It is said that  Waterford priest Fr Luke Wadding was the founder of St. Patrick’s Day. In the 1630s, while based in Rome, Wadding was responsible for creating the official list of saints for the Roman Catholic Church. During this process, he included the Feast of St. Patrick on March 17th, which had long been celebrated by the Franciscans. This year, Waterford will honor this legacy with a full lineup of events.Waterford’s St. Patrick’s Day celebrations have been extended to run for over 4 days this year with a host of free activities and events on offer for the young and not-so-young from the city to the county.

In celebration of St.Patrick’s Waterford connection, events will take place from Friday, March 14th to Monday, March 17th under the theme "Saints & Scholars – A Celebration of Waterford’s Rich Heritage," which promises an array of parades, performances, carnivals, and musical events throughout the extended Bank Holiday weekend.
Highlights in Ireland’s oldest city include the St. Patrick's Day Parade on the 17th as the centerpiece event, featuring Waterford native and three-time Olympian, Thomas Barr, as the Grand Marshal.

A newly commissioned show, "FireDance," will debut, showcasing a fusion of local and national talent, including musicians, singers, dancers, designers, and fire performers. This unique production, created specifically for the festival, is anticipated to be a highlight for attendees. 

The city center will come alive with multiple stages set up in the Apple Market, John Roberts Square, and O’Connell Street, hosting over 30 live music acts. Festival favorites like The Booley House will return with their traditional Irish variety show, and attendees can look forward to performances blending Irish dance with hip-hop, medieval reenactments in the Viking Triangle, and a diverse lineup of local and visiting artists.

The festival offers river cruises, walking tours, Celtic knot workshops, city center fairground amusements, and interactive workshops. Children can engage in cake decorating, pizza making, and enjoy the popular Cuddly Farm. In line with the "Saints & Scholars" theme, a special lecture honoring Waterford's own 16th-century scholar, Luke Wadding, will be held at St. Patrick’s Church. The event will feature talks by esteemed historians and a live performance of 17th-century music by renowned cellist Roger David. 

In addition to the city parade, across the county on March 17th there are St. Patrick’s Day parades taking place in Dungarvan, Cappoquin and Tramore. There will be green fever in West Waterford too with the 46th parade taking place in Dungarvan preceded by a vintage car parade plus live music from the main stage in Grattan Square from 1 pm. The parade will commence from Crotty’s corner and travel over the causeway into Grattan Square, turning right over O’Connell Street and concluding at the end of Wolftone Road.

The 11th annual Cappoquin parade commences in the West Waterford town at 11.30 am and in Tramore, the 2024 St Patrick’s Day parade will commence from 1.30 pm proceeding across the Summerhill Junction onto the Old Waterford Road (R682) to the Racecourse Roundabout and then heading downhill to the GAA Roundabout where it will proceed along Lower Branch Road to the former Railway Station Building.

Even though St Patrick’s Day is emblazoned in the heart of the Waterford festival calendar, there was one figure in Waterford’s history who was not so keen on celebrating the national feast day, and that was Waterford’s very own Saint Declan, who lived in Ardmore, Waterford between 350 AD and 450 AD.  

He is a fairly important man and he is said to have brought Christianity to Ireland before St. Patrick had even set foot on the Emerald Isle. In the 5th century, St. Declan left his monastery in Waterford to walk to Cashel to meet with the future patron saint, Patrick; the 72-mile route today is known as the hiking trail of St. Declan’s Way. Legend has it that on that day in the 5th century, St Declan took the pilgrimage to Cashel to sort out this conundrum in a meeting with St Patrick. Here, it was agreed that the Waterford saint would have unchallenged authority over the Deise, with Patrick becoming the primate of all Ireland. Patrick also promised never to enter the territory of Declan — so honour was maintained on all sides. 
The legacy since has been that Waterford to this day has two feast day celebrations, St Patrick’s Day on March 17th and the 24th of July is St Declan’s in his hometown of Ardmore, where the Ardmore Pattern is held in his honour.  

For more details  see visitwaterford.com