Second time lucky for Queenscliff Twilight Market

THE QUEENSCLIFF Twilight Market, one of several events across the region rescheduled due to extreme weather conditions this summer, returned on January 3.

Event organiser Andrew Orvis from Queenscliff Music Festival said the original December 30 date was postponed as temperatures soared into the low forties, with last Friday’s weather much
more suitable.

“We made the call the day before as the forecast kept getting worse and worse. We rescheduled which involved a little bit of work. Obviously not on the same scale as Falls Festival but we still had to contact all the vendors.

“We were really lucky in the sense that a lot of them were available for January 3 and were happy to change the date, the same went for the entertainment.

“A couple of musicians were unavailable on the new date but we had quite a long waiting list so were able scramble and find a replacement, it all came together pretty well.”

The market drew thousands who perused a variety of stalls, soaked up the entertainment from the main stage and devoured delicious food and drinks at Princess Park from 4 to 9pm.

“It was great, a really good turnout. The weather was perfect; if we had have kept it December 30 it would’ve been 43 degrees as the bands took to the stage. It would’ve been a nightmare,” Mr
Orvis said.

“This is the second year in a row we’ve run the market. We learned a lot from the first year and added more food stalls, we got the number right this time. We tweaked a few things and had The Mik Maks on stage first to get families up and dancing.”

Mr Orvis said he had the idea for a twilight market a couple of years ago to attract holiday makers to the town and give people something to do while showing off what the borough has
to offer.

“There’s a lot of people down here this time of year looking for something to do. I thought a market would be a perfect way to do that while also raising money for the Queenscliffe Community Market who secure the vendors and stall holders,” he said.

“This year we also had volunteers collecting for the Red Cross appeal and we raised $3,342 which will go towards the fires. We had to keep emptying the tins; they were filling up so quickly, it
was fantastic.

“We’re already starting to look at dates for next year and are keen to come back, as are a lot of the vendors which is always a good sign. The QMF team were really happy to be part of the Queenscliff Twilight Market, it was a great event.”