Madam, - The skies over Irish tourism are darkening with the wings of chickens coming home to roost.
Consider, first of all, why any tourist in their right mind would come to Ireland for a holiday. The greatest resource we have is the Irish countryside, which is irreplaceable. So what do we do with it? Why, of course, we scatter it with one-off houses that fit into the landscape like a bee fits into a bonnet. This has been going on for decades and has now reached the "tipping point", where the countryside is changing from a beautiful resource into a massive semi-suburban mess that nobody would pay to see.
What else do we scatter on the precious countryside? Litter, of course, and in vast quantities. This continues to worsen and is one of the main visitor complaints.
What would a tourist do on reaching this littered, spoilt landscape? Perhaps go on a walking tour? Not any more. The country walker is no longer welcome, and many landowners are now looking for money in return for the continuance of the ancient privilege. Or perhaps the tourist could go fishing, if there are any fish left to catch. Salmon fishing in particular has been ruined by drift-netting. and it worsens every year.
How would a tourist reach this countryside? By public transport, perchance? Hardly. As has recently been pointed out, no airport in the state has a rail link and some (eg Galway, Knock) have no public transport at all. Any tourist who relies on public transport in this State is in for a tough time, as it is unreliable where it exists at all. But tourists who bring their own cars will find themselves doing a lot more touring than they bargained for, as they ply the poorly signposted highways and byways in a long and frustrating search for their destinations.
Perhaps the tourist might hire a car? Only if they have a deep wallet. Car hire rates are so high largely because of exorbitant insurance costs, which in turn are fed by widespread fraudulent and exaggerated claims and the insouciance of the insurance industry. The disgraceful insurance imbroglio extends to every aspect of the industry. Businesses based on outdoor activities are crippled (if not eliminated) by insurance costs. Accommodation costs are affected by high premiums, as are restaurants, and these costs must be passed on to the tourist in the form of high prices.
Most of the above problems have been known for years, and indeed for decades, with little or no effective action being taken to deal with them. If the tourism industry is in difficulty, it should come as no surprise to anybody. - Yours, etc,
JOHN STAFFORD, Chesterfield Grove, Dublin 15.