Ireland’s zombie hotels

They are called “zombie hotels,” and they are creating major problems for the sector in Ireland.

The name was coined by economist Peter Bacon to describe more than one hundred hotels built around Ireland during the economic boom known as the “Celtic Tiger,” which lasted from 2001 to 2007.

With overseas visitor numbers achieving double-digit growth over several successive years, employment reaching record levels, and economic growth roaring along, developers saw hotels as a safe bet. Initially they built in key tourism centers like Dublin, Killarney, and Galway, but when sites became scarce, they looked elsewhere and began to build hotels wherever a piece of ground became available. The result was scores of brand-new hotels opening in business parks, along major roads, and occasionally “in the middle of nowhere.”

Source: eTurboNews.com