Heathcote home to new campaign

A NEW tourism campaign designed to draw visitors to the Heathcote wine region was officially launched on Monday.

As part of the push the inaugural Heathcote Harvest Festival is on this Saturday from 4pm at Barrack Reserve and it’s offering a free family event with a variety of market stalls, sweet food, jewellery and crafts.

Tastings from the region’s top wineries and food trucks will be available, and there also be live performances from Sydney brass collective Hot Potato Band and local bands Vino Sapiens and The Ratbags.

President of Heathcote Tourism and Development, Peter Young, said it’s important to draw people into the region, known mainly for its cellar doors.

“I think it’s great in autumn in our region because it’s also harvest time,” he said.

“We’ve got over 60 members of ours that have vineyards, grow grapes and have cellar doors and wineries at this time of year. There’s a whole lot of activity going on with the harvesting of grapes and making of wine.

“It’s really important we have visitors because tourism is really important for our region now, and we want people who come here to have a great experience.”

Throughout the season, wineries will be offering their own tastings and events.

Manager of tourism and major events at the City of Greater Bendigo, Terry Karamaloudis, said the tourism campaign will hopefully compel people to turn a day trip into an overnight stay.

“There is no better place to encourage the dispersal of visitors than Heathcote, the natural beauty, the world-class wines, the nature-based experiences like Lake Eppalock and the O’Keefe Rail Trail,” he said.

“The inaugural event will be fantastic. That dispersal encourages the circulation of people and when they spend money in and around the region, it supports the economic development and job sustainability of the greater region.”