Trim corners the lucrative summer wedding market

As many hotels around the country feel the pain of the recession, Trim's popularity as a wedding destination has ensured that at least one aspect of the hotel business is booming. The summer months are traditionally the most popular time of year for couples to tie the knot and both Trim Castle Hotel and Knightsbrook Hotel are hosting an average of five weddings each week. During one week in July, Trim Castle Hotel hosted seven weddings and both it and Knightsbrook Hotel are holding approximately 20 weddings per month for the summer months. Trim Castle Hotel hosts approximately 150 weddings each year, Knightsbrook Hotel 130 and its sister hotel, the Castle Arch Hotel, hosts approximately 60 weddings per year. Between the three hotels, Trim is hosting virtually one wedding for each day of the year which, in turn, generates much welcome revenue for the local economy. Apart from the hotels benefiting, there is also spin-off business for local photographers, florists, hairdressers, beauticians and all the other services associated with weddings. Patrick Curran, general manager of Knightsbrook Hotel, Spa and Golf Resort, said they would usually have 130 weddings per year with 20 weddings per month during the busy summer months. As well as local weddings, Knightsbrook also attracts weddings from Dublin, Cavan, Westmeath and Louth. Mr Curran said that weddings average as a two-day stay and often the families involved will have a barbecue the next day. For people coming from abroad to attend weddings, the stay may be even longer. So has the recession affected the number of weddings? Mr Curran said: "Weddings are generally recession-proof. It is great to be in the wedding businesses and there are many hotels looking to get into it. There is a long lead-in time but the fact that Trim is a heritage town with the castle, the abbey and the Yellow Steeple, it lends itself to being a great backdrop for a wedding." Mr Curran said they had worked out that roughly every person who attends a wedding will spend €300 in Trim between accommodation, food and drink. There are 24,000 weddings a year in Ireland and Mr Curran estimates that Meath averages at 800 to 1,000 a year which, he said, is a high percentage given that there is still a very small hotel base in Meath. Another area that is big business for the hotel is conferences. Already this year, Knightsbrook Hotel has hosted the Irish Nurses and Midwives organisation conference and it will hold the Defence Forces Conference and the Little People of Ireland Conference in October. He also said that local business is also very strong between the golf club, leisure centre and spa and that there is great community support for the hotel. Trim Castle Hotel also attracts wedding from all over the country and, again, many weddings turn into two-day events. Manager Noel Comer said they always encourage visitors to have a walk around the town and to visit the historic sites, which means that other local businesses also benefit. The proximity of the castle for photographs is a major draw for this hotel. Mr Comer said that wedding bookings at the hotel lead to spin-offs for other businesses in the locality, such as hairdressers, florists, make-up artists and that the hotel uses all local ingredients in preparing meals. He added that the Trim Castle Hotel hosts approximately 150 weddings per year and, with each wedding having 150 guests on average, this is bringing 25,000 people to the hotel and to the town each year. While May to September are the traditionally popular times for weddings, Mr Comer said October is also popular, as well as March and April. Between Christmas and New Year has also become one of the most sought-after times for weddings. While the numbers of weddings has not fallen due to the recession, Jillian O'Brien of Trim Castle Hotel explained that people are watching their numbers and are cutting down on extras such as favours and the overall spend of their wedding. The hotel has also benefited from various conferences since it opened, though the number of companies hosting conferences in hotels dropped off last year. Among the major conferences held at the hotel was the Association of Municipal Authorities of Ireland Spring Conference. Knightsbrook Hotel is due to host the autumn conference of the same body in September of next year.