Dublin, Ireland

World renowned as a center for entertainment and cultural enlightenment, Dublin, the capital city of the Republic of Ireland, has experienced an economic roller coaster ride in recent years. The city’s tourist industry, an essential element of the Dublin economy, likewise enjoyed soaring highs followed by an alarming bust and, most recently, a slight rebound. During the era of Ireland as the “Celtic Tiger,” from the late 1980s to 2007, the tourist industry of the country overall, and Dublin specifically, experienced tremendous growth and prosperity. Since 2007, however, the global economic downturn has negatively impacted Irish tourism, both in terms of number of arrivals and dollars spent.

While Dublin has fared better than the country as a whole, it too has suffered a near-disastrous decline on ...