Covid-19 may have disrupted our Autumn events calendar, but it hasn’t stopped Carterton’s iconic Daffodil Festival from going ahead.

The Daffodil Festival is biggest event on Carterton’s event calendar, attracting 10,000 guests to take part in activities ranging from the famous daffodil picking at Gladstone’s Middle Run, street markets and stalls, horse drawn surrey rides to the Big Wai Art Sale in the Carterton Events Centre. The 2020 festival will also include the popular Daffodil Express - a historic steam train that brings visitors from Wellington, as well as offering ticketed ride between Carterton and Masterton.

Carterton District Council’s Community Development Manager, Carrie McKenzie, said the council was excited that the move to Alert Level 1 gave council the green light to organise the festival as usual, which is coordinated and supported by the Lions Club of Carterton.

“This event is so important to our Carterton community so we’re glad we can go ahead as planned,” she said.

“We intend to bring the same level of fun and activities to the 2020 festival, while taking into account that we may still be in Alert Level 1 in September.

“This means providing QR codes at various locations to help people keep a digital diary of their attendance in case they may need it later for contact tracing.”

Mayor Greg Lang said the festival was a great way to kick off the spring events and festival season and help support our local economy.

“We know our Daffodil Festival is popular among both our residents and out of town visitors,” he said.

“I’m sure this will provide some assurance and welcomed income to our stall holders and local businesses who have felt the effects of Covid.

“What better way to support our local economy than bringing thousands of visitors to experience all the fantastic products, services, activities and must-see attractions our district has to offer.”

The Daffodil Festival is set to take place on Sunday 13 September 2020. Keep up to date with all the Daffodil Festival news by following www.facebook.com/CartertonDaffodilFestival.

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