New spot for next Moonlight Market

THE popular Moonlight Market will make its long-awaited return next weekend, but in a new location.

On Saturday, 29 January the market will be held in the Dai Gum San precinct from 5pm to 9pm.

Founder and organiser Linda Whillance said while the move was prompted by construction on the new Accor Mantra Hotel in Hargreaves Mall, it would be a good fit for the growing event.

“We’re really excited to bring the area to life. There’s room to grow the market and considering the growth happening in Bendigo and how busy our last market in May was, we definitely need more space,” she said.

“We’ve always wanted people to come and hang out for the night, not just shop or grab a bite to eat and leave but sit around and enjoy the atmosphere and vibe, so we love that there is extra space and seating at Dai Gum San.

“There’s so much potential, so we’re really looking forward to seeing how the market evolves at our new home.”

With ongoing uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic, Ms Whillance said it was difficult to plan the event but the team were remaining hopeful with all 80 stalls now booked out.

“It’s a risk for sure. We had to cancel three markets last year and we’ve only been able to hold one market in almost to two years. It’s a lot of work to put in with the potential for no return,” she said.

“We may lose some stalls due to isolation requirements and it’s hard to know what will be happening in a week, so it may end up being a little smaller than we’d hoped.

“However even if that is the case, we’ll still have live music, food trucks and a bar, so even though it may look a little different from our ideal event it’ll still be a nice night out for everyone.

“We’re so excited to bring Moonlight back for everyone and bring some life back to the CBD.”