MILLENNIUM revellers from across the country and beyond look set to descend on the Ribble Valley in their droves.

Tourists intent on seeing in the Year 2000 at the Centre of the Kingdom are snapping up accommodation, Clitheroe tourism officer Mary Parker said.

But many hoteliers have revealed they will be closing on Millennium Eve because employing staff will cost them a fortune.

A glossy "Where to Stay" guide for visitors to the Ribble Valley is being distributed to tourist offices throughout the country.

Requests for the guide from individuals are "coming in thick and fast" at the Clitheroe tourist information centre," Mary said.

Twenty thousand copies of the 32-page brochure have gone out to tourist offices in preparation for exhibitions and promotion events throughout the year.

And Mary said 1999 promised to be a bumper year for tourism in the Ribble Valley thanks to the millennium.

"We have already sent out 1,000 copies of the guide and requests for it are coming in thick and fast, quite a few of them from abroad. Hopefully we will have a good year, particularly if we get the weather.

"This Christmas and New Year all self-catering accommodation in the area was sold out and we have already taken quite a few bookings for the millennium. It looks like the Centre of the Kingdom might be the place to be in the year 2000," she said.

The Ribble Valley Tourism Association is to meet later in January to decide how to best promote the area's millennium potential.

But many local hoteliers will be shutting their doors because of the cost of employing staff.

Lilian Hargreaves, proprietor of the Mytton Fold Farm Hotel, Langho, said she would not be opening on Millennium Eve, "in order to give her hard-working staff a well-earned break."

"We received lots of inquiries from people interested in staying in the Ribble Valley for the millennium and gave it a great deal of thought, but have decided to close. It's the millennium for our staff, too. They work very hard and deserve to be able to celebrate. The cost of employing relief staff would have been huge," she said.

The Moorcock Inn, Waddington Fell, on the way to the Centre of the Kingdom location at Dunsop Bridge, will also be closing.

A spokesman said: "After a lot of discussion, we decided to close. Getting staff would have been a tremendous problem."

Local residents can arrange for copies of the Ribble Valley "Where to Stay" guide, which includes details of self-catering accommodation and guest houses, to be sent to relatives or friends in another part of the country or abroad.

Further details are available from the Clitheroe tourist information office on 01200 425566.

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