Foyle Maritime Festival set for new direction as Council confirm Clipper fleet will not return in 20
9 August 2023
Derry City and Strabane District Council are set to work on a new format for the Foyle Maritime Festival following confirmation this week that the city will not be a host port in the 2024 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.
The city is one of the longest running host ports on the race’s schedule having hosted the stopover on five separate occasions and was widely regarded as the highlight of the crews’ 11 month trek around the planet.
Council will now work on ways to build on the Maritime Festival’s success with a new narrative that retains the event’s international profile and builds on the positive impact it has had on the local economy.
“The Foyle Maritime Festival has grown into an event of global significance over the last 13 years and is one of the biggest and highly acclaimed events on the island of Ireland,” said Head of Culture at Council Aeidin McCarter.
“We have hosted the Clipper Fleet alongside some of the highest profile cities in the world including New York, Sydney and London - yet Clipper Ventures still regard the Maritime Festival as one of its greatest success stories and most popular stopovers. While our relationship with Clipper Ventures remains strong, on this occasion we will not be hosting the fleet and will now work on a new direction for the festival that will allow us to continue to reap the significant benefits it brings to the economy and tourism while further growing our Council area’s reputation as a host of international events.”
Council’s partnership with Clipper Ventures dates back to 2010 when agreement was reached for a Derry-Londonderry-Doire boat to take part in the race with the entire fleet stopping over in the city in July 2012. The move was part of a wider vision for the city to develop the riverfront, the Peace Bridge and the public space at Ebrington Square, to become a host of international level events and to tell the story of the city’s maritime past to a global audience. By the time the fleet visited for a third time in 2016 the city was firmly established as the stopover of choice and the Derry leg was the first stage to sell-out for crew places. The growing profile of the festival had a catalytic impact on the city’s reputation for hosting festivals and its ability to attract visitors from around the world and the overall investment has permanently transformed the quayside.
“Since the first Maritime Festival in 2012, our growing international visitor numbers and reputation have allowed us to successfully achieve international status with Tourism NI for our Halloween Festival,” Mrs McCarter added.
“Our reputation as a festival city has now reached the level where we are currently vying with the likes of London, Barcelona and Munich for the title of Europe’s Best Festival and Events Destination at the World Travel Awards. Over the coming months we will work with Elected Members on a fresh format and direction for the festival and aim to bring on new partners to build the event’s legacy and retain its international dimension. We can also now be more flexible with regard to dates and can work to ensure they don’t clash with other significant events in the city that week to maximise the impact on visitor numbers and the economy. As a Council we would like to wish the port of Oban well in hosting the penultimate stopover and we hope they gain as much from the experience as we have over the last 13 years,” she added.
The announcement follows lengthy discussions between Council Officers and Clipper Ventures about the viability of the fleet returning to the city for a sixth time in 2024 with Council delivering the core programming of the Foyle Maritime Festival and covering a range of operational and safety costs to ensure a safe stopover.
In March Elected Members gave approval for Officers to enter into negotiations on that basis following the implementation of a number of cost saving measures during the rates striking process and an inflationary increase in events costs.
For updates and the latest information on Council’s Festival and Events programming visit https://www.derrystrabane.com/services/festival-events.