{"id":8354,"date":"2019-07-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-28T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/?p=8354"},"modified":"2020-04-02T05:37:14","modified_gmt":"2020-04-01T19:37:14","slug":"au-top-10-festivals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/australia\/events\/au-top-10-festivals\/","title":{"rendered":"We\u2019re calling it! These are Oz\u2019s top 10 festivals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australia is home to some seriously awesome \u2013 and seriously unique \u2013 festivals. They celebrate so much of what makes this country amazing and offer the perfect excuse to get out and explore more of Oz (not that you need one \ud83d\ude09). Which is why we here at Wotif think we need more of them. So we\u2019ve launched a nation-wide search to give one lucky Australian destination a brand-new festival \u2013 and we need YOUR help to do it. Tell us your brilliant festival idea and we might just make it happen!<\/a><\/p>\n

Need some inspo first? Check out our (current) 10 favourite festivals, starting with…<\/p>\n

10. Tasmanian Whisky Week<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

All over Tassie<\/strong><\/h3>\n

12-18 August 2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Wet your whistle with a week of whisky in Tasmania. There\u2019s tastings, distillery tours and you\u2019ll have the chance to meet the distillers themselves.<\/p>\n

Tasmanian Whisky Week also includes a rare whisky auction. Pass us a paddle!<\/p>\n

9. Cheesefest<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Adelaide, SA<\/strong><\/h3>\n

26-27 October 2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

At Cheesefest in Adelaide, all things cheese are celebrated (and tasted). There are masterclasses, tastings, and two G&T bars. What more could you want?<\/p>\n

The festival also celebrates all things fermented, which includes wine and, of course, cured meats. Throw us the lavosh, please! \ud83e\uddc0\ud83c\udf56\ud83c\udf77<\/p>\n

8. Melon Fest<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Chinchilla, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

February 2021<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"Oz<\/p>\n

Remember last year when we celebrated our 18th birthday by giving Chinchilla Australia’s Next Big Thing, The Big Melon<\/a>? Well, this is what helped them win it! Chinchilla is home to Melon Fest, a biennial event that celebrates the town’s proud melon-farming history.\u00a0Channel your inner Baby Houseman and carry a watermelon in the Melon Dash for Cash. Or go for a slip’n’slide on the giant watermelon slide! \ud83c\udf48\ud83c\udf49 You\u2019ll definitely need a change of clothes and a towel for this fruit-filled fest.<\/p>\n

7. Parramasala<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Parramatta, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

March 2020<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Like the name suggests, Parramasala is a perfect, delicious blend. It\u2019s a sensory explosion that celebrates the vibrancy and awesomeness of multicultural Sydney. With food and entertainment from some of Australia\u2019s First Nations, as well as South-East Asia, South America, the Middle East, Africa, and everywhere in between, it\u2019s like an international staycation!<\/p>\n

6. Noosa Food and Wine Festival<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Noosa, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

May 2020<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Every year, the golden sands of Noosa Beach play host to a gourmet foodie\u2019s dream \u2013 the Noosa Food and Wine Festival. Watch celeb chefs work their magic and learn from the best with tempting masterclasses.<\/p>\n

Food. Wine. Noosa. We\u2019re there already.<\/p>\n

5. Parkes Elvis Festival<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Parkes, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

8-12 January 2020<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Every year, around the King\u2019s birthday (8 January), more than 25,000 people come together to celebrate Elvis Presley\u2019s music, style and the \u201850s in general at the Parkes Elvis Festival.<\/p>\n

There are more than 150 events, like Elvis look-a-like competitions for all ages (including little Elvises), rock\u2019n\u2019roll dance-offs and classic vehicle shows. All we can say to that is \u201cThank you, thank you very much.\u201d \ud83c\udf99<\/p>\n

4. Moomba<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Melbourne, VIC<\/strong><\/h3>\n

6-9 March 2020<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In Melbourne, the March long weekend means one thing: Moomba.<\/p>\n

Moomba is Australia\u2019s biggest free community festival and it\u2019s full of rides, exciting events and family fun. It\u2019s also the home of the Birdman Rally, a wacky competition where contestants wearing homemade flying devices \u2018fly\u2019 as far as they can over the Yarra River. Spoiler alert: They don\u2019t get far \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

3. Parrtjima<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Alice Springs, NT<\/strong><\/h3>\n

April 2020<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Parrtjima is a festival of light celebrating Australia\u2019s incredible First Nations cultures \u2013 the oldest continuing cultures in the world. Using the latest light technology, Arrernte and other Central Australian First Nations art is projected onto the magnificent MacDonnell Ranges and Alice Springs Desert Park, the land acting as a natural canvas. With storytelling, music, dance, and workshops too, Parrtjima is a one-of-a-kind of event that has to be experienced to be believed.<\/p>\n

2. Floriade<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Canberra, ACT<\/strong><\/h3>\n

14 September \u2013 13 October 12 2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Floriade is a huuuge celebration of spring \u2013 in fact, it\u2019s Australia\u2019s biggest. Last year it attracted a whopping 480,540 people, which… WOW!<\/p>\n

Floriade is held in Canberra\u2019s beautiful Commonwealth Park, where you\u2019ll find over one million stunning blooms stretching out as far as the eye can see. And the fun doesn\u2019t end when the sun goes down. Floriade also parties after dark with NightFest, which lights up the gardens and fills the park with live music, comedy, roving entertainers, interactive displays and delicious food. Which all sounds amazing, so you\u2019re probably wondering what could top it. Well…<\/p>\n

1. Broken Heel<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Broken Hill, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

13-15 September 2019<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Life outback is never a drag, darling \u2013 especially not when you\u2019ve got events as fabulous as this. Every year, the Broken Heel festival celebrates the anniversary of the cinematic release of the Aussie film classic\u00a0The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert<\/em>. And it\u2019s our No.1 pick for Australia\u2019s (current) best festival.<\/p>\n

What makes it our fave? It was a tough call with so many incredible festivals to choose from. But what clinched it is this: Broken Heel celebrates an iconic and quintessentially Australian part of our culture in a place that\u2019s intrinsically tied to it (ie: in and around Broken Hill’s Palace Hotel, where much of the filming for Priscilla<\/em> took place). It\u2019s still a relatively new festival, having only started in 2014, but already it brings thousands of people to Broken Hill every year. It\u2019s the kind of event you won\u2019t find anywhere else in the world \u2013 and with drag king and queen competitions, a street parade, a bloody mary moo moo brekkie, and more parties than you can shake a stiletto at, it\u2019s just a whole lot of fun!<\/p>\n

Feeling inspired? Tell us your brilliant festival idea and we just might make it happen!<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/i> TELL US YOUR FESTIVAL IDEA <\/a>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Australia is home to some seriously awesome \u2013 and seriously unique \u2013 festivals. They celebrate so much of what makes this country amazing and offer the perfect excuse to get out and explore more of Oz (not that you need one \ud83d\ude09). Which is why we here at Wotif think we need more of them. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":8372,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[740,771],"tags":[543,36,503,546,549,548,545,544,547,40],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8354"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8354"}],"version-history":[{"count":28,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8354\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8394,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8354\/revisions\/8394"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8372"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}