EDITORIAL: Why are Irish hotel rooms so expensive?

I’m sure I’m not the only one wishing I was on holiday during this nice weather, but looking at hotel prices in the country, I can see why many are opting to holiday abroad instead of staying closer to home.

Booking one night in a hotel for a Saturday in Galway could cost you almost three hundred euros for just one room, or even more if you want breakfast included with that.

Trying to understand why hotel prices are so expensive here in Ireland, when compared with other European countries, there is not just one answer.

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High operational costs and staff wages could play a role in the high prices of hotels here in the country but I have a feeling it is more to do with the supply and demand of rooms during the busy holiday season.

Ireland is a popular destination for people to visit on holiday, especially when the weather is usually nicer during the summer months.

This means that a limited amount of hotel accommodation is now almost full during these times of the year and thus prices soar.

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It really is a pity for families who do not have the luxury of travelling on a cheap Ryanair flight to somewhere cheaper, as a holiday away here is seeming less and less attainable by the year.

Some of these prices are justified, while others seem just extortionate. If there was some way to cap prices so that hotels cannot profit greatly from a lack of accommodation during the summer months, it would help solve this issue.

Children growing up in Ireland now will not have the chance to explore the country as much as previous generations thanks to these extortionate prices.

Promoting tourism to our own citizens should be forefront in increasing visitors in Ireland, it could also help tackle climate change in a small way with less travel.