This week is a busy week and the weekend promises to be even better. With the Rose of Tralee Festival finishing over in Kerry, well done to this years winner Luxemburg Rose Nicola McEvoy, the spotlight now looks set to be on the capital Dublin this upcoming weekend as the Tall Ships Festival come to the capitals port. Like Galway earlier in the summer with the Volvo Ocean Race, Dublin has the great honour of being the final host port for this years running of this prestigious annual international event. Alongside the spectacle of the race with ships from another era, comes a four day extravaganza of festivities and all manner of family friendly events and activities beginning this Thursday 23rd– Sunday 26th August.
Amongst the many free attractions on show that visitors can look forward to will be a floating open air cinema showing the movie Jaws, street parades, 55 music acts and over a 100 street performers among them trapeze artists and wake boarders. On the Grand Canal Dock one will find a family zone while Hanover Quay looks set to come alive with skateboarding, beatboxing and music. In the CHQ expect to see a photography exhibition and a range of workshops. Sunday will be the highlight with Dublin Port staging a stunning Parade of Sail with the ships departing the capital and an attempt being made to break the world record for the number of people participating in Rock the Boat in aid of the charity Foroige.
With over 100 of the distinctive Tall Ships set to arrive to the capital port in the next few days and a host of festivities on show, the atmosphere around the capital should be electric with over a million visitors expected. All of this combined will bring an extra dimension to the capital this weekend, enough to take over focus from this years Rose of Tralee festival over in Kerry. Now is the time to organise your Ireland vacations and be part of one of the world’s greatest marine events.