Is the Irish pub dying out in Ireland? Pub owners point to major slump in sales

Let's have a "Save the Pubs" party this Saturday!! Sounds like fun, right ??? See you there !!!!!

easy,its a RIP OFF,BY THE BREWERIES AND GOVERNMENTS.NOT WORTH ENDING UP BROKE AND HAVING SOME COP STICK A BREATHALYSER INTO YOU.MAKE YOUR OWN OR DRINK AT HOME.SCREW THEM.

Less just might be better if people can ever afford it again.

Pub in Ireland have been in decline for at least 12 years now. First there was the Millennium price scare combined with American cultural influence which saw the growth of home drinking. Then the smoking ban combined with high prices charged by publicans trying to recoup the enormous cost of buying the pub in the first place. By 2000 people had already begun their evening drinking later and later. Nowadays the previously unimaginable sight of closed pubs in densely populated parts of Dublin is more and more common. As the customers dwindle the pub has to spend more and more trying to get people in: live bands, food, and special smoking areas. Go by any off licence on the weekend and they have more people behind the counter than the pub beside it with three times the floor area. Why pay €6 for a glass of wine when you can buy a bottle for €8? Five pint bottles of pure German beer can be bought for less than €10. The same 5 pints in a pub costs €30 and more when you get into the city centre. If you don't smoke you might enjoy the pubs smoke free atmosphere since the ban came in. To get there you will most of the time have to pass by the Irish ignoramus smoking in the doorway.

mairint; Yes indeed "The Olde Castle Bar" In Donegal town. My cousin lives around the corner from The Diamond in Donegal Town. My Canadian wife loved the place. I hope it stays for ever. One of the best pints outside of Dublin.

Carol - I and a great many others have no wish to go back to disgusting smoke filled pubs where we had to literally stand outside in order to breathe. It was appalling and bringing that back would in no way improve anything. Now everyone can enjoy the pub.

It's a shame. I liked going to the pubs in Ireland. The ones where lively sessions happen when the local musicians play spontaneously. Fantastic! I hope some of them are still around.

The Irish pub is on the way out in Australia too.. Seems that all a pub owner has to do to cash in on this gimmick is to 'decorate' the joint with rusty buckets, ould black and white photos and play 'My ould Irish granny' over the loudspeaker. They're a filthy bloody disgrace. And the prices are not lower either!

Repeal the smoking ban. It's that simple.

This past spring I visited several pubs in the west of Ireland. Most of the patrons were tourists and most of the bar staff was non-Irish. Many pubs closed before 10:00 PM. All my Irish relatives stay at home and rarely go to pubs. Fifteen years ago, it was the complete opposite. I would have to say that the title of this article is an understatement, if there ever was one.

dublin is a pure rip off for beer

Mea Culpa, the Hide Out sold and was refurbished and reopened under a new name,the Cornerhouse Bar and Lounge. Great news for Letterkennys oldest pub.

I believe that the Hide Out in oldtown part of Letterkenny is still up for sale. If someone would like an almost 200 year old pub, this one is a deal and I would love to see it saved. Met Danny Morrison there in 1985.

Sparklet, what part of England are you referring to? Certainly is not my experience. Your £7 barely covers a pint, let alone a meal. I would love to know where you can eat 2 for £7??? Certainly not in Durham or anywhere else in the North.

Surely there were far too many pubs in Ireland. Until recently, it was not unusual for a village with a population of less than 1000 people to have twenty or more pubs and bars. Many a family suffered the consequences of excessive drinking by feckless fathers. Fewer pubs can only be good for modern Ireland.