Hotels, bars and restaurants are enjoying a bumper bank holiday weekend as 40,000 people soak up the feelgood factor in Cork.
The 34th Guinness Cork Jazz Festival officially kicked off last night with an open-air concert outside Cork Opera House, when hundreds of people sang and danced on the city’s streets.
Nice family atmosphere down here at Emmet Place for #corkjazzfest. Great food and craft stalls. pic.twitter.com/bLaExW6cvI
— Oliver Moran (@oliver_moran) October 29, 2016
1,200 musicians, from 20 countries, are set to entertain music fans in the city, with Kinsale also getting in on the action with 100 live gigs set for hotels and pubs as part of the fringe festival.
Lawrence Owens, chief executive of the Cork Business Association, said that the economic benefits of the festival cannot be underestimated.
“Without a doubt, the Jazz Festival is a key event in the city every year, and Cork really is the place to be this weekend.”
“It’s about enjoying the experience and atmosphere, but it also brings a great boost to retail and hospitality.”
You really can't beat Cork during the Jazz 🙌🏻🎷🎺 #corkjazzfest pic.twitter.com/KpeR1T8C0n
— Denise O'Donoghue (@deniseodonoghue) October 29, 2016
The four-day festival may have official begun last night, but a growing buzz has been felt around the city for days, with publicans noting a distinct boost in visitor numbers.
“Town has been packed this week,” publican Ernest Cantillon said. “Even Thursday night was busy and that would be unusual because people tend to wait for the weekend so there’s been a big build up. There are plenty of tourists around in particular.”
“I’ve been speaking to English visitors who decided to stay for a week rather than the weekend and people have been taking time off work to enjoy the festivities. We haven’t seen that kind of buzz since the mid-2000s.”
Mr Cantillon said that the weekend provides a welcome boost to the local hospitality industry in the gap between summer and Christmas.
La Ripaille A Sons #corkjazzfest #CORKJazz pic.twitter.com/Bmb9cdV0nJ
— Des (@despod) October 29, 2016
“There’s a great spillover because bar staff are getting extra shifts and overtime, taxi-drivers are busy and of course musicians are getting bookings, so there’s a nice injection into the local economy in the lead up to Christmas.
“Of course there’s also music in Kinsale and we’ve launched Kinsale Gin this week so that will be in bars and be tasted by tourists from all over the world.”
Fellow publican Con Dennehy, a representative of the Vintners Federation of Ireland, agreed that “the city is buzzing.”
LIVE on #Periscope: A #jazzmas Saturday afternoon in #Cork #corkjazz #corkjazzfest @corkjazzfest https://t.co/wOvG5pyiUo
— Niall Twamley (@ntwamley) October 29, 2016
“Jazz really marks the lead up to Christmas in Cork and with the clocks going back too. There’s a feel good atmosphere in the city.
“It’s great for the city and great for the economy.”
Here is a handy Interactive Map to direct you to the sounds of Jazz across Cork.
