Celebrations Cancelled by Covid

As the country moves into Level 5 restrictions, attention is turning towards the Christmas period, and what form celebrations will take in the shadow of COVID-19.  

Many events that have become staples of the holiday period have been affected by the pandemic. 

The Wild Lights exhibition at Dublin Zoo and the New Year’s Eve Festival are two very popular events that have been cancelled over public safety concerns. 

“We are sad to announce that due to the current environment, Wild Lights will not take place at Dublin Zoo this year. We truly hope that Wild Lights will be back in 2021, bigger and better than ever,” the organisers said in a statement. 

Instead, Dublin Zoo will continue to improve the Outdoor Safari Trail to ensure visitors will still be able to enjoy the winter months. 

The New Year’s festival which takes place throughout Dublin City has also fallen victim to COVID-19 restrictions. In 2019, the event attracted around 110,000 people.  

Fáilte Ireland and Dublin City Council have decided to cancel this year’s celebrations and explained that it “would not be appropriate to encourage people to congregate in these numbers.” 

The tourism industry in Ireland which, according to the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation, is worth over €9 billion to the Irish economy, has been severely affected by restrictions introduced to curb the spread of the virus.