Galway city has experienced tourist traffic jams this month, but areas to the west have not been so busy. Small guest houses in Connemara and Mayo had been badly hit by the foot-and-mouth crisis, according to tourism sources in the region.
Domestic and Northern Ireland tourists "saved everyone's bacon" this year, and the promotion following the foot-and-mouth alert appeared to have worked, according to Mr Brian Quinn, chief executive of Mayo Naturally.
The overseas business to Knock Airport has also been performing well, he said. The airport has links with six European cities. "We hope to see more French here in September, because the season isn't over yet."
The activity holiday sector was under threat early on due to the foot-and-mouth restrictions. However, angling has been "fantastic" in Mayo, according to Mr Quinn.
Several guest houses have benefited from late bookings, but unsettled weather has driven many visitors into hotels in urban areas. "Hotels with leisure centres have been doing very well," Mr Martin Bradley, senior tourism officer with Ireland-West, told The Irish Times.
Drink-driving is also a factor, he said. "People want to come park their car and stay put. They are more likely to be able to do that in an urban area." He has not noticed a dramatic drop-off in American tourists.
Mr Fergal McGrath, manager of the Galway Arts Festival, said Americans were noticeable by their absence from the two week event this year. "The traditional music programme is usually thronged with them, but this year they just weren't around."
The festival hasn't conducted an analysis yet, but its sales were slightly below target. This is attributed to a fall-off in overseas business, which represents a quarter of the total. "The Irish market was fairly strong and seems to have compensated," he said.