Failte Ireland launch new plan

Failte Ireland are planning a drive to get more Irish people to holiday at home this year. The word Failte means welcome and Failte Ireland are our tourism body. Tourism is one of our main sources of income and this recession has hit the industry as you would expect. Trying to encourage our own people to holiday at home is certainly a good idea. I know many Irish people who have never really had an Irish holiday and this is a little sad to say the least. The lure of the sun is our big problem and Irish people see a holiday as an opportunity to go somewhere where they are guaranteed sunshine and where they can get a nice suntan. There is an old joke that the Irish come in two colours....white and pink. We are not that bad but i can understand where they are coming from. I am one of the lucky ones who has had the opportunity to travel the length and breadth of this country and experienced all that Ireland has to offer. What a wonderful country we have here and there are so many advantages to be had by holidaying at home. At this point in time many hotels are offering great rates in the off-season and there is great comfort in being able to eat your own food, drink water that is clean and safe, and not having to suffer from all the bugs and mosquitoes etc that you have to put up with in some of these foreign lands. The people here also speak your own language. You do not need any vaccinations or anything like that to holiday at home and of course you do not have to go through the discomfort of having to spend hours at airports not knowing if you are going to be able to catch a flight at all. No matter where you are in Ireland you are only a few hours away from home and that is nice. I can honestly say with my hand on my heart that i have never toured with anybody who did not end up loving this country. It really does get to you....even if you do not have a drop of Irish blood in your veins. Come and see for yourself. If you want the extra comfort just come chauffeurdrive with me.....i would love to have the pleasure of showing you my country.