Sir, - As a Dutch diplomat married to a Dublin girl, I have known Ireland since 1968. I truly love your country. We spend our annual holidays and Christmas there and are the proud owners of a farmhouse in the south-west. Two of our children studied at Trinity College and now live and work in Dublin.
Three aspects of life in Ireland, affecting tourism, deserve consideration, I think:
1. The Cost of living: Each time we visit, the cost of virtually everything baffles us - food, health products, cosmetics, books, magazines, utility charges (ESB, Telecom with 21 per cent VAT), alcohol in or out of pubs, restaurants, car rentals, all are at least 30 per cent higher than in Holland. There are precious few bargains to be had. Petrol is still cheaper, but don't tell your Minister for Finance who already has imposed incredibly high taxes on cars - and that in a country with insufficient public transport in rural areas.
Why everything is so much more expensive, I don't know, but I guess it is lack of competition plus a few middlemen cashing in very high margins. The fact that Ireland, being a small country, has to import a lot, does not explain the difference because there are no duties in the EU and transport costs are at an all-time low.
A recent article in the New York Herald Tribune calls Britain the "rip-off country", but incorrectly does not mention Ireland. I have heard many tourists (and Irish) complain, so I am not alone here. Ireland now has a Minister for Consumer Affairs (very good!) and he ought to do more than ordering pubs to publicise their prices. High prices are bad for tourism.
2. The roads: Irish roads do not reflect the booming economy. They are bad to appalling. the Dublin-Cork highway is pathetic and highly dangerous. In the rural areas roads are worse: poorly maintained, often using substandard materials, full of holes, narrowing/widening without reason. In view of the high casualty rate the Government has (correctly) started campaigns against drink and speeding - in other words the Government blames the drivers. But Irish drivers are not bad drivers. The fault now lies mainly with the Government, which fails to give good roads to its people. Roads in Co Cork are worse than 20 years ago, because huge trucks are allowed to damage them. Highways in Mexico, not a rich country, are incomparably better than Irish highways! Other countries than Ireland have the same or worse climate conditions. Maybe Ireland needs to import engineers because even reasonable roads often have dips and "waves" in boggy parts. It is possible to eliminate these. Bad roads are bad for tourism.
3. Aer Lingus: My wife having been a check hostess in the 1960s, we want to be proud of this airline. But we are no longer pleased. Old planes with insufficient space, poor service, horrible snacks, unexplained delays, less than friendly hostesses, no newspapers. However, the fares are high to excessive. On Ryanair one doesn't expect much service, but with Aer Lingus, ever more demanding tourists do - they are not getting it, though. This is not good for tourism.
In my view (again my intentions are the best) the Irish government/Bord Failte should address and improve the three problem areas I discussed above. They are not good for Ireland nor for incoming tourism. - Yours, etc.,
Paul Lagendijk, Dutch Ambassador to Mexico, Avenida Vasco de Quiroga, Colonia Santa Fe, Mexico.