Ballarat had one of its busiest Labor Day long weekends in many years, with fine weather and a series of top line events bringing tens of thousands of people to venues around the city over the three days.
The estimated economic impact from the Begonia Festival visitation alone is around $2million.
The city hosted several major events including the Ballarat Begonia Festival; an AFL practice match at Eureka Stadium; the Come to Life Ballarat Basketball Association Labor Day long weekend senior tournament; and the annual antique fair.
Accommodation was booked out for much of the weekend; bed and breakfast facilities were at 99% capacity; hotels and motels 90-100% capacity Saturday night, some availability Sunday Monday; self contained accommodation at 95% capacity for the entire weekend; holiday parks at 90% capacity.
Ballarat Mayor, Cr Craig Fletcher said it had been a spectacular weekend in Ballarat, with perfect weather and well-organised events enticing visitors and locals alike to enjoy the range of activities on offer.
“The March long weekend is always one of our busiest. Ballarat has done extremely well to improve on numbers over previous years”, Cr Fletcher said.
“The feeling of fun, happiness and excitement around the city was palpable. It was a great time to be in Ballarat”.
In Ballarat’s Botanical Gardens, five and a half thousand people marvelled at the spectacular beauty of the annual Begonia display – almost double the number of people who visited the Begonias during last year’s Festival. The number of people taking part in the free walking tours exploring the Gardens and the Prime Ministers Avenue was also well up on previous years.
With attendances over the three days estimated at between 18,000 and 20,000 people – both locals and visitors - numbers were well up on 2010. Five thousand people are estimated to have lined Wendouree parade to watch the Begonia Parade which featured 45 fantastic floats from local schools and community groups.
On the Lake Wendouree foreshore free Begonia Festival activities attracted huge crowds: 36kgs of nails were hammered at the kids’ wood work workshop; hundreds of plaster moulds were painted at the Plaster Fun House tent and thousands of festival-goers enjoyed the free entertainment.
Festival organisers credited the fine weather, the return of water to the Lake and a re-invigorated Festival format with creating a happy vibe that attracted many people to the area.
At Eureka Stadium on Saturday an estimated 7000 people packed the ground to watch North Melbourne defeat the Bulldogs by 13 points in an AFL practise match. Prior to the match the AFL’s ground inspector praised the playing surface and condition of the ground which is maintained by Council’s curatorial staff.
Eighty teams, including 20 local entries, fought it out for the medals at the Minerdome over the weekend at the Come to Life Ballarat Basketball Association Labor Day long weekend senior tournament. Organisers estimate some 1500 people travelled to Ballarat for the event.
Ballarat’s annual Antique Fair saw some 5000 collectors scour the stalls at the Badminton Centre in search of a bargain. A small drop in numbers this year was attributed to a reduction in disposable income for many people in flood affected areas.