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Ryanair boosts West Coast flights

Ryanair will launch further services at Shannon and Knock in coming weeks, both airports confirmed on Tuesday. ryanair0121

The airline plans to double current Shannon routes to 16 from Monday, July 19th, the day on which the Government plans to end its international travel ban following 16 months of tight Covid-19 restrictions.

Ryanair also intends flying from Knock to Milan Bergamo this winter, adding it to British and Spanish cities served from the western airport.

The airline restarted flights to Spain, UK and eastern Europe from Shannon Airport last month, and is now serving eight destinations.

State-owned Shannon Group confirmed that Ryanair would add a further eight services to popular sunspots in Spain and Portugal from July 19th to the end of October.

In all, 72 flights a week will operate through Shannon up to the end of October, while Ryanair also intends beginning a winter service to Turin, Italy, in December.

Dublin is 'Coffee Obsessed'

Dublin is the second-most “coffee-obsessed” capital city in the world according to a new survey. coffee0219

There are 181 coffee shops per 100,000 people in Dublin, serving coffee with an average rating of 3.91 out of 5, according to research carried out by BrewSmartly, which researches and sells coffee products online.

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The Dutch capital Amsterdam took the top spot, with 116 coffee shops per 100,000 population, serving coffee with an average rating of 4.03.

In joint-third place was Bern in Switzerland and Paris in France. However, their scores were made up rather differently. In Bern, there are 54 coffee shops per 100,000, but 45 in Paris.

Titanic Treble at Hotel Awards

Titanic Hotel, Belfast’s most historic hotel, is celebrating a treble of wins at the Irish Hotel Awards 2021. titaniuctrio

Pictured are Adrian McNally, Shane Smith and chef Nigel Mannion

Speaking of the wins, Adrian McNally, General Manager, Titanic Hotel Belfast, said:

“The combination of winning the regional award for Hotel Restaurant of the Year in Ulster as well as the overall Irish award for Hotel Restaurant of the Year in Ireland two years in a row is really special for the hotel as I’m only too aware of our competition in hotels throughout Ireland.

General Manager Adrian McNally says; “These awards are testament to the dedication and commitment of our Executive Chef Nigel Mannion and his team of chefs and kitchen staff at the hotel’s Wolff Grill restaurant, in consistently preparing outstanding food and delivering an exceptional standard of service.”

Insurance costs hit aqua parks

A water parkon Lough Dearg, Co. Tipperary, fears it will be unable to reopen due to difficulty in renewing public liability insurance amid escalating premiums. waterpark

And in West Cork, the cost of insuring Goleen Harbour’s outdoor activities had already risen from €5,500 to €7,500 in two years in 2018 when owner Matt Mills got his first five figure quote from Leisure Insure, the UK company that provided his liability cover.

Aqua Splash water park in Lough Derg has had to close as its UK-based insurer will not renew its coverage. The water park has faced a number of issues regarding securing insurance since its opening in 2016. Its original insurer stopped insuring the water park a number of years ago after a claim arose.

The water park then had to switch to a UK-based insurer which led to the insurance premium “going up probably five times the price, six times the price” that it had been previously. “After that year it just shot up through the roof,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

“They told me the premium was going up to €10,000, but then they pulled out of Ireland altogether,” he said.

Cabinet Approves Re-Opening Plan

The Cabinet has approved legislation for the resumption of indoor hospitality, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar annpounced..

He said it will allow people with evidence of vaccination or immunity to enter cafes, restaurants, pubs and others licensed venues.

However, accompanying minors will be allowed to attend these venues with their parents or guardians and social distancing measures will still apply as a result.

Mr Varadkar said he knows this is not the ideal way to reopen, but that the alternative was to wait until September, when all adults are vaccinated, but he said even then it may not have happened as all teenagers may not be vaccinated by then.

He said the bill contains provisions to extend hospitality to those who pass a PCR or antigen testing but this will require further scientific advice.

He said there are also provisions to extend it to other indoor venues like bingo halls and bowling allies in the future.

The measures also allow unvaccinated staff to eat a meal before or after work in the premises.

Mr Varadkar said the Government is aiming for the laws to come into force next week, but no later than 26 July, and that he believes there will be a high degree of compliance with the new regulations.