen parties at the weekends are keeping them going. While there are American and Australian visitors year, jarvey operators say other than those, it is a quiet season for them with business down, particularly midweek.

In addition to a shortage of tourist beds, Killarney is also grappling with a staffing crisis.

An expected labour pool bonanza with so many Ukrainian refugees arriving in the town has not materialised. While some are working, this is often in the premises in which they are residing, recruitment agency Red Chair Recruitment says. Many others have family commitments and cannot work.

With pages of jobs on its website, positions are often filled within hours of applicants approaching them, says Neil Buckley, head of hospitality recruitment for the firm.

“We are seeing an unprecedented demand across all levels ranging from chef to senior management, and low entry levels.”

Already lots of employers in the sector are ‘future-proofing’ existing staff with promotions, bonuses, and personal development to try and hold onto them. Mr Buckley says the pandemic saw a lot of people leave the tourist industry and migrate to retail.

Small businesses such as a nearby pizzeria are having to stagger opening hours, close at lunch, and opening only for dinner to cut costs but also to conserve staff, Mr Buckley says. There are several empty shop and cafe units now in Killarney, which is also unprecedented.

Fred McDonogh, director of Red Chair, says of the demand in Killarney right now: “If a Boeing 747 full of hospitality staff landed at Farranfore, we would have a job for each one.”

Killarney Chamber of Commerce and Tourism shies away from discussing the accommodation shortage and is keen to highlight the positives.

“Killarney is wholeheartedly and enthusiastically embracing its first full season since the covid pandemic and it’s great to witness the energy and sense of purpose evident in the town at this time of the year,’ says chamber president Johnny McGuire.

Addressing a members’ lunch in the Killarney Plaza Hotel, last week he remarked on the outstanding success of the new outdoor dining experience at Kenmare Place.

Mr McGuire is the owner of Bricín restaurant and craft shop on High St. He says food- and craft-wise, his restaurant is experiencing 2a bumper year” and there is “a very positive feeling”.