Killarney hopes to woo thousands to its streets this summer. For motor sport enthusiasts, there's the Rally of the Lakes 2003 in early May, while in June there's Killarney SummerFest 2003, which is expected to attract more than 120,000 people.
There were double helpings of speeches, canapés and balloons when John O'Donoghue, the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, officially launched the details and programmes for both events.
He stepped nimbly from one room to the next at Dublin's Conrad Hotel to launch the events one after the other.
"It's Ireland's premier tourist resort," said Patrick O'Donoghue, chairman of Summerfest and managing director of the Gleneagle Hotel.
He pointed to Killarney's gold medal in the Tidy Towns competition last year in defence of the town's oft-cited negative image.
Sheila Casey, mayor of Killarney, also believes "the message is out there that Killarney has a lot to offer . . . The town has come on by leaps and bounds".
All 20,000 tourist beds in the town are expected to be booked during peak times, with people staying as far away as Kenmare and Killorglin at the height of the celebrations.
The streets of Killarney, which has a population of 12,500, will be closed for the week of the festival, says Marie Quinlivan, chief executive of Killarney Summerfest.
Concerts by David Gray, The Cranberries, Counting Crows and Teddy Bears Picnic will be among the highlights of the week, which begins on Thursday, June 26th.