Sandcastle Competition

Saturday, September 21, 2024

Event is free and open to the public
East Beach parking is $15 (CASH ONLY; NO ATM)

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East Beach
1923 Boddeker
Galveston, TX 77550

PRESENTING SPONSOR

Platinum Bucket Sponsor

Gold Bucket Sponsor

Silver Shovel Sponsor - Beer Tents

Silver Shovel Sponsors

Bronze Shovel - Public Access Sponsor

Bronze Shovel Sponsors

Friends of Sandcastle

Event image

2024 Sandcastle Competition

September 21, 2024

Call 811 - Know what's below. Call before you dig

ABOUT THE 2024 EVENT
The AIA Sandcastle Competition is a fundraising event for AIA Houston and ArCH Foundation as well as one of the top five revenue-generating events for the City of Galveston. Competing teams have their eyes and shovels set on winning the prestigious Gold Bucket Award. Firms begin months in advance generating ideas, developing designs, and assigning duties. On the day of the event, the teams - stretched along the beach front - meticulously sculpt their piles of sand and work non-stop for five hours.
The judging of the sculptures is rated on the originality of concept, artistic execution, technical difficulty, carving technique, and utilization of the site.  At the end of the day, everyone goes home with memories of a great day at the beach filled with fun, sand, and sun.

THE SAND SCULPTURES

Please respect the hard work of our participants by not touching any of the sand sculptures even after the event.
 Many spectators visit the beach the next day, on Sunday, to view and enjoy the sculptures.

EVENT DAY
6:30am Beach opens for teams and sponsors
9:00am Public is encouraged to begin to arrive to watch the competition
10:00am - 3:00pm Teams compete and build
10:00pm - 4:00pm Castle Creation Kid Zone
10:00pm - 4:00pm Solar Cooking Demonstration
11:00am | 1:00pm | 3:00pm Sandcastle Building Lessons from a Pro
1:00pm - 3:30pm Public favorite voting
3:00 - 4:30pm Judging
5:00pm Awards

PARTICIPATING TEAMS
A list of participating teams can be found HERE (coming soon)

BEACH VENDING PERMITS
AIA Houston does not contract vendors/food trucks for the event.  Any interest in becoming a concessionaire at East Beach should be directed to the Galveston Parks Board. https://www.galvestonparkboard.org/171/Concessionaires

Report Sea Turtles 866-887-8535 (866Turtle5)
Report Stranded Mammals 800-962-6625 (9Mammal)

TEAM Questions? Contact Ellen
SPONSORSHIP Questions? Contact Aleks

Resources

Event Information [PDF 142.44 KB]