THE SUMMER STARTS ON SATURDAY 24 MAY AT NE1’S NEWCASTLE CITY MARINA

This Saturday on Newcastle’s Quayside, you would be forgiven for thinking you were in Monaco – with yachts in the marina, palm trees and a sandy beach.... signalling the start of a packed programme of summertime events delivered by NE1 Ltd. NE1’s Newcastle’s City Marina opens for the season on Saturday and starts as it means to go on with a fanfare event.  At 2pm on Saturday 24 May, the first day of the season – the marina will welcome a flotilla of more than 20 boats from the Royal Northumberland Yacht Club in Blyth.  Their arrival at the NE1’s Newcastle City Marina will be the culmination of the Race of the Riverthat will see the boatscompete in a race down the Tyne to moor up for a weekend of celebrations. The boats will stay for a day and night of celebrations arriving with a fanfare of foghorns, bunting and flags.  All the boats and their crew taking part in the race get into the spirit of the event by dressing themselves and their boats in fancy dress and bunting with NE1 offering an award for the best dressed with a prize of a Fenwick food hamper. This is the 3^rd year that NE1 has hosted the time honoured event which has seen participation rise year on year. This summer, there is scheduled to be a lot of action at the marina, and at NE1’s Quayside Seaside there are even rumours that a 56 metre American super yacht, in the style of Roman Abramovich’s world famous Eclipse, will be coming to Newcastle sometime in the season. NE1’s Newcastle City Marina is gaining an international reputation and has already made its mark on the city’s economy – with only 2 full sailing seasons under its belt; the Marina has already made a significant contribution to the local economy.  Over 1600 boats have visited the marina since its launch in 2011 ploughing thousands into the local economy.  Royal Yacht Association figures suggest that £150 is the average spend per boat per night in any UK marina, which means that in excess of £1/4 million has been generated by NE1’s Newcastle City Marina. Commenting on the festivities at NE1’s Newcastle City Marina, Adrian Waddell, NE1’s Director of Operations said:  “Saturday promises to be a great day on the Quayside and signals the start of NE1’s packed programme of summertime events, the River Race and arrival of the Blyth flotilla heralds the start of the sailing season and with NE1’s Quayside Seaside officially open for the summer, there is now an ideal vantage point from which to watch all the boating action.