Kanye and Kim

KANYE West and Kim Kardashian may have honeymooned in Laois, but there is still some way to go for the county to be recognised as a tourist destination of choice for Irish holiday-goers.

In a recent survey, Laois was only beaten by Leitrim in the number of votes for ‘least appealing county for a holiday’. The survey was conducted by MyHome.ie and more than 1,700 people took part in the survey

Laois fared better in the ‘favourite county to holiday’, trumping half-a-dozen counties, including neighbours Offaly, Carlow, as well as Derry.

Angela Keegan, managing director of MyHome.ie, said: “While every county cannot be a Kerry or Galway, there is still huge scope for counties to develop and market their attractions. Over 40% of respondents believe the recession has led to better holiday home rental and, once domestic visitors arrive, foreign tourists will quickly follow. This year, we have seen a big increase in traffic to our holiday rental section and this bodes well for the tourism sector.”