Popular midwinter carnival turns into ticketed event and changes location

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from Dunedin News

From reporter Hamish McNeilly:
The Dunedin Midwinter Carnival is one of the city’s most popular events, but organisers have changed the location and introduced ticketing to make it sustainable.

The annual event, traditionally held around the longest night of the year in the city's Octagon, will now take place over two nights – July 8 and 9 – at First Church on Moray Place.

“It is a little different to what we have done before,” Midwinter Trust chairperson Paul Smith said.

The event, which features giant lantern installations and large projections, is now in its 25th year, but Covid restrictions coupled with a rugby test between the All Blacks and Ireland prompted a new plan.

“We ended up adjusting the event, so it could go ahead, and that meant being able to control entry if we needed to.”

Being able to control entry meant it was now a ticketed event, likely to be limited to about 5000 people per night, and costing $5 a ticket.

A decision on what the event would look like in 2023 was yet to be made, Smith said.

“It would depend on the success of this year.”

Covering costs was essential as “these sorts of projects aren’t cheap”.

The $5 ticket price was similar to the ‘koha’ requested as a donation in previous events, which returned less than $10,000 last year.

“It has always been a tricky thing for us. Not everyone understands we are a small non-profit, and it is not the city council putting on the event, and so many volunteer hours go into it.”

The trust also had to store “these beautiful artworks ... and that is another thing that weighs on our minds”.

“We are constantly trying to find ways to make this event more sustainable ... and that is one of our responsibilities as trustees.”

Organisers planned to promote the event to audiences throughout Otago and Southland. Funding from Enterprise Dunedin’s Regional Events Fund had been secured as part of an effort to increase visitors from outside the city.