Legenderry Anniversary

Just a year ago the Clipper Race Homecoming Festival hit Derry-Londonderry and an estimated 200,000 people turned out to celebrate. On 1 July 2012 the home team arrived to a hero’s welcome which can be relived in the third part of The Legenderrys television documentary tonight (Monday 1 July) on BBC1 Northern Ireland at 10.35pm (also on Sky channel 953 and on BBC iPlayer).

The impact of participating in the Clipper Race and hosting the fleet at the beginning of July last year was immense. The Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) has already ranked it as amongst the top attractions of 2012 alongside such world class events as the Irish Open golf tournament, featuring prominently in the ‘Our Place Our Time’ campaign which returned almost £5 for every pound invested (NITB figures released last week).

Highlights of detailed research conducted by eDigital Reseach on behalf of the Clipper Race released today reinforce the positive social and economic impact of last year’s events. Key findings include:

• 200,000 people estimated to have visited the city
• Visitors spent on average £121 per day each
• Average stay per overnight visitor 4.45 days in city
• 4 out of 5 visitors said the Clipper Race was the primary reason for visit
• The event created ‘overwhelming’ levels of civic pride

Commenting on the research, Clipper Race Director of Business Development Jonathan Levy said: “Having experienced the huge response to the fleet’s arrival on the Foyle last year it is not surprising to see how popular the festival had been.”