The event will be a city-wide festival involving many restaurants, hotels and other food outlets in the city. There will be many activities for guests to take part in like restaurant trails, cookery workshops and demonstrations as well as cookery competitions with renowned Galway chefs and other personalities. Various ‘Know Your Vines’ workshops involving industry experts will be held as well as tours to local artisan food producers and open air food markets including the well-known Galway Market.

Dave Keogh, chairman of the Latin Quarter, welcomed the announcement of this latest festival: “Galway is synonymous with good food, award-winning restaurants and great festivals. The city is renowned for its high number and quality of restaurants and it is important Galway should have its very own food festival.”

In order to market the festival special accommodation packages will be available and there will be other cross-promotions involving hotels, restaurants and entertainment providers throughout Galway. A ‘Stay, Catch and Eat’ idea is sure to be popular among visitors who will be able to take a trip on a local fishing boat, then bring whatever they catch along to a restaurant in the evening where it will be cooked and served to them. The package will also include a stay in one of the top hotels in Galway for an all-inclusive value price.

Over recent weeks the Harbour Hotel in Galway has undergone some extensive refurbishments with a view to attracting ever more business from the corporate meetings market. This three-star Galway hotel has four meeting rooms that have all been given a make-over for the New Year. In addition, there are two syndicate rooms of various sizes and layouts. These various meeting rooms can accommodate anything from two people up to 130 delegates. Each of the rooms has plenty of natural daylight and all have the latest, modern AV equipment installed.

Thanks to these developments at the Harbour Hotel holding meetings in Galway city centre is now easier than ever. The hotel is on New Dock Road, only a few minutes walk from Eyre Square, and has extensive, free, onsite parking available as well as free WiFi throughout the building. The Harbour Hotel is a great option for breakfast seminars, interviews, boardroom meetings, or training events. The meeting and events co-ordinator, Anna Byrne, will look after customers right from the booking stage to ensuring the event runs smoothly on the day.

For larger events, the John B Keane suite is a more than suitable space. This room has a large ceiling atrium, state of the art audio and visual technology, private bar, and the added bonus of a loading bay. The room is perfect for training, seminars and private dining. It is located just off the bright and spacious lobby that has both open fires and modern furnishings making a wonderful reception area or break out space.

The Harbour Hotel is a family-owned establishment that is celebrating 10 years in business. To succeed in these difficult economic times the management has placed the focus firmly on providing improved service and customer experience to all guests. Both management and staff pride themselves on their personal service and attention to detail, whether you are organising a meeting, function, or dining in the hotel.

The Harbour Hotel Seafood Bar & Grill is also a new addition to this Galway hotel. Head chef Patrick Anslow provides a menu with a focus on homemade, wholesome food using fresh ingredients from local suppliers. This philosophy is also carried through to the home baked scones provided fresh each day for breaks in the functions going on in all of the meeting rooms.

The Galway festival season is now under way and should bring some welcome benefits to those involved in the hotel sector in the city in terms of occupancy rates, room rates and restaurant and bar takings. Although the tourism sector in Ireland in general has had to face tough times over the last two years, Galway can always rely on its summer festivals like the Galway Arts Festival, the Galway Film Fleadh and, of course, the famous Galway Races to bring tourists and their disposable incomes to the capital of the West. In total it is estimated that these festivals are worth as much as €90 million to the local economy in Galway. The Film Fleadh is estimated to bring in around €5 million, the Arts Festival some €20 million and the Galway Races between €50 and €70 million.

The Galway Film Fleadh took place last week running from Tuesday 05th July to Sunday 10th July. The Galway Arts festival started on 11th July and runs through to July 24th and this year includes artists like Misterman, De La Soul and Blondie. The Galway Races takes place during the last week in July and this year runs from Monday 25th through to Sunday 31st.

We can see the importance the hotel sector places on these events from the fact that for the last three years some of top hotels in Galway have come together to sponsor the first day of the Galway Races. This year the sponsors include the Radisson Blu, Hotel Meyrick, the Clayton, the Carlton, The G, the Galway Bay, the Salthill Hotel, the Ramada and the Claregalway. Paul Gill, chairman of the Galway branch of the Irish Hotels Federation recently said: “Galway’s Best Hotels are delighted, once again, to be a part of such a wonderful event. The Galway Races brings people and businesses together every year, and gives such a positive boost to the city; both economically and socially”.

In September a major sporting attraction, the Ironman competition, will come to Galway for the first time. In fact, it will be the first time such an event has been held anywhere in Ireland. Peter Kern, a top German triathlon trainer, believes Galway is a great location for the event and said recently: “Galway has the structures to deal with lots of people. There are enough hotels and the landscape is quite famous. It was almost the natural selection for an Ironman race.”

It is expected that the event could attract as many as 2,000 visitors to Galway and generate revenues of nearly €5 million for the local economy. Indeed, as Ironman could use Galway as its base for the Irish leg of the competition for a further five years it could prove a very lucrative relationship for the city. However, at a recent meeting of Galway City Council a number of councillors expressed concerns that the hotels in Galway could be tempted to use the event to push up their prices over the first weekend in September. Labour Councillor Collette Connelly said: “It is bad for the city when hotels put up their prices for events such as Race Week. It is great that this event provides a positive alternative to the drink culture that Galway is known for. But is it too much to hope that there will be standard rates in the hotels rather than having people fleeced continuously whenever there is a major event in Galway?” These sentiments were shared by Fine Gael Councillor Frank Fahy who said that the hotels in the city should do their best to help ensure the success of the weekend so that people did not leave Galway with the sense that they had been “ripped off” during their stay.

Galway is well known for its diverse calendar of festivals which take place throughout the year and the first of the important ones, the Cuirt, the International Festival of Literature, takes place this year from 12th to 17th April. Some of the authors are taking part in this festival for the first time but there will also be a lot of Irish writers whose literary talent has been recognised nationally and abroad. Dermot Healy, Paul Murray and Valerie Hemingway are among the names participating in this year’s literature festival.

Although there is a wide range of accommodation available in Galway from top hotels to B&Bs it is advisable to book in advance during festival time to avoid disappointment and to get the best rates possible.

The Meyrick Hotel in Galway is the official hotel for the festival. It is an elegant Victorian four star hotel located right on Eyre Square in city centre of Galway. Lots of shops, theatres, restaurants and pubs are just a short walk from the hotel. The hotel is booked out for the weekend of the festival but rooms can be had from the Tuesday through to Thursday from €115 per room per night. The Harbour Hotel is another four star establishment  located in the waterfront area of Galway but still near the city center and within walking distance of Eyre Square and the main theaters, shops, restaurants and bars. A double room for the weekend of the festival is available on the hotel’s on-line reservation system at the time of writing for €124 for the Friday night and €154 for the Saturday night.

You could also try the House Hotel which is a luxury 4 star boutique hotel again in Galway city centre just a few minutes walk from Eyre Square, Quay Street and Spanish Arch. Other options are Jurys Inn Galway hotel, a three star hotel close to Galway City Museum, Eyre Square, and Spanish Arch. The Travelodge hotel is a 3 star hotel located in the downtown area of Galway, only a short distance from many shops and restaurants. The Spanish Arch Hotel Galway is a 2 star hotel which has just been renovated and is also located in Quay Street in the heart of the city centre now being branded as Galway’s ‘Latin Quarter’.