Jam it up

THE TOURIST season has started with an optimistic bang. The fabulous weather over Easter helped us all shake off the winter lethargy. Hotels, restaurants and B&Bs lifted the dust sheets, did their annual spring clean and cranked themselves into action for the season.

For those in the hospitality industry, particularly in seasonal resorts, Easter is always a shock to the system, many places go from being either closed or very quiet to being packed to capacity overnight. For just a few days, everyone works from dawn to dusk and then suddenly its quiet again, with a gradual trickle of guests until the season gathers momentum again in May or June.

Overall, the predictions for this season are more promising than last year but the industry must carefully consider the statistic that Ireland is the second most expensive country in the eurozone to live in, after Finland. In the end, all anyone is asking for is value for money they just want to feel they haven't been ripped off.