Tall Ships rip Off Warning!

Godsentme

got information today that the cost of a 3x3metre stand for traders on the Quay during the Tall Ships is ,wait for it, e2,500! -1800 plus vat.

So to make a profit or even take a chance on setting up a stall, traders are going to have to charge big prices. Be prepared. it'll be no use ringing Billy MacCarthy complaining you had to 7 euro for a burger after the event. You should be having a chat with Des Whelan & co who are forcing these people to up their prices just to cover costs.

And these prices will not be forgotten by visitors. They will remember and spread the word how Expensive Waterford is and won't be coming back.

It's just the same mistake as the last government made. make hay while the sun shine and to hell with the future.

Waterford will pay a big price for this. Mark my words.

Bowlardo

waterford sucks ass...the tourist will go there and you'll get their money and then we will have some foreignor on complaining about rip off ireland and all because waterford is such a skank hole

no one is every to bothered about complaining about paris because you might see something nice...no one every complains about mayo either

abouttobebanned

I hope the tall ships never come back, lot of businesses being shown up for what they really are. And by the way, the last talll ships was as big an event as a sunny day in the park.

johndoe99

feck, i had to read that twice to make sure i saw €2500. I only noticed today too that they covered the Ard Ri Hotel with some white boarding, what a bloody eyesore.

honeybadger

i say dlofneb wishes the whole building was associated to horse stables so his poor dog could go for a walk around bolockys feilds once more in peace

aziz

Yeah i remember the last tall ships i got charged 9 euro for two plain burgers for my daughters from a chip van on Georges st and they were absolutely vile

deisemum

Godsentme wrote: »

got information today that the cost of a 3x3metre stand for traders on the Quay during the Tall Ships is ,wait for it, e2,500! -1800 plus vat.

So to make a profit or even take a chance on setting up a stall, traders are going to have to charge big prices. Be prepared. it'll be no use ringing Billy MacCarthy complaining you had to 7 euro for a burger after the event. You should be having a chat with Des Whelan & co who are forcing these people to up their prices just to cover costs.

And these prices will not be forgotten by visitors. They will remember and spread the word how Expensive Waterford is and won't be coming back.

It's just the same mistake as the last government made. make hay while the sun shine and to hell with the future.

Waterford will pay a big price for this. Mark my words.

Someone I know was telling me how she received a letter from the organisers to see if she'd take a stall but she was horrified at the costs involved so turned it down. Pure extortion.

dayshah

Can anyone give equivalent prices for something like Oxygen, Electric Picnic, or other event?

abouttobebanned wrote: »

I hope the tall ships never come back, lot of businesses being shown up for what they really are. And by the way, the last talll ships was as big an event as a sunny day in the park.

Why the bah humbug? I don't think we could have gotten 250,000 to visit the park last time. I had some visitors down for it and they were all very impressed (a bit too impressed of the Uruguayan sailors in their immaculate uniforms for my liking).

Aarnikotka

Bowlardo wrote: »

waterford sucks ass...the tourist will go there and you'll get their money and then we will have some foreignor on complaining about rip off ireland and all because waterford is such a skank hole

no one is every to bothered about complaining about paris because you might see something nice...no one every complains about mayo either

abouttobebanned wrote: »

I hope the tall ships never come back, lot of businesses being shown up for what they really are. And by the way, the last talll ships was as big an event as a sunny day in the park.

Good god... :eek: The last tall ships apparently brought almost half a million people to the city - I was one of them. Everyone I spoke to (our Finnish gang as well as some others) had a super time! Plus we're going back this year. And of course we understood that Waterford was in many ways more expensive than it normally is, but that happens everywhere during big events (including Turku in Finland, where the Tall Ships will also be this year).

gbee

It must be understood that there is no recession for a significant minority in this country. They will flock to the festival and spend as if it is still the Celtic Tiger period.

Organisers know this fact.

Minstrel27

Talk about shooting themselves in the foot. Here is the perfect opportunity to promote Waterford and what do the hotels etc do? Jack up prices to extortionate rates. Greedy bastards the lot of them. They will suffer in the long term and well deserved but sadly so will the rest of us.

angry_fox

Does anyone have a link??

Saw the prices for hotel rooms for the event, shocking.

deisemum

Some traders do not want to rip off potential customers so are not bothering to get involved.

AdMMM

Even if venders were charged €1 for the weekend, they'd still be charging extortionate prices for food etc. I find it a bit rich that you have the attitude that traders should be allowed just wade in and have access to 500,000 people before heading back to wherever they came from with their profit.

Every comparable large event in the world is the same, be it a music festival, sporting event etc. Those visiting Waterford will be under no illusions either.

dayshah

I do think we need to be vigilant, not to deter tourists from coming back. I would be annoyed if pubs and restaurants increased their prices just for one weekend, but I don't think that will happen. I think it would be fairly normal though if they cancelled their early bird menus for the weekend.

Regarding the hotels, Waterford has the cheapest in the country. They hotels publish a maximum price they charge, and can not exceed it. What is happening is they aren't giving their usual discounts. This is normal for a big event. They can't be expected to charge off-peak rates.

AdMMM wrote: »

Even if venders were charged €1 for the weekend, they'd still be charging extortionate prices for food etc. I find it a bit rich that you have the attitude that traders should be allowed just wade in and have access to 500,000 people before heading back to wherever they came from with their profit.

Every comparable large event in the world is the same, be it a music festival, sporting event etc. Those visiting Waterford will be under no illusions either.

I think that's a fair point. But if the charge is too high it might mean only a few burger van will bother go. Anyway, I think these are only an issue on the north quay. I'd be very annoyed if Supermac jacked up their price to €5 a burger, but they won't do that. At a music festival you are trapped in the place, in Waterford you can get a burger in lots of places.

Also, its basically a free event for people. There is no cover charge to see the boats or hear the music. There might be some profiteering, and we should be vigilant. But we shouldn't scare people from coming. Judging by the last tall ships, it is good value for visitors.

gbee

dayshah wrote: »

Also, its basically a free event for people. There is no cover charge to see the boats or hear the music. .

That's good. There was a charge to enter the docks in Cork last time, Sunday was free for a few hours ~ ran just like the Ford Week in Crosshaven with the festival village an all.

Free in, is good.

jayboi

Some craic if no one showed up.

Are all the hotels booked up already?

comeraghs

Half a million potential customers for 2,500 euro sounds fairly reasonable.

some of ye must be fairly dull people if ye are serious about hoping the Tall Ships isn´t a success & never come back .... about to be banned, Were you actually at the last tall ships?????

it was a Brilliant festival & a HUGE Success!

Daysha

Increased prices during any Tall Ships festival is nothing new. I sailed in the 2008 race and paid £9 for a burger and chips from a stand in Liverpool, and the same price for a flat pint of lager in Norway. And there were over 3,000 crew members on nearly 100 different ships who were more than happy to pay those kind of rates considering the welcome we received from all the different hosts. And as somebody who experienced it 'from the other side', you just cannot underestimate how big of an international event this is for the city.

If anyone wants to knock the event let them do that. They can sit at home at their computers complaining about the Music Fest, the nightclub scene and everything else that's wrong with Waterford. But there'll be 250,000 people from around the south-east doing their best in welcoming the other 250,000 people from around the world to our city, and ensuring this is an event we can really be proud of.

But how some people can say an overpriced advertising stand is bad for Waterford business when the event will already generate €30 million to the local economy is just beyond comprehension.

abouttobebanned

I love any event that brings people to waterford, what I don't like is bands thinking they can charge more for the nights of the tall ships....hotels doubling and trebling their prices...bars and restaurants etc upping their prices. It's a disgraceful practice.

O Riain

Daysha wrote: »

Increased prices during any Tall Ships festival is nothing new. I sailed in the 2008 race and paid £9 for a burger and chips from a stand in Liverpool, and the same price for a flat pint of lager in Norway. And there were over 3,000 crew members on nearly 100 different ships who were more than happy to pay those kind of rates considering the welcome we received from all the different hosts. And as somebody who experienced it 'from the other side', you just cannot underestimate how big of an international event this is for the city.

If anyone wants to knock the event let them do that. They can sit at home at their computers complaining about the Music Fest, the nightclub scene and everything else that's wrong with Waterford. But there'll be 250,000 people from around the south-east doing their best in welcoming the other 250,000 people from around the world to our city, and ensuring this is an event we can really be proud of.

But how some people can say an overpriced advertising stand is bad for Waterford business when the event will already generate €30 million to the local economy is just beyond comprehension.

Wow. You read my mind. The cribbin and cryin on this forum is nothin but astounding!!

Max Powers

can not believe the whining and complaining some people are doing about the tall ships when 99% of people think it is fantastic. Reminds me of bar-stool talk, ''blah blah blah nothing to do, i hate everything'', (yet all most of these people do is sit on their Ar$e doing nothing but complain). Free concerts to great bands, free music, big crowds, good atomsphere, food, beer, street acts, awesome

seanybiker

I probably wont bother going down to it so I'm not to pushed about what they charge.

Daysha

abouttobebanned wrote: »

I love any event that brings people to waterford, what I don't like is bands thinking they can charge more for the nights of the tall ships....hotels doubling and trebling their prices...bars and restaurants etc upping their prices. It's a disgraceful practice.

You love any event that brings people to Waterford yet you hope the event that brings the most people to Waterford in our lifetime never comes back.

:rolleyes:

wmpdd3

You can still get the travel lodge for €149 for a room only! Following week, €58 per night.

Room Summary
Room Room Cost Extras Total
1: Double Room Plus Non Smoking €149.00 €0 €149.00
Total Cost €149.00

A friend has a B&B 3 mins outside the city, had a few enquiries, kept the prices at the normal rate and still has 3 rooms that week end. She's full for the following weekend!

puppetmaster

Although €2.5 is a bit much for such a small stall, and the hotels are trying to make hay, they are the one's that will be detrimental to the numbers coming to the tall ships. The hotels should be happy with filling every room at a slightly higher rate to be expected and filling their restaraunts. but the sorta greedy money grabbin their at now is exactly why people will make a note NOT to stay with them again.

Althogh I know a Stand in Oxegen or EP ranges for 4k to 10k depending where you are etc with an attendance of under 100k. 2.5k doesnt sound too bad for half a million. but 1k would be easier to swallow.

As for all the haters on the tall ships, Why bother? Why try and put down the biggest event your city/region has possibly ever had. If you have a problem dont go and with any luck you wont be missed.

Roll on the tall ships its a free event, If im skint at the time, il be there sandwich's n all

Hoffmans

A rate of 2500 for 3days equates to an annual rate of 300,000 abouts even the greedy hotels don't pay that much for rates
,and no guarantee on numbers either last time the sailtubs were ere there was no massive recession happening
,most normal people have more on their minds than havin the hastle of getting into pedestrianised town from rip off park n riders and walking aimlessly round lopking @ sailtubs....

merlante

The worst thing about this forum is that foreigners can log on and read what the locals have to say. It's very dueling banjos on here sometimes...

abouttobebanned

Daysha wrote: »

You love any event that brings people to Waterford yet you hope the event that brings the most people to Waterford in our lifetime never comes back.

:rolleyes:

I hate that fcuking smiley. The height of smarm.

kkdela6

I am a fiercely proud Waterford man and it really breaks my heart that whenever anything good is set to come here i.e the music festival/tall ships/ new nightclubs etc. the people are straight away off to put it down. Its this kind of negativity that gives Waterford a bad image.

Imagine, someone thinking about visiting the tall ships race or any thing here for example, decides to check out the forums on boards and all they can see is 'Waterford is a kip' 'tall ships race is expensive and boring' 'the foundry is full of scumbags and children', what kind of city are we portraying?

the tall ships event is a much bigger event then oxegen and electric picnic put together therefore stands can be expected to be sky high, but i dont think paying 6 euro for a burger is going to make people say' jesus im never visiting waterford again, sure i can get a burger for 4 euro in dublin'. Cop on folks and be proud of our county! Spread the good word! Music Fest, Tall Ships, Spraoi, Food Festivals, Bluegrass Festival among so many others. Waterford has so much to offer, and i for one a damn proud to be from here!

abouttobebanned

merlante wrote: »

The worst thing about this forum is that foreigners can log on and read what the locals have to say. It's very dueling banjos on here sometimes...

yeah Im sure foreigners are queuing up to read the waterford forum...where opinions are no longer allowed unless they contain happy thoughts and rainbows.

I'm done with this forum.

EoinHeffernan

im actually totally baffled here. There is a top international event taking place here and yet all that some people do is whinge and moan about food stalls et al. keep in mind all the FREE entertainment being provided over the weekend to the general public and yet ye wonder why prices may be slightly more than normal? Surely a simple economics class should teach the detractors why. Although im not in waterford at the moment i will b back for the festival and unlike some here i will be there to enjoy it.

Dreams aloud

I this some of the negativity on here is typically Irish, not just typically Waterford.

Something good happens i.e. Tall Ships Festival, straight away there are people who want to find some aspect of it to moan about. Prices are generally extortionate for food/drinks at these kind of events worldwide, i think people expect it (Would be nice to be otherwise but...). However, the hotel rates are ridiculous, obviously they want to make money but they're taking too much. Perhaps they should be glad that they'll be full & have extra people around the city that may choose to eat & drink in their bars & restaurants.

Finally,any Waterford person who is concerned with the price of a burger should have their dinner before they go & as a previous poster mentioned, the fast food chains prices will surely be the same as ever so people - both locals & visitors have plenty of options, they're not in the middle of a field like at Oxegan.

This is a special event that will stay in the memories of children & even adults for years to come..so some more positivity people please!

dayshah

abouttobebanned wrote: »

I hate that fcuking smiley. The height of smarm.

:rolleyes:

shaunandelly

Gougers do what gougers do. Hope for the best and prepare for the worst.If traders and Councils want to live by the law of Supply and demand then they know what to expect when it goes quiet.

200motels

All events held anywhere in the world always up there prices, as for prices for a stall I think it's an OK price, it's a huge event and we should all welcome the tourists with open arms, yes people are going to make a few bob out of it, fair play to them, I for one hope it's a huge success and if we get a fraction of the people back it will have been well worth putting on.

Asmodean

Lads just cop on and embrace the event for god sake! The same people moaning are the ones who will turn around then and bitch about waterford being dead and blahdiblah!
Dont be so stupid either to think of this price racketing as a 'greedy waterford attitude' etc etc. It happens everywhere! Its the price to pay for the city pretty much being of national/international significance for that weekend.
Every year for race week in galway, or when the volvo ocean race visited there were about 4 threads a week on this exact same type of situation regarding local businesses. If its too dear for you just go enjoy all the other free entertainment youll get that weekend.

Joey leBlanc

abouttobebanned wrote: »

I hate that fcuking smiley. The height of smarm.

You seem to hate a lot things sonny! Why don't you continue to wade through the misery while the rest of us try to enjoy an international festival on our doorsteps. Life is as dull or exciting as you make it. Judging by your comments you are as unwelcome as a dark rain cloud on a scorching summers afternoon. Lock yourself away for the weekend in question. The rest of us will be down town having a whale of a time.

scout353

At €10 per burger, supply and demand will dictate that the number of burgers sold will be significantly lower than if the price was €5 or €6! The Tall ships was a huge success last time it was here but there are a few caveats........

The last Tall Ships came here in the height of the boom!

I was involved in fundraising for a charity and the town was drained of cash during that time. I remember being involved in a golf classic where the price was €250 per team which was the standard at the time. The Tall Ships golf classic was €1500 per team and the organisers squeezed all their mates to enter a team in that. I was talking to a business man who said he couldn't enter a team in our event cos he had used up his charity budget in that one event! He could have entered and supported six local causes for the price of one event!

I'm not knocking the event but a lot of the figures about spend and economic impact are always inflated anyway and in reality what is the legacy? Doesn't Sproai do the same thing for a fraction of the price!

merlante

Dreams aloud wrote: »

I this some of the negativity on here is typically Irish, not just typically Waterford.

Something good happens i.e. Tall Ships Festival, straight away there are people who want to find some aspect of it to moan about. Prices are generally extortionate for food/drinks at these kind of events worldwide, i think people expect it (Would be nice to be otherwise but...). However, the hotel rates are ridiculous, obviously they want to make money but they're taking too much. Perhaps they should be glad that they'll be full & have extra people around the city that may choose to eat & drink in their bars & restaurants.

Finally,any Waterford person who is concerned with the price of a burger should have their dinner before they go & as a previous poster mentioned, the fast food chains prices will surely be the same as ever so people - both locals & visitors have plenty of options, they're not in the middle of a field like at Oxegan.

This is a special event that will stay in the memories of children & even adults for years to come..so some more positivity people please!

I don't have any problem with people being negative where being negative is warranted, but the sort of all-pervading negativity in Waterford is just unreal. You take a thing like the Tall Ships, which is an overwhelmingly good thing and we have a big thread about rip offs, and somebody saying I hope it never comes back, etc. Waterford, on paper, has one of the highest qualities of life of any city anywhere in Europe. But Waterford people just cannot allow themselves to be happy. This is blindingly obvious to people outside the city.

Phrases like 'I hope it fails...' or 'I hope it never comes back...', etc. are phrases that would be completely inexplicable to anyone outside Waterford. The 'logic' goes something along the lines of 'there are people I hate doing things at a hugely positive event that they should be hated for and even though it would hurt me and the whole community to see the event be a failure, it would be worth it to see those people get what's coming to them'. There's a phrase for it, 'cutting your nose to spite your face'.

I don't have a problem with a thread about the pricing of stalls for the Tall Ships. I also don't have a problem with people complaining and commenting negatively about those prices and giving their opinions, but the level of bitterness towards the organisers and scorn poured over the whole event because of it is completely OTT in my opinion. Real bitterness towards an event that will be absolutely fantastic for Waterford.

calvin_zola

We're not exclusively guilty of ripping people off, go to any major event at festivals, croke park, thurles, lansdowne road around the country or UK and the same prices are being charge

Our hotels are some of the cheapest around it was said in recent weeks http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0321/1224292708101.html proving we are not a rip off city, they have a price ceiling they can't break but business sense dictates that they charge high prices now and review the price closer to the event if they aren't meeting their target, then they may reduce the price to suit more frugal tourists.....
I just checked a hotel price checker website(hotelclub.ie) and for the weekend the 6 main hotels in the city center average 93 euro per night for a single and 130 for a double((65 pp)(breakfast included in some places like the Marina))...... So i personally don't see these prices as extortionate....also some of the hotels like the Ramada, Manor Hotel and the Fitzwilton are already sold out so this proves that people are deciding to purchase....And the inner city hotels are usually more expensive in any City


We don't get too many major events in the south east so I have no problem with the pricing. What happens when demand exceeds supply ; prices will go up....Any other major music, sporting event in Ireland is expensive to go to,so we aren't the only ones guilty of making hay while the sun shines....People aren't stupid, they aren't coming to the tall ships thinking their will be cheap auxiliary services, but it is a cheap event as it is free so there is a trade off there.......
I know from my own experiences in life that if I go to a football match in old trafford or anfield that I will be expected to pay an inflated airline fare and inflated hotel cost for them weekends, when the teams are playing an away game the flights hotels in them cities come down....also if I go to a GAA match and want to enjoy the day and get fed and a few pints I won't have much change out of 140€ and that dosen't include a hotel if it was a big game in Dublin..


I myself don't agree with how the city/county is run sometimes, but I have to back them 100% here, the last tall ships was a success and we will now build on that with this one and if exploiting an influx of bodies into the city provides a little boom in the city I have no issues with it.

Tangled

Going back to the original point, as someone who has organised stalls for many different types of events €1800 +VAT seems quite reasonable, considering the numbers attending, promotion and prominence of the festival etc. I know of an event in Dublin who are currently looking for stallholders to sign up at a cost of €3,000 +VAT, plus a percentage of takings would have to be handed over, and obviously nothing like those numbers will be attending.

Fair play to Waterford for organising such an event, wasn't around for the last one but heard so much about it and really looking forward to seeing it this summer.

Speak Now

Surely this €1800 plus vat doesn't apply to regular city traders?
Is it just for those looking to make hay while the sun shines?
What i mean is surely those stalls you see in red square on any Saturday wont be charged as much

rayc

calvin_zola wrote: »

We're not exclusively guilty of ripping people off, go to any major event at festivals, croke park, thurles, lansdowne road around the country or UK and the same prices are being charge

I think some of the people moaning about the cost of hotels for the Tall Ships must never have left their bedrooms to attend any big event. Was at the Heineken Cup in Cardiff a few years ago and the cheapest hotel to be found was over €300 for a night and it was out near the airport. Do I now hold a begrudging opinion that Cardiff is a rip-off city to which I'll never return?

No, because I'm not an idiot.

calvin_zola

rayc wrote: »

I think some of the people moaning about the cost of hotels for the Tall Ships must never have left their bedrooms to attend any big event. Was at the Heineken Cup in Cardiff a few years ago and the cheapest hotel to be found was over €300 for a night and it was out near the airport. Do I now hold a begrudging opinion that Cardiff is a rip-off city to which I'll never return?

No, because I'm not an idiot.

Too right boy, and something else that you know is that Cardiff is a good enough spot for nightlife etc.... might you consider a repeat visit back there in years to come? Maybe..... So hopefullly there may be this kinda effect on our city aswell.......if the tourists like city, surrounding area they may consider coming back on a normal weekend in the future for the Tramore races, Spraoi or for a golfing trip etc etc

fricatus

kkdela6 wrote: »

the tall ships event is a much bigger event then oxegen and electric picnic put together therefore stands can be expected to be sky high, but i dont think paying 6 euro for a burger is going to make people say' jesus im never visiting waterford again, sure i can get a burger for 4 euro in dublin'. Cop on folks and be proud of our county! Spread the good word! Music Fest, Tall Ships, Spraoi, Food Festivals, Bluegrass Festival among so many others. Waterford has so much to offer, and i for one a damn proud to be from here!

Sums up my feelings...

abouttobebanned

Gotta love people who don't have the balls to speak their mind, even if it's not going to be a popular opinion. It's easy to come on here and say things like "Come on guys...down with all this negativity, let's get behind waterford...don't stop believing blah blah blah"

I'd nearly bet my life on the fact that I've done more for this city than all the people that are making me a convenient scapegoat here. So, I'm not a fan of hotels and bars ripping off people when the tall ships comes to town...that makes me a negative person does it? Bands who are ringing me, day in and day out looking for gigs suddenly want more just cause the tall ships are in town? Me thinking that's a bad thing makes me a negative person? I said that I didn't think this music festival was going to work but still got behind the people who were running it.

Positivity is great, but realism is also quite useful.

dayshah

abouttobebanned wrote: »

Positivity is great, but realism is also quite useful.

Well its not very realistic to say the last Tall Ships was no more an event than a sunny day in the park.

abouttobebanned

Aye, if I recall I was a bit drunk when I posted that. Lesson learned. Never post when there are perfect people watching.

MitchKoobski

Lads....its simple....


Make the burgers and the rolls and home, and bring em into town with ye.

Deisekickboxing

Lol
Wlr news today, park n ride. Planning at advanced stage for the expected 80000
Visitors to the tallshipps
Where did this 500k figure come from