An Irish market town has been branded a tourist trap by a disgrunted American who launched a scathing attack on the town.

Killarney, located on the shores of Lough Leane in southwest Ireland’s County Kerry, is meant to be one of the country’s most beautiful heritage and tourist spots.

Killarney National Park often wows visitors with it’s 26,000 acres of lakes, mountains, waterfalls, woodlands and Ireland’s highest mountain range, MacGillycuddy’s Reeks. Whislt the fish restaurants and family-friendly bistros offers travellers a range of dining options.

However, Rick Steves, a top US writer thinks otherwise after he slated Killarney in a feature published in the USA Today newspaper.

The Californian writer branded the town as one of Europe’s top ten tourist traps. Mr Steves said those who had the “misfortune” to spend a night in Killarney faced “a sprawling line of green Holiday Inns and outlet malls littered with pushy shoppers looking for plastic shamrocks”.

He added: “This is a place where most tourists wear nametags — a traffic jam of tour buses. If you have the misfortune to spend the night in Killarney, you’ll understand what I mean.”

Tourism is the largest industry in Killarney, generating around €410 million every year. Approximately, 1.1 million tourists visit the town every year, with foreign tourists making up over 60% of all visitors.

In 2023, almost 1.5 million (1,450,585) people visited Killarney National Park, an increase of almost 30,000 on 2022.

In response a Kerry county has leapt to the defence of Killarney, the Kingdom’s second largest town.

Speaking to Extra.ie, Cllr Brendan Cronin said he hasn’t seen the article in full and “don’t know this man from Adam”.

Cllr Cronin said: ‘I suppose, to be genuine about it, all one has to do is come into Killarney and look at the hundreds of thousands that come there every year, that in itself contradicts what he is saying.”

While Councillor Martin Grady pointed out that Killarney National Park, the Abbey, Muckross Park and Torc Waterfall were just some of the stunning landmarks on offer in the town.