Three independent economic studies have indicated that Kerry will be one of the counties hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic, because of its dependence on tourism.
One of the studies quantifies the loss to the county's tourism industry this year at €400 million. As Ireland's tourism and hospitality sectors prepare to reopen next week, public and private agencies in Co Kerry have combined to launch Safe Destination Kerry, in a bid to lure visitors back to a county which has had just two confirmed cases of Covid-19 in over a month.
The fightback in Kerry has already begun with a deep clean of public spaces, to have everything ready for visitors when they return and on a bright summer morning in Tralee recently, shoppers had to dodge