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Galway races net locals £42million
by Jon Myles
GALWAY is set for an influx of avid racegoers which will boost the economy by almost £42million.
A survey by a team of economic experts has revealed that the value of the famous Galway Race Festival is some £41.7million to local traders.
It comes from the thousands of racegoers who flood into the area from across Britain and Ireland to enjoy the seven hectic days of racing at the famous Ballybrit course.
The event has long been seen as the jewel in the crown of Irish racing - with betting and attendance records smashed year after year.
And the economic findings confirm Galway’s unrivalled position at the top of the Irish horseracing charts.
The study by the Marketing Development Programme of the Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business at UCD revealed some £7.6million was spent inside the racecourse. Another £16million was spent outside the course on accommodation, transport, food and drink and souvenirs.
The full economic impact
of the spending boosts the economy of the Galway area by £41.7million.
Hotels and guesthouses across the area have already been booked up for months in advance of the start of this year’s festival at the start of the month.
And Galway Race Committee and Racecourse manager John Maloney is expecting another bumper year.
He said: “We are very pleased with the results of this study.
“We have long known that the Galway Summer Festival is extremely important for Galway city and county - but this is the first time that we have carried out a formal study into its true value.
“It is particularly encouraging to see that 66 per cent of all respondents had visited Galway especially to attend the Race Festival with 31 per cent actually living in Galway.
“This shows the Festival’s true value as a tourism resource for the region.”
Race Committee chairman John Coyle said: “According to the UCD study businesses throughout the city experienced massive increases in turnover during the week, which translated into additional employment of almost 200 among those businesses surveyed.
“This doesn’t include the hundreds of others who are employed on-course for the week of the festival.”
Record prize money is on offer for the 52 races to be run over seven days at this year’s summer meeting - which runs from July 28 to August 3.
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