The ninth annual Beer and Cider Festival is returning this weekend.

Following a two-year absence because of the pandemic, the festival will take place from Thursday through to Saturday at the Villa Marina.

On offer will be more than 120 real ales, ciders, perries, fruit wines and mead.

As with previous festivals, the bars will be situated in the Royal Hall with ample room for visitors, including plenty of seating.

Roger Cave, of CAMRA (The Campaign for Real Ale) Isle of Man, an independent voluntary consumer organisation, explained why it was so special to bringing the event back.

He said: ‘We’re all incredibly excited and thrilled that it is going ahead this year and we know the Manx public are thrilled as well.

‘All advanced ticket sales for instance on the Friday, usually our busiest day, especially between 5pm and 8pm, are all gone.

‘This doesn’t mean we’re not still letting people in, there are tickets you can pick up on the day so please come on down.

‘We usually get just under 3,000 people across the whole festival.

‘This will be the sixth year at the Villa Marina due to capacity, it just kept getting more popular over the years.’

He added that organisers have scaled back their offering ‘slightly’ this year.

‘Once the beer has been opened, we’re only at the Villa Marina for a certain amount of time, so any beer which is left over we have to pour it away which is a great shame,’ Mr Cave said.

Chief Minister Alfred Cannan will open the event on Thursday.

According to CAMRA, there will be something to suit all tastes and palates and food will also be available.

Main sponsors are advocates Humphrey & Helfrich. Their sponsorship has allowed the organisers to peg ticket prices to £5 per session.

CAMRA has said sessions will be the same as previous years but on the Saturday, the Grand National races will be shown in the hall.

Thursday will be a CAMRA members and trade session from 2pm until 5pm and the festival will then open to the general public until 11pm.

For Friday and Saturday it will be open from 12pm until 11pm.

Meanwhile, each year since its inception, CAMRA has chosen an island group or charity to be a beneficiary of the event and this year has announced REACH to be the nominated organisation.

REACH is an acronym for Reflect, Embrace And Create Hope and is a charity which helps people undergoing mental health problems which, if not confronted, can lead to serious consequences for the sufferer.

Tickets are available in advance from the VillaGaiety box office, the Welcome Centre at the Sea Terminal and online. They will also be available on the day.

CAMRA has said that all reasonable precautions will be taken to ensure visitors’ safety in relation to Covid-19, including cashless bars and hand sanitiser stations.

Visit the festival website www.iombeerfestival.com or follow it on social media.