{"id":23835,"date":"2020-07-13T14:52:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-13T13:52:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/?p=23835"},"modified":"2021-04-13T14:55:46","modified_gmt":"2021-04-13T13:55:46","slug":"tipperary-businesses-feel-the-pinch-as-castle-closes-due-to-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/index.php\/tipperary-businesses-feel-the-pinch-as-castle-closes-due-to-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Tipperary Businesses Adapt to Castle Closure"},"content":{"rendered":"

After public health advice in March forced most public places to shut their doors, there has been a\u00a0 notable lack of clarity on the reopening of the two main tourist attractions in Cahir.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The reopening of Cahir Castle and Swiss Cottage is yet to be announced which is wreaking havoc on\u00a0 the town with an absence from the usual hordes of tourists which would visit the area.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Over 80 thousand tourists visited the heritage sites managed by the Office of Public Works last year\u00a0 which benefited all caterers and businesses in the town.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With 53 extra tour buses scheduled to arrive into Cahir in 2020 to supply the rising demand to visit\u00a0 the town, their cancellation due to Covid-19 has proved to be a huge loss to the surrounding area.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While the Inch Field in Cahir has seen a rise in visitors over the last few weeks, many locals are\u00a0 worried that the lack of tourists in the town could be detrimental to the town\u2019s economy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Independent Councillor Andy Moloney has cited these closures as unprecedented upset for local\u00a0 businesses hopes owners availed of the supports put in place over the recent months such as the Covid\u00a0 Wage Subsidy Scheme.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite hardship of recent months, he remains optimistic for the future of Cahir\u2019s tourism citing good\u00a0 times ahead should the town hone in on staycations for the foreseeable future.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to hone in on the home market at the moment,\u201d said Andy. \u201cWe are not going to have\u00a0 international tourism but Tipperary alone is a long country being over 110 miles long. There is no\u00a0 reason why we can\u2019t encourage people from the North to come down to the South.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With the Rock of Cashel and Mitchelstown Caves near Cahir\u2019s attractions, Tipperary is an attractive\u00a0 place of destination for those looking for a break within the Republic.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Many activities are currently ongoing such as boating and canoeing in the Suir and walks in the likes\u00a0 of Glengara Woods and the Galtee Mountains which makes Andy believe there is enough to provide\u00a0 an activity packed staycation for any Irish tourists.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

He also hopes the Castle and Swiss cottage could see a reopening in some form to bring more visitors\u00a0 into the area in a new system adapted to all social distancing guidelines, with the intention of the\u00a0 OPW not about profit, but about showcasing what the county has to offer.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBoth Failte Ireland and the OPW are needed now more than ever,\u201d said Andy. \u201cIt\u2019s not about making\u00a0 money, it’s about bringing people to the town.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The staycation incentive would be of large benefit to all the businesses largely dependant on the busy\u00a0 summer months, however Cahir\u2019s businesses have paid homage to the most crucial maintainer to their\u00a0 reopening- the locals.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

John Quirkes Jewellers is fast approaching it\u2019s forty-fifth year open on Castle Street and like all of\u00a0 Tipperary\u2019s businesses the store has adapted quickly to the new normal. Since the shop\u2019s reopening in\u00a0 1976, it has never seen anything like the chaos and uncertainty of the last four months.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

John stated from March onwards is the usual time for tourist trade to start which would lead to\u00a0 hundreds more potential customers passing his door as they made their way uptown after visiting the\u00a0 likes of Cahir Castle or Swiss Cottage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The jeweller has a resilient attitude towards the new normal, with the shop repainted and now decked\u00a0 out with new screens and other safety precautions, as well as sourcing a special sanitizer for watches\u00a0 and jewellery to allow safer repairs.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After closing their doors for three months, their reopening was met with a busy week of fitting over one hundred watch batteries.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe business was massively effected because we did an awful lot of trophies and medals which was\u00a0 wiped out because of sports being called off,\u201d said John.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are lucky that we have a lot of other options as we do crystal giftware, repairs, watches and\u00a0 jewellery which has kept us going and brought people into the shop.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The local authorities and agencies such as the County Council were great supports and John cites\u00a0 diligent staff and loyal local customers in supporting the shop now and for the past forty-five years.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Manager of Cahir House Hotel David Walsh also paid tribute to the local economy for helping the hotel through the restrictive times which plunged trade into uncertainty.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWith a lack of tourists coming into the country it\u2019s all about staycations,\u201d said David, as the hotel has extensive adaptions throughout with precautions taken such as reducing the bar\u2019s capacity, a one-way system and a podium in the lobby.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The hotel stayed open for takeaways during the three-month lockdown and is now reopen for sit-down\u00a0 which has been welcomed by the local custom which has been crucial for the town.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we lost four months trading however the rest of the world did too,\u201d says David. \u201cWe got to get\u00a0 on with it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With a combination of local trade, an emphasis on staycations and a shared resilient attitude as\u00a0 demonstrated by representatives and businessowners, Cahir looks set to make it through to better\u00a0 times.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

An appreciation of the local environment and availing of what Tipperary has to offer will also be an\u00a0 important component in the country\u2019s Covid recovery.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cllr. Andy Moloney says: \u201cThere has been a huge embracing of tourism in the last eight years.\u00a0 People have taken ownership of their town and are proud to be from Cahir. These things take time,\u00a0 and businesses will come back and for now we need the home market.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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After public health advice in March forced most public places to shut their doors, there has been a\u00a0 notable lack of clarity on the reopening of the two main tourist attractions in Cahir.\u00a0\u00a0 The reopening of Cahir Castle and Swiss Cottage is yet to be announced which is wreaking havoc on\u00a0 the town with an […]<\/p>\n

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