The D Hotel, Drogheda to house international protection applicants

Who says that they are “illegal” immigrants? If illegal, how are they getting in and going through the system to be then accepted and sheltered?

Usual online scaremongering, I expect - I saw comments of the "500 testosterone filled foreigners on the streets" and "lock up your daughters" type on Facebook yesterday.

Fair point

I think I would like to know in advance

Hotels are seen as luxury so if sitting down for breakfast or an evening meal with IPAs after paying for a stay, I would be unhappy, there is a difference between fellow tourists here legally and folks we know nothing about some even without any documentation

I'm sorry that is my stance and I'd be checking with hotels I'd be booking with in future

😂😂😂 did she shout “outta my way, I’m Ukrainian” as she walked past? The shite people will believe amazes me 😂

Is it any different to an Irish welfare scrounger getting accommodated in a hotel? I saw this in The Gresham before, tourists paying exorbitant rates to stay in a room next door to an irish national who has never contributed to the system, but expects a "forever home" from the state.

Or is your issue only with foreigners?

Then you'll be hard pressed to find places in Ireland unless you're in small hotels. Nearly all the large ones have some form of guest staying at the pleasure of the Irish taxpayer.

They should have notice about it on their website or inform guests when booking so they can decide then

Incorrect. Jobseeker's Allowance is cut or eliminated above a threshold, no matter your nationality. You can look it up on state websites.

Also, you are surely aware that new arrivals will only be getting €38.80 per week.

Ukrainian refugees don't get job seekers, they get a maintenance payment that is the same rate as jobseekers. That maintenance payment isn't means tested.

I'm aware thats cut now, only because it is so unsustainable.

Definitely not, but guaranteed income for little to no effort must be fantastic news to any hotelier.

I stayed in the Clayton out in City West after a work do one night. We had maybe 4 rooms booked and we were put in Liffey Valley Suites, which is a separate block. It was obvious that a lot of the rooms had permanent residents, and there were black bags presumably full of possessions, and kids toys, prams and stuff in the corridors. I was in a room that had a door into the next room, and I could hear a whole family in next door. The rooms arent big, so god love them fitting a family and all their belongings into one room.

Pat Kenny show discussing this now. 56% hotel beds gone from Drogeheda. The owners were offered a 2 year contract they could not refuse.

Rooms are for families. Local TDs trying to pedal the dual use hotel mantra, leave the bar and function room open.

A town with not a huge number of tourists with even less now is not a good thing.

I wouldn't say it is little or no effort - but obviously less effort than trying to compete for tourist business, marketing etc; and obviously a better return on investment or else they wouldn't be doing it. Which again is a reflection on the town itself - that the only significant hotel in the centre of the largest town in ireland has a better business as an IPA centre as opposed to a hotel.

Good luck to them in 2 years when the contract is up trying to return to operating as a hotel touting for corporate/wedding/events .. can’t see it ever returning to its previous business model after this

It beggars belief that after all the push-back they are getting from the use of hotels in Dungarvan, Killarney and Roscrea they turn around and do the exact same thing to kill off any tourism potential in Drogheda. I understand these people need places to stay but surely we could spread the cost out over all our industries and not be constantly looking to destroy tourism

People create security, having a direct provision site housing 500 people next door would give me more confidence to buy a place... Personal opinion, I understand not everybody would share it

You do understand how hospital A&E departments triage patients, right?

Course he does, he’s just a wee bit racist and makes up stories to get people on board.

They are taking the easy way out, hotels are much easier to retrofit for refugees. You're correct that they have to go somewhere, dedicated buildings or abandoned hotels instead of "live" ones would be two ways they could accommodate them without an attack on our tourism sector

Yes, I agree it is not good for tourism and at the very least the govt should compensate the local economy.

But even that only goes so far. No point compensating the bar for a fleadh trad set when the bar is empty because there is no accomodation.

Next year there wont be a Fleadh.

There are some hotels used in Dublin for asylum seekers, but the majority are not and I do know some hotels in Dublin that hosted asylum seekers have returned to tourism.

Remember its up to the hotel owners whether they sign the deal with the govt or not to host asylum seekers & the rural hoteilers seem quicker to do this than the Dublin owners.

Most of the retail units have moved out of the centre of the town leaving a lot of derelict buildings that are an eyesore. Traffic management and parking are brutal