The western economy is in line for a boost of about €50 million from Galway’s seven-day racing festival, which gets under way today. Up to 150,000 punters are expected to go through the Ballybrit turnstiles between this evening’s opening session and the last race on Sunday.
The massive crowds will put smiles on the faces of the bookmakers who rely on Galway Race Week for their busiest – and most lucrative – meeting of the year.
Throughout the weekend the crowds were streaming into the City of the Tribes, with hotel rooms at a premium, even in Connemara. Accommodation in Galway during the week will cost an average of €162 per night, according to Trivago, the online hotel search website. This is about 56 per cent more than last week. The most expensive day to book during the festival is Ladies Day when one night will cost an average of €211, or 87 per cent more than the August average.
It is common for hoteliers to put their prices up during such popular events where a large attendance is virtually guaranteed. No surprise then, that this evening’s opening card at Ballybrit is sponsored by “Galway’s Best Hotels”, with hoteliers and their guests gathering at the track before the white flag is raised at 5.10pm.
The most valuable National Hunt race to be run in Ireland this year, the €260,000 Galway Guinness Handicap Hurdle, will be the highlight on Ladies Day. “All 52 races over the seven days of the festival will have a sponsor and the total prize fund will exceed €1.6 million, which is quite an achievement in these challenging times,” said race committee chairman Terry Cunningham.
A report carried out in 2005 said Race Week was worth €60 million to the local economy. Despite the downturn, the Galway Race Committee reckons that figure isn’t far off the mark this year. Ticket sales are up on last year, with racecourse management reporting corporate hospitality bookings up by about 30 per cent.
By the time the last straggler leaves the racecourse late next Sunday, punters will have gambled about €13-14 million, with about 65 per cent going into the bookies’ satchels and the Tote laying claim to the remainder.
Meanwhile, record crowds yesterday turned out in glorious sunshine to enjoy one of the most unique horse racing events in the country: the annual Omey Races.
The half-mile track in Connemara was under water yesterday morning and not long after the last of the nine races was completed last evening the tide had come in again and the sea covered the entire course.
“They came from near and far but I don’t think we ever had such good weather. It was unreal,” said Feichin Mulkerrin, chairman of the race committee.
Thousands flocked to Omey Strand near Claddaghduff for the nine-race card, which was moved from it’s traditional slot on the August bank holiday weekend because of the tidal calendar.“The work started on Saturday evening when we laid out the ring and track at low tide. At high tide in the evening, like every year, a few of the stakes float away so we were out in the boats to gather then again,” said Mulkerrin.