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A hotel in Co Donegal has invited locals to book a room for € 2 per person sharing, in order to circumvent public health regulations in restaurants and allow them to dine indoors.
The Government announced last Thursday that Donegal was moving to Level 3 of the Living with Covid roadmap, which means that restaurants and pubs that serve food can only open for alfresco dining or take-out services.
Hotels can also remain open below this level, but services are limited to residents only.
However, the Beach Hotel, in the town of Downings on the Rosguill Peninsula, has told local residents that if they book a room for € 2 per person, they can dine inside, as they would be considered residents of the place.
The rooms will be reserved for spaces of one hour and 45 minutes, and will not be used by the people who make the reservation.
In a post on its Facebook page on Friday, the hotel said: “Following government guidelines since Saturday, September 26, we are open only to residents and 15 non-residents abroad.”
Why stay in the cold? Indulge yourself Dine indoors, rent one of our rooms, and take advantage of our food and beverage services. Our rooms are currently available to rent for an allotted time. € 2 per person sharing the whole weekend. Don’t miss out on this unique offer, when they go, they go. “
The hotel did not respond to requests for comment from The Irish Times at the time of publication.
However, in a comment in response to the reaction of local residents below the post, the hotel said that they are not required to close according to the guidelines and that the offer was “aimed at local people in the area.”
“No one will use the rooms. It is simply a method of allowing people to become residents for a maximum period of 1 hour and 45 minutes so that they can take advantage of our food and beverage services, ”the comment said.
“The Government allows residents to be served inside and 15 non-residents outside.”
The hotel added that it will be closed from Monday “until further notice.”
“This was simply a way to recoup our costs from the stock ordered for the full house of residents who canceled on Friday night. The usual Covid-19 controlled social distancing restrictions apply. “
Local councilman John O’Donnell said he “thought it was a joke” when he first heard that the hotel was executing the offer.
“I can see the reasoning behind this, people want to keep businesses open for the next three weeks. I agree with the outdoors. There are other places in Donegal that have great outdoor space, but I’m not familiar with the idea of € 2, ”O’Donnell said.
“It is not fair to other businesses. I would welcome the outdoor base only. I wouldn’t be in favor of a crowded residents bar. There are public health rules for a reason. We have to do everything possible to stop the pandemic. The numbers are not increasing for no reason. “
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