Galway Races to cap €100m month for county, says Galway Chamber

Sarah Mooney

The Galway Races are set to cap off a €100 million month for Galway, according to figures produced by Galway Chamber.

A stream of cultural and tourism events over the course of July - including the Galway Races Summer Festival, the Galway Film Fleadh and Galway International Arts Festival - are estimated to have drawn around 250,000 people to the county.

The Galway Races alone will attract more than 130,000 attendees, according to Galway Chamber, which says €58 million will be contributed to the local economy, including more than €23 million spent on hospitality, entertainment, travel and accommodation.

“This has been a tremendous month of activity for Galway, which is now set to finish off with the full return of the Galway Races,” said Kenny Deery, chief executive of Galway Chamber.

“It hasn’t been possible to properly enjoy these various events over the last couple of years due to the necessary precautions taken for the pandemic. However with the health situation now improved, people have wanted to get back to these much cherished events and they have certainly done that this year.

“We’ve felt the boost throughout July all across Galway, with greater tourist activity beginning with the Galway Film Fleadh and then really ramping up while the Galway International Arts Festival was running.

“Of course the Galway Races will represent the culmination of all this activity and we are really excited to have the ‘buzz’ generated by the races back once more.

“All this caps off a great month of activity for our city and county. We estimate these various events throughout July will have brought approximately 250,000 people to Galway, making it a €100 million month for Galway.

“It’s been a special month and hopefully it is one we will see repeated regularly in the future.”