The fiver drop in advance ticket prices to this year’s Galway Races has already reaped rewards with sales already well ahead of last year and all corporate packages sold out five weeks ago.

The three per cent increase in attendance at racing festivals nationally compared to last year could well be surpassed at the biggest racing extravaganza in the country next week. The festival, which attracts around 130,000 punters, has been estimated to add €60m to the local economy.

For the first time in many years, the Crói charity fundraiser at the Killannin Stand on Friday has sold out while reserved stand tickets can no longer be purchased for the biggest day.

“We haven’t seen that since before Covid. All the indications are that advance ticket sales are well up. We have 1,000 people a day coming as part of corporate packages and there’s always huge repeat business for those but it’s particularly strong this year, the second proper year after Covid,” enthused marketing manager Sinéad Cassidy.

“Consumer confidence is back in full swing.”

Some 500 tickets have sold for a ball at the Galmont Hotel on the Saturday in aid of the jockey Graham Lee, who grew up in the shadow of Ballybrit. He was left paralysed from the neck down following an accident in Newcastle.

Punters have been availing of the €5 off each ticket up to the day of the race meeting as well as a new €70 three-day bundle ticket and a flexi-ticket offering entry to any race for €30, which has proven popular for businesses as gifts.

The festival features 53 races and 800 horses over the seven days, vying for a prize fund of over €2.1m.

Get the full story – and a free Galway Races supplement – in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.