There was a chant of "Gin Gin Gin" from the crowd just before singer-songwriter Gin Wigmore took the stage mid-afternoon as the feature act of the festival.
"Isn't this awesome . . . this is wicked," Wigmore enthused as she viewed the huge crowd.
A long queue formed yesterday morning as 500 additional tickets were sold at the gate.
It was estimated about 200 of those queuing missed out.
The festival's organising committee negotiated with the Waitaki District Council to allow the extra 500 people on to the site.
Before that, the number was restricted to 2500 and tickets were soon sold out.
Wigmore, recently voted New Zealand's sexiest female celebrity, proved a major drawcard.
With such a large crowd, those running the 54 stalls were busy.
Terre Aubrey, from Omarama, was promoting shatterproof and stemless wine glasses, were created in the United States by her brother Boyd Willat, a product designer from California, and Joseph Perulli, a former wine wholesaler.
First-time festival visitors Anna King, of Dunedin, and Gemma and Lucy Westgarth, of Timaru, said they would be back, while Craig Gibson, from Queenstown, said it was a "magic" day.
Five arrests were made on charges of disorderly behaviour, possession of cannabis utensils and trespass.
