Plenty in store for first Tuki Festival

The inaugural Tuki Festival will start in style next Saturday  at McRae Station, nestled in the picturesque Glendhu Bay.

It is a rebranded, relaunched version of Rippon Festival, which was held 10 times over 19 years and drew thousands to Rippon Vineyard to bask in the hot sun and listen to a range of music.

This year it has moved down the road and festival-goers will be able to find shade in a forest on the site.

Festival director Lynne Christie, of Lake Wanaka SounNZ, said while it was in a new location, Tuki would be built on the same foundations as Rippon.

Ticket sales had been steady and about 2000 to 3000 people were expected to attend, she said.

Ms Christie said locals from  Central Otago  had bought most of the tickets —  about 72%.

She was excited about the artists set to play at the festival, including Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Tapz, Maala, The Phoenix Foundation, Marlon Williams and Arma Del Amor.

"The musicians are really pumped. Almost all of them have new albums coming out so they’re excited to share their new music with everyone."

Event manager Tony Garland said drink sales would be unique compared  with other festivals.

"It’s a bit different to some festivals I’ve worked on. Generally, the festival will own the bar and operate it themselves because it’s a big money stream, but Lynne has very much extended the opportunity to local vineyards and breweries. They’re all running their own little stalls."

"There’s also a marketplace that has a body artist, festival merchandise, ice creams etc. It’s just a little bit different to straight-up food and booze."

Festival-goers could also look forward to a swim  as a swim zone was being established across the road at Glendhu Bay.

"We’ve created a swim zone so halfway through the festival in the afternoon we’re escorting potentially a couple of thousand people down to the lake. There’ll be a buoyed off area in the bay so there’s no boats, and the coastguard will patrol it, as well," Mr Garland said.

He believed people had a lot to look forward to.

"There’s a lot of infrastructure, a lot of things to do and a lot of things to look at, and obviously a lot of music to listen to."

A new water bottle will also debut at the festival.

The Plant Bottle is the first bottle in the world to be made from plants and can be reused as often as desired before composting.

It  takes three to six months to break down in a commercial compost facility.

Festival-goers will be encouraged to buy one bottle and refill it at water stations throughout the day, therefore reducing the festival’s impact on the environment.

The Tuki Festival will be held  every two years and has a resource consent for five events over the next decade.

"This is the dress rehearsal to see if the site works and the flow works. So far it seems to be going very well," Mr Garland said.