Events Tasmania

When it comes to events, Tasmania has a lot to offer.  People contact Think Tasmania asking…

• why haven’t we covered this or that?
• when are we going to include their special patch?
• how could we have possibly missed so and so?

We love the feedback, and we have a growing list of things to do in Tassie.
And we do try our best to cover as much as possible.  Seriously!

Maybe if we show you just a fraction of the events Tasmania has scheduled just for February, you might believe us!

Middleton Country Fair

You’re already too late for this one in 2011!  But Middleton (Feb 5) just celebrated 20 years of family festivities, so there’s bound to be more fun next year.  The small country town in The Channel region south of Hobart provides entertainment, demonstrations and competitions for all ages.  The scarecrows are a particular highlight.  Check out our Middleton Country Fair report, and mark your diary for next time around.

Middleton Country Fair, an annual event in Tasmania

Weekend of Tennis in Tasmania

Australia played Italy in a Fed Cup tie (Feb 5-6) at the Queens Domain in Hobart last weekend.

Sam Stosur plays in the Fed Cup Event in Hobart, Tasmania

It’s not every day you have access to elite athletes representing their countries… but this Tasmanian event boasted 2 of the current top 5 female players in the world.

Fed Cup match played in Tasmania: Francesca Schiavone of Italy

The Moorilla Hobart International was held recently at the same fabulous boutique stadium; while Tasmania’s North West has just hosted the Burnie International event.

Australian Wooden Boat Festival

Hobart also hosts some of Australia’s national events.  Tasmania will be alive with activity this long weekend (Feb 11-14) when the wooden boat community descend on Sullivan’s Cove.  The waterfront docks of Hobart will have maritime demonstrations, exhibitions and all things nautical.

February events Tasmania: Australian Wooden Boat Festival

The festival will include food, live music, theatre; as well as displays of model boats.  Organisers are promising over 500 wooden boats on show, and entry to the festival is free!

Royal Hobart Regatta

Combining with the Australian Wooden Boat Festival over the February long weekend is the Hobart Regatta (Feb 12-14).  Another free event for the public to enjoy, it’s also based around the Derwent River.  Originally started by the Governor of Tasmania in 1838, the festival events include yachting, rowing and wood chopping.

Royal Hobart Regatta event in Tasmania: Navy demonstration

There are carnival rides, food stalls, competitions, navy demonstrations and entertainment over the three days, culminating in a fireworks display on Monday evening.

Launceston’s Festivale Weekend

The same weekend, but this time in the north of the state:  even more events.  Tasmania is very fortunate to have the Taste Festival in Hobart and then Festivale (Feb 11-13) in Launceston.  Held in City Park over three days, Festivale showcases some of the state’s fine produce.  Patrons wine and dine in lovely garden surrounds, while the entertainment program incorporates a makers market, live music, art exhibitions and a Festivale Photography Competition.

Festivale: Launceston City Park, Tasmania (Photo by Dan Fellow)

The Chudleigh February Show

Tasmania’s events program includes a series of agricultural shows around the state.  One example is the Chudleigh version (Feb 19), first held in 1889, making it one of Tasmania’s oldest shows.  The focus of the annual event is to promote the local farming industry, with attractions including sheep-dog trials, a ute muster, vintage tractors and a demonstration of horse tricks.  Food (as usual) plays an integral role among the range of stalls.

Chudleigh: The Honey Farm (Photo by Dan Fellow)

Just while we’re on the subject of Chudleigh…
Dan Fellow (via Facebook) told us about the
Bees Around the World exhibit at The Honey Farm.
So there’s another thing on our list!!

Heritage Kempton Festival

Here’s one for the Tasmanian history buffs:  an annual event showcasing life in the Southern Midlands township of Kempton during its heritage days as a coaching village.  A more recent introduction to the events calendar in Tassie, the Kempton Festival (Feb 20) was started in 1996 by the Green Ponds Progress Association to promote the town.

Horse-drawn carriage rides through the streets meld with parades, displays, performances, and of course… food!

Summer Music in Tolosa Park

Not one, but a series of musical events held in the Soundshell at Tolosa Park in Glenorchy (a northern suburb of Hobart).  The outdoor venue is perfect for a summer picnic, and the performances are a bonus provided by the Glenorchy City Council.  Still to come in February are the final two concerts in the series…  the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony Under the Stars (Feb 19) and the Northern Suburbs Country Music Day (Feb 27).  Entry to Tolosa Park for the Summer Music Series is free.

Events: Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra

Evandale Village Fair

This truly is one of the most unique national events.  Tasmania plays host to the National Penny Farthing Championship as it combines with the Evandale Village Fair (Feb 19) in the north of the state each year.

Events in Tasmania include the Evandale Village Fair

We enjoyed our time last year watching the daring riders sprint around the Evandale town circuit, and particularly liked the grand parade of vintage cars, machinery and period costumes.

Riders in the National Penny Farthing Championship, Evandale

Other Events Tasmania Boasts…

There’s no doubting today’s list is far from exhaustive.  Annual and bi-annual events in Tasmania compete for attention with a string of monthly and weekly markets.  Then there’s travelling performances, sporting competitions, car rallies, art exhibitions and all manner of shows and festivals.  Not to mention the tourist attractions, towns, beaches and national parks…

We do consider ourselves very lucky to have all this laid out before us.  It’s just a shame some of the events overlap.  And an even bigger shame that we have to allocate at least a small amount of time to boring things like domestic duties, homework and sleeping!!

However… we pledge to soldier on, eventually
covering all the events Tasmania has to offer.

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