Billboards in Dublin, Ireland offer free beer to residents who visit Ohio's 'other Dublin'
Dubliners in Ireland can get free booze if they visit the "other Dublin" in Ohio this month.
The visitor's bureau in Dublin, Ohio, is attempting to lure tourists from the original Dublin around St. Patrick's Day with "shameless offers of free beer." Visit Dublin Ohio, a nonprofit funded in part by the city's bed tax, has placed billboards and other advertisements in downtown Dublin, Ireland, promising to pay for free pints.
Irish travelers (over 21) just have to pay for plane tickets, hotels and everything else. Dublin, Ireland residents who bring a valid ID to the visitor's center in Dublin, Ohio, between March 8 and March 18 will receive a $200 Visa gift card intended to pay for their bar tab.
“We’re proud to share a name, and we’d love to share a pint ... or a few,” said Visit Dublin Marketing Director Sara Blatnik. “There are a lot of great cities in the U.S. to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, and we think we’re one of the best. We’re ready to show off our Midwestern hospitality to our other Dublin friends.”
"Plus, you'll be the madman (or madwoman) of your friend group who really flew to America for booze. And that’s priceless," the website for Visit Dublin says.
Dublin, Ohio goes all out for St. Paddy's Day. This year, the town has a Celtic Cocktail Trail, a parade on Saturday, March 9, and a pub crawl on Saturday, March 16, the day before the actual holiday.
Katie Thompson, marketing coordinator for Visit Dublin, said the visitor's bureau normally sticks to advertising their festivals, the city's walkable historic downtown and field of giant cement corn to people who live within driving distance.
But with a new direct flight between Ireland's capital and Cleveland, Visit Dublin hopes this promotion will be the extra push needed to lure some Dubliners across the pond.
A maximum of 25 people can get gift cards. Thompson said the promotion has been getting some attention from Irish news outlets, and she hopes at least one or two people will take them up on their offer.
"I sure hope so," Thompson said. "I think that'd be a fun story for them and for us."
@LairdWrites
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Dublin, Ohio offering visitors from Dublin, Ireland free beer in March
