Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers begins this Thursday: prepare for 30 days of flowers, flavours, music and fun!
The famous floral celebration will extend over all 30 days of September as a joyous program of petals, flavours, sounds and sights.
The event is being headlined by over 190,000 spectacular blooms, flourishing under the hands of an army of Council gardeners, with the best viewing places being Laurel Bank Park, Queens Park and the Botanic Gardens, Spring Bluff Station Gardens and the all city’s gorgeous public spaces and parks.
This Saturday a new event takes over Spring Bluff in the Tipsy High Tea, staged in partnership with Lockyer Valley Regional Council. This will be an extraordinary experience at the beautiful heritage-listed station that boasts 150 years of railway history and magnificent gardens (see all events here).
This year’s regional food trail #trEATS (Toowoomba Region EATS) features a record number of floral-inspired dishes from cafes, restaurants and bars all priced between $10 and $20. From a dessert representation of Toowoomba’ famous Table Top Mountain by Muller Bros, to a reimagined Tiramisu featuring Persian rose fairy floss and a flower petal lollipop from Cobb & Co, to a Carnival Cocktail Salad from Kajoku, and Coconut Cherry Bloom Gelato complete with edible flowers from Gelatissimo Toowoomba, there’s 43 #trEATS to choose from!
The famous three-day Festival of Food and Wine will be held from 9 to 11 September, showcasing the best in regional produce and Australian music in Queens Park. Iconic Australian band The Whitlams will perform their entire Eternal Nightcap album, with their set marking the incredible 25th anniversary of the album. They will be joined by Vera Blue, Ash Grunwald, The Chantoozies and a standout lineup of local sound makers including Cardboard Cutouts, Flamingo Blonde, Jasmine Aleisha, Kane Maher, The Van Trio, The Hobsons, Lenna Maree Moxey Duo, The Fibonacci Band and Cool Nights Big Band.
Much-loved MasterChef Australia winner, author, and champion of local flavours and real cooking styles, Julie Goodwin will be a special guest at this year’s Festival of Food and Wine! Julie will be demonstrating on Saturday September 10 and Sunday 11 September at 10:30am, 12:30pm and 2:30pm,showcasing a range of in-season produce from around the Toowoomba Region.
Famed local brewer 4 Brothers Brewing has created a signature floral beer, available at the Festival Cocktail Bar and at the brewery all month. The beer – Carnivale – is an Ale featuring Calendula flowers. Their flagship Toowoomba Lager will also be on offer – it is the first beer sporting the Toowoomba name produced in the last 40 years and since it was first brewed in late 2018, it has won five medals, including Silver at the 2021 Royal Qld Food & Wine Show.
Toowoomba Region’s first artisan distillery in Pechey Distilling Co will also shine during Festival with their signature Homestead Gin, featuring heirloom kumquat and lemon myrtle from the homestead gardens, and their triple distilled 1868 Vodka. The event will be home to more than 35 food and wine stalls, and will feature the exclusive Botanical Society area, The Tasting Room Bar, Farm to Fork Demonstrations, beer and cocktail bars, the BBQ Pityard and more. Sixteen wineries will take part including Preston peak Winery, Symphony Hill Wines, Twisted Gum Wines, Kingsley Grove Wine, Golden Grove Wines, Jester Hill Wines and more.
The Grand Central Floral Parade – the event that stops the city, with thousands of families lining the streets to watch – will be held on Saturday 17 September, again at the earlier time of 10am. In the Botanic Gardens at Queens Park, the ever popular Ferris Wheel program has been extended to run 16 to 25 September from 9am to 8pm, coinciding with the stunning Night Garden experience which will shine all month.
This year the Petals and Pups 2022 program – the official dog-friendly schedule, completely dedicated to hounds and their humans and in salute to Toowoomba’s first canine Ambassa-dog, ‘Puppy’ the Pomeranian – features more than 20 dog-friendly activities and 27 off-leash parks.
New for 2022 is the Teddy Bear’s Picnic at Picnic Point on 24 September. Featuring shows, fairy bread making, face painting, food stalls and of course a Teddy Bear Parade, this is one for all ages! The famed TAMBO TEDDIES have created a tribute bear for the gardeners of Toowoomba – his name is Dug (of course!), and he will go home with one very lucky picnicker at the end of the Teddy Bears’ Picnic.
Cinema Under the Stars also returns, this time at a new venue at Newtown Park, along with the famous Talking Pubs Tours, Twilight Tours of Laurel Bank Park, Hanging Baskets at Cobb+Co Museum, Sideshow Alley in Queens Park from 16 to 18 September, the city-wide Parkland Entertainment program featuring local musicians, and all of the floral displays, open gardens and petal-related activities the city is famous for.
Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers 2022
1 – 30 September 2022
The FULL PROGRAM is LIVE, tickets on sale now at tcof.com.au
Accommodation, day trip and longer stay itineraries are all available.
Festival of Food and Wine – September 9 to 11, 2022
Daily 3 Day Pass
Adult 18+ $60 $135
Concession Card Holder 18+ $40 $90
Youth 12-17yrs $15 $33
Child 3-11yrs* $10 $22
*child 2yrs and younger FREE
Tickets at: tcof.com.au
