Leprechauns galore but a lack of tourists

The high paddywhackery content of Killarney's souvenir shops has long been a source of derision by people from other parts of…

The high paddywhackery content of Killarney's souvenir shops has long been a source of derision by people from other parts of the country. Still, the tourists who have made their way to the town this summer can be found escaping regular showers by browsing through shelves of "magic leprechaun towels" and "luck of the Irish" boxer shorts.

Apart from the kitsch on offer - one leprechaun-littered mouse mat reads "When sliding down the banisters of life may the splinters never go the wrong way" - there are shops selling high- quality linen products and a dizzying array of Aran sweaters. Yet, like everywhere else, the roaring trade these retailers are used to is just not materialising.

Mr Sean Moynihan, manager of Quills on Main Street, says business is a lot quieter.

"Trade is around 20 per cent down on other years." he says.

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"Shoppers are definitely not as plentiful as last year; the tourists don't seem to be coming," said one worker in The Country Crafts Shop on East Avenue Road. "The euro has a lot to do with it. Everything has gone stone mad since the euro came".

Street traders are also noticing a downturn. Ms Jean O'Donoghue, who comes to Killarney to sell hair wraps each summer, says she has not noticed the same number of families and children around.

Mr Tony Pritchard sells jewellery on the street. "Irish people don't seem to be coming here for the long weekends as they normally would."

Ms Sheila Morris, of the Killarney Gift Store, says the domestic market is bearing up but that US and continental tourist rates are down. "The rain is putting off some of the locals all right, but you have to be optimistic and we have two good months of the season left."

Most retailers accept that at the end of this season they will not have sold the same amount of stock as they would have during healthier times. Or as Ms Sheila Morris puts it: "There'll be leprechauns everywhere come September."