ALMOST ONE IN eight of all registered tourist beds are being used by the Government to house Ukrainian refugees and other international protection applicants, according to a new report.
Fáilte Ireland has estimated that the tourism revenue at risk from guest accommodation being under contract to the Government could be as high as €1.1 billion.
It calculated that the minimum impact of “displaced bed stock” for the tourism sector is €750 million.
More than 200 international protection applicants who have recently arrived in Ireland have not been provided with accommodation by the State due to a severe shortage of bed spaces.
A new report published by Fáilte Ireland shows that more than 1 in 5 of all tourist beds in three counties – Clare, Meath and Mayo – are being used to provide housing for refugees and asylum seekers.
The proportion is highest in Clare where 33% of all registered tourist accommodation is closed off to foreign and domestic tourists.
It is followed by Meath (26%), Mayo (20%), Wicklow (19%) and Offaly (18%).
Nationally, an average of 12% of all tourist bed stock in registered premises is unavailable for tourists – down 1 percentage point since the summer.
However, Fáilte Ireland said the 12% average figure may understate the “on-the-ground impact.”
“For every Fáilte Ireland registered bed under contract, there is up to one more contracted bed in unregistered tourism relevant sites,” it explained.
The latest figures show that 10% of all tourist beds in Dublin are under contract to the Government.
The share of beds out of use for tourism purposes in the other main cities is 12% in Cork and 8% in Galway, Limerick and Waterford.
The availability of tourist accommodation is least impacted in Kildare where only 2% of tourist bed stock is being used to house refugees and asylum seekers.
Other counties where less than 10% of normal tourist beds are unavailable include Roscommon, Monaghan, Wexford, Kilkenny, Carlow and Tipperary.
The latest figures show the overall number of government-contracted beds in the Republic has risen by 11% in the past six months to 84,497 – an increase of almost 8,400.
The figures are based on data provided by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.
Tourism leaders have expressed concern about the impact on the sector of housing large numbers of individuals fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine and others seeking international protection.
However, only 31 of the additional 8,354 beds placed under contract since the summer are in Fáilte Ireland registered properties.
The report reveals that 35% of all contracted beds are in premises normally providing tourist accommodation with the vast majority in hotels and guesthouses – a total of 29,586 beds.
Fáilte Ireland calculates that the economic loss of the unavailability of beds in registered tourist accommodation alone is €750 million.
However, Fáilte Ireland said up to 28,000 of almost 55,000 contracted beds in non-registered properties are in establishments which could be tourism related such as former hotels, inns, lodges and retreat centres as well as unlisted guesthouses and B&Bs.
It claimed such figures highlighted “the need for and importance of a fully inclusive register of all tourist accommodation stock.”
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