Dublin (Reuters) – Ireland will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day next month with a traditional parade through the streets of Dublin after a three – year hiatus following the Covid-19 epidemic.

Organizers hope the celebrations on March 17, which celebrate the patron saint of Ireland, will revive the tourist sector that has been ravaged by a series of restrictions.

St. Patrick’s Day, a popular holiday in Ireland, was one of the first major events to be canceled in 2020, shortly before the country’s strict lockdown.

Last month, after a successful booster vaccination campaign, Ireland lifted almost all COVID-19 restrictions. The remaining control measures, such as wearing a mask, should be withdrawn by the end of this month.

“Our National Day sends a loud and clear message that Ireland is once again open for tourism, and we would like to extend a green carpet to welcome visitors here and abroad,” Tourism Catherine Martin said in a statement. .

The main parade planned for Dublin, attracting 500,000 spectators from around the world each year before the Pandemic, was usually the start of the tourist season in the Irish capital. The parade will be the focal point of the five-day festival this year.

As throughout the European Union, a COVID-19 vaccination certificate is still required to enter Ireland.

Orla Carroll, director of product development at the Flight Ireland Tourism Authority, said the St. Patrick’s Day Festival would be crucial to the recovery of the tourism sector.

Approximately 10% of Ireland’s workforce is employed in tourism-related sectors, ranking the country second only to Spain and Iceland among OECD members.

(Report by Padreik Halpin, French edition by Khadeeja Adda-Resig, edited by Blandin Henolt)