Galway International Oyster Festival

With equal measures of Guinness, fresh oysters and good craic, Galway in September is awash with simple pleasures. Since 1954, when guests at the inaugural Oyster Festival numbered 34, the city’s celebration of the humble but sexy bivalve has grown into a super-social affair, where smart locals come out to play, and global oyster-lovers return year after year. Thousands come here to slurp and chew, bringing more life and colour than ever to the city’s streets and pubs. The festival calendar includes the Guinness Oyster Trail, a civilised crawl of some 30 establishments, during which each pint comes with free oysters – a suitably Irish way of taking a stroll around town.

Highlights

Socially inclined locals look forward to the Gala Ball and the ‘Oyster Pearl’ beauty contest. For spectacle and fun, visitors flock to the Guinness World Oyster Opening Championship to watch international competitors shucking away maniacally.

Galway International Oyster Festival Highlight Image

In The Know

Head Count

Around 12,000 people scoff around 100,000 oysters during the four days of the festival.

Meeting Point

Hook up at the statue of writer and party boy Pádraic Ó Conaire, at the north of Eyre Square, the city’s transport hub; or at the Spanish Arch, Galway’s most famous monument, down at the bottom of Quay Street.

Best View

Nimmo's Pier, close to the Spanish Arch, is where the festival marquee goes up.

What If

I don’t like oysters? Well, this is the place to give the strange but wonderful bivalves another try. If you still don’t succumb to their salty goodness, don’t fret. Some have suggested the oysters are nothing but a ruse to celebrate Ireland’s real national delicacy: Guinness. Black stuff aside, Galway has plenty to offer even the most demanding weekend visitor. It’s a charming, sociable, walkable city with a thriving cultural and live music scene.

Packing Tips

Bring a jumper and a brolly; Galway’s spot on the wild west coast is seldom warm and dry. Forgotten your rain gear? No need to fret about getting wet: you can buy umbrellas everywhere (including the tourist office). If you’re planning on attending the Gala Ball, be sure to dress sharp.

Escape

You’re spoilt for choice around here. Take the boat to the strange and beautiful Aran islands (see www.visitaranislands.com for details), or drive out to the desolately beautiful landscapes of the Connemara National Park and the Twelve Bens mountain range.

Dos and don'ts

• Book tickets for events at the festival marquee. Some really good revelry, from jazz cabarets to champagne swilling, happens here. Go to www.galwayoysterfest.com for details.
• Book taxis ahead of time, since they can be difficult to find among the streets and crowds. One reliable firm is Galway Taxis (+353 (0)91 561111; www.galwaytaxis.com).
• Explore one of Galway’s hidden gems: Nora Barnacle House, a small museum focusing on James Joyce and his wife.

Need To Know

Children

Local kids get quite excited about the Oyster Festival, and most of the events are family-friendly. There is a superb toyshop at 3 Quay Street called Wooden Heart, a must for its old-fashioned toys and some beautiful books.

Parking

Head for the docks for plentiful paid parking or, better, ask your hotel about free parking. The centre and promenade are easily compact enough to walk around, so you won’t need your car in town at all, but there are great day trips from Galway, including the Cliffs of Moher, the Aran Islands, Connemara National Park and the Burren, so renting a car is very much recommended.

Disability Access

Generally, the access around Galway and its pubs is very good, but do contact organisers to check about specific needs.

Food & Drink

Definitely worth making a detour for is Moran’s Oyster Cottage (+353 (0)91 796113; www. moransoystercottage.com), 10 miles south of Galway. Once a tiny household pub for workers who ferried peat, the restaurant has increasingly garnered international attention for its amazing seafood and traditional soda bread. Dating back 250 years, Moran’s has served Paul Newman, Julia Roberts, and the Emperor and Empress of Japan – and Seamus Heaney wrote his poem ‘Oysters’ here. In Town, McDonagh’s, 22 Quay Street (+353 (0)91 565001) is a fish ‘n’ chip shop, seafood restaurant and fish market in one. A few of our favourite pubs are cosy Tigh Neachtain (aka Naughton’s), 17 Cross Street; unpretentious Taafe’s, 19 Shop Street; and Tigh Colí, Mainguard Street.

Sleep

There are no Smith hotels yet in Galway, but we can recommend the Victorian grandeur of the Skeffington Arms Hotel (+353 (0)91 563173; www.skeffi ngton.ie) and the bright, lively Spanish Arch Hotel (+353 (0)91 569600; www.spanisharchhotel.ie).

VIP

Not applicable at this event.