Mark Bowe (left) Donal O’Meara and Danny Bowe from the Castlerosse Hotel, Killarney pictured at the IHF conference in the Lyrath Estate, Kilkenny.
Picture: Don MacMonagle
KILLARNEY hotel and guesthouse owners are reporting a good start to the year according to an industry survey undertaken by the Irish Hotels Federation in advance of its annual conference which opened this Monday in the Lyrath Estate Hotel, Kilkenny.
Most say business levels are up compared to this time last year and they are also seeing an increase in advance bookings for the year.
However, while hoteliers nationally have a positive outlook for their business in 2017, on the back of a record year for tourism in 2016, their optimism is tinged with caution. Half of the hoteliers surveyed say that the fall in sterling has already had a direct effect on their business.
Nationally, almost three quarters of hoteliers are seeing an even better start to this year than last. The strong growth in business levels from the US looks set to continue in 2017 with almost half of hotels and guesthouses reporting an increase from this important market.
Visitor numbers from German and French markets are proving buoyant too and hoteliers are also upbeat for the remainder of the year as advance bookings from these markets at this point seem robust. Forty four percent are reporting an increase in bookings from the US.
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