Festivale is now a showcase of Tasmanian produce, wines, beers, spirits and ciders. It is designed to give patrons the opportunity to taste and sample multiple offerings all in one place. From a tourism perspective, the event is marketed as a one stop shop to sample many offerings without the need to travel between multiple locations. Festivale hosts 70 stallholders from around the state and they are chosen from around 130 applications. But Festivale is much more than a food and beverage festival. The event boasts an incredible entertainment program across multiple locations within the park. The VJAM stage hosts local and interstate musicians. Many local musicians’ debut on the Newton and Henry stage. Other features include Fresh Comedy, beverage masterclasses and cooking demonstrations. Local chefs showcase their recipes to hundreds of patrons at each demonstration. Guest chefs have included Manu Fieldel, Matt Moran, and Karen Martini with Colin Fassnidge featuring at Festivale 2026. Sunday has been developed as a family day with children under the age of 16 admitted free and a dedicated kids kingdom area includes multiple activities for all ages including laser tag, face painting, art and crafts and music workshops.
appeal to Tasmanians and visitors alike.
What makes Festivale unique is the venue of City Park. Heritage listed trees, rolling lawns and a relaxing environment provides the perfect background for patrons to enjoy all that the event has to offer. Although a northern based event, Festivale attracts around 12 per cent of attendees from interstate and 35 per cent from intrastate (outside of the Launceston region). Festivale is organised by a volunteer 12-member committee and employs a full time Event Manager with a works crew including Site Manager being employed casually for the event.
The Festivale program has been developed to
33 Tasmanian Hospitality Review December/January Edition
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