GALWAY FESTIVALS
2010
July
Galway Arts Festival
The Galway Arts Festival is an annual celebration of art in every form and brings the streets of Galway alive every July. With all types of performance from juggling chainsaws to tight rope walking and face painting to fire juggling, Galway becomes a circus of faux freak for 2 weeks. A must see, especially for young families.
Galway Races July 26 – August 1
Perhaps the most well known of all the Galway Festivals, the Galway Races is still galloping on successfully. This horse racing festival is renowned across the world and is as much a fair as a race.
Crinniu na mBad Festival
Up to 100 unique Irish boats, the Galway Hookers, gather every August for a weekend of racing and celebration at Cruinniú na mBád (Gathering of the Boats) festival in Kinvara. Since its revival in 1979, the festival has become one of the most unique and successful weekend festivals in Ireland.
September
Clarenbridge Oyster Festival
No where else on earth can match the perfect conditions that exist in Clarenbridge for growing and harvesting Oysters, which is why the Clarenbridge Oyster festival has been so popular since it’s beginnings in 1954. The festival is full of food, music, dancing and family fun.
Galway Oyster Festival Sept 23rd – 26th
This festival to celebrate the beginning of the Oyster season was created in 1953 by local hotelier Brian Collins as a way of extending the Galway festival season into September, filling his hotel and bringing business to the region. 56 years later, the festival is still going strong.
Galway Americana Festival Sept 16th – 19th
The Galway Americana Festival will take place from the 16th-19th September 2010, bringing American roots music to Galway; Bluegrass, Cajun, Blues, Folk, Country, Old-Timey, etc.
www.galwayamericanafestival.com
October
Baboro Int Arts Festival for Children Oct 11th – 17th
Baboró is Ireland’s Flagship International Arts Festival devoted exclusively to children and families. It provides a feast of fun, creativity and spellbinding performances for children of all ages.
Galway Comedy Festival Oct 21st – 25th
The fifth annual Galway Comedy Festival.
From the 21st-25th October, the Festival will entertain you to some of the most magical, hysterical and outright funny folk on the planet, all for your enjoyment.
November
Junior Film Fleadh Nov 9th – 13th
The Junior Film Fleadh aims to be a vehicle to encourage young people to become involved in film through screenings, workshops and other related activities.
Over the years, the festival has gone from strength to strength extending its programme with thousands of young people becoming involved from Galway City and county, and from counties Clare, Limerick, Mayo, Leitrim, Roscommon and the Aran Islands.
Spirit of Voice Festival Nov 11th – 13th
This festival is a celebration of song and spoken word.
2011
January
Merriman Winter School Irish Festival Jan 28th – 30th
The Merriman Winter School brings together a group of people with a keen interest in, and experience of, Irish literature and the arts, politics and current affairs, to share their knowledge and passions. They come from all backgrounds and range in age from 9-90. They attend lectures by noted scholars on the theme of the school; they take part in set dancing and singing sessions; they deepen their knowledge of the area in which the school is held, this year in Galway City.
May
Brewers on the Bay Festival May 2011 (tbc)
The first ever Craft Beer Festival hits Galway this May bank holiday weekend. The ‘Brewers on the Bay’ Festival brings Craft Brewers from microbreweries all over Ireland to Salthill for the first ever event of it’s kind in the West.
The Oslo will host the festival over two days May 1st and 2nd, kicking off at 3pm daily. Admission is free and you can try beers from microbreweries including Galway’s own Galway Hooker and The Oslo Microbrewery.
Galway Early Music Festival May 2011 (tbc)
Based in the medieval City of Galway, the Galway Early Music Festival features medieval, renaissance and baroque music and dance.
Concerts by internationally-recognised performers using historical instruments, workshops and costumed street performance, coupled with the West of Ireland’s unique welcome and warmth, make this the place to be in May for a taste of medieval, renaissance and baroque magic!
June
Little Havana Festival June 2011 (tbc)
Galway’s Little Havana Festival is a new, free and fun-filled festival taking place in the city’s Latin Quarter.
Cuban-inspired music, dance, street entertainment, art and cultural events feature in the busy programme of on-street and on-premise activity, creating a unique opportunity for visitors to immerse themselves in a colourful Cuban atmosphere reminiscent of Havana itself.
Galway Film Fleadh June 2011 (tbc)
The Galway Film Fleadh, Ireland’s leading film festival, is a six-day international event, held every July and welcomes a diversity of films from around the world. The Fleadh is very much a filmmaker’s festival and attracts directors, actors, cinematographers and artists of all generations and cultural backgrounds, who present their work before their peers.
