Easter Fair program goes live

A JAM-PACKED schedule of events detailing this year’s four-day Bendigo Easter Fair is now available online.

The 150th seasonal celebration will see the return of the gala parade, egg hunt, torchlight procession and much more to the city’s streets.

Easter Fair Society president Simon Mulqueen said the online program provided a comprehensive outline of what will be on offer from 15 to 18 April.

Despite COVID-19 pandemic-fuelled setbacks, he said he is hopeful this year will be a success.

“We’ve tried to pull everything together as best we can for this year and we think it will be a fantastic festival for all of Bendigo, not only the citizens but also the businesses who have suffered through the last two years as well. It’s a big economic injection for them,” he said.

This year’s line-up includes a Friday Easter egg hunt in Rosalind Park, with some 85,000 eggs to be found.

Carnival central will run for the duration of the fair, featuring rides and attractions on Mundy Street, as well as the Rotary market on Bridge Street and Park Road.

The awakening of the dragon will be held on Sunday afternoon, with the torchlight procession to follow in the evening.

The show will go out with a bang when the gala parade floods the streets on Monday afternoon from 12.30pm.

Bendigo councillor Rod Fyffe, who chairs the Easter Fair’s reference group, said the four-day event was a special celebration and nod to the past.

“The fact that we can actually go ahead with it is just wonderful. After two years of having to call it off, that was really, really heartbreaking. People wanted to see a festival, people wanted to have Easter back.”

To check out the full program, visit bendigoeasterfestival.org.au.