DUBLIN’S FAMOUS Christmas lights will return to the Irish capital this year.
The announcement comes as welcome news amid concern in some quarters that the Festive Season could be curtailed or even cancelled altogether because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Last year DublinTown, the organisation representing 2,500 businesses in the Irish capital, courted controversy by opting not to include the traditional message of ‘Nollaig Shona Duit’ along Wicklow Street.
This year, however, the lights are back, message and all, as retailers look to make the most of families staying at home over the coming months by offering their usual festive wares extra early.
In fact, DublinTown is encouraging visitors to start Christmas shopping as soon as possible as “increased on-street and in-store space management will be required to meet physical distancing needs” during December.
While the brand-new Christmas lights display will be turned on this coming November, there won’t be any ceremony or celebrity on hand to lift the switch.
With organisers eager to avoid drawing any kind of crowd because of Covid-19, the lights will instead be switched on with little to no fanfare.
There won’t be quite as many lights as normal either, with DublinTown planning to erect lights on 26 different streets including Grafton and Henry/Mary.
The iconic ‘Nollaig Shona Duit’ message will also be moved from Wicklow Street to Grafton Street as part of the changes designed to ensure the event is safe and effectively social distanced.
A DublinTown spokesperson said: “Shopping and socialising in the city centre of Dublin under the iconic Christmas lights is a key Christmas memory for many. Stores have been gearing up for Christmas and are now ready to meet customer requests.”
In the meantime, visitors are being encouraged to visit city centre stores and buy locally in order to help Irish jobs and businesses get through a difficult year of trading.
