'Near £700,000 gross visitor spend' from 2025 darts festival

Government says event saw increase in attendances last week

This year's Isle of Man Darts Festival generated a gross visitor spend of nearly £700,000, according to government.

This year's event - held at the Villa Marina in Douglas from Thursday to Sunday last week (6-9 March) - also saw an estimated 10 per cent increase in visitor numbers with 962 visitors and competitors in total.

Along with that gross visitor spend - which included travel, accommodation and on-island expenditure - it's also reported the increase in numbers resulted in an estimated 4,800 bed-nights in local accommodation.

Political Member with responsibility for Tourism and Motorsport, Sarah Maltby believes the events like the festival play a 'crucial role' in the Island's tourism sector, particularly in 'out-of-season' times of the year.

Among the highlights during the tournament, claiming the coveted Isle of Man Open men's and women's titles were Christian Perez from the Philippines and and Eve Watson of Wales respectively.

Meanwhile, Chair of England Darts, Tommy Thompson adds: "Once again, the Isle of Man has been an outstanding host and the feedback from both players and spectators has been exceptional. 

"It’s fantastic to see the event growing stronger each year, and I’m especially delighted by the expansion of the Youth category."

Outside the Open classes there were participants across the board in the Classic, Youth, Disabled Classic, Open Mixed Triples and Pairs tournaments.