Galway Oyster Festival

My greatest disappointment with my two trips to Ireland is that I’ve never made it to the Galway International Oyster Festival, usually held in September to celebrate the start of the oyster season.

I love oysters and Tony loves oysters and Guinness so this festival is really ideal for us, but we’ve missed it!

Origin of the Festival

The Galway International Oyster Festival didn’t originate out of any Irish tradition or medieval cultural belief, but because of one ingenious Irish man’s idea to boost business for his hotel. It’s 1953 and in the first week of September, Brian Collins, the dismayed manager of the Great Southern Hotel, looked around at his near empty hotel and wondered how could he extend the tourist season into September?

Later that day, whilst discussing menus with his head chef, it was suggested that oysters should be on the menu as they had just come into season. The light bulb went on in Brian Collins’ head and he thought “why not celebrate the opening of the oyster season with a festival?”

With the help from local businessmen and Guinness, the first festival took place in September 1954 with a modest 34 guests attending.  From then on, everything else is history and today the Galway International Oyster is regarded as one of the most celebrated and longest running oyster festivals in the world.

The festival is four fun-filled days and nights of oyster shucking championship, oyster tasting, parties, parades, food and drinks and, no doubt, lots of Irish humour.   You needn’t worry if oysters is not your kind of food as there will be other gourmet and culinary delights for all.  But, if you do love creamy Guinness and fresh oysters, you’ll be in seventh heaven here.

Tickets for the various events can be booked in advance from the Festival office.

Galway International Oyster Festival
Galway tours

Blarney Castle - the Blarney Stone is at the top!

Ireland travel is remarkably relaxing. Somehow, the pace of an Irish tour, no matter how crammed full of sights and activities, seems slower and more leisurely than travelling elsewhere in Europe. Ireland may have a thriving, world-class IT industry, but in the countryside and villages life still has a certain unhurried, picture-book quality; somehow I feel it would be more fitting to be travelling around in a horse and buggy than a car or luxury motor coach.

Touring Ireland is essentially a rural, even bucolic experience. To be sure, there are major cities like Dublin and Belfast, but with a total population of just 3.9 million in Eire (including 1.5 million in Dublin) and 1.6 million in Northern Ireland it’s obvious there’s plenty of room to move in the countryside. Travel Ireland by car and you’ll gain new respect for the roads and signage in your own neighbourhood, but in a way, it’s all part of the fun.

Historically, Ireland has been divided into four provinces: Munster (6 counties) in the south; Leinster (12 counties) in the east; Connacht (5 counties) in the west; and Ulster (9 counties) in the north which is still part of the United Kingdom and is called Northern Ireland.

To give you an idea of the size of the country, its greatest length is 485 km (302 miles), its greatest width 304 km (189 miles), and its coastline extends for over 5,631 km (3,500 miles).

Ireland, home of the Little People and Celtic myths, has a magical quality to it, whether you’re gazing across the Giant’s Causeway, wandering past colourfully painted cottages in a village street, or crammed into a crowded Irish pub with a pint of Guinness in your fist and the music of a traditional Irish fiddle band in your ears.

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