Country music festival to debut in Tropical North Queensland later this year


Already marking up those calendars for 2020? Then pencil this one in: the Mareeba Shire Council has announced a country music festival to happen in FNQ over the Queen's Birthday long weekend this October. 

The event, called Savannah in the Round, will draw up to 15,000 attendees to Kerribee Park Rodeo Grounds in Mareeba for three days and nights of world-class country music, camping, food and creative activities. 



Savannah in the Round will also place a strong emphasis on First Nations culture to coincide with the Year of Indigenous Tourism, with opportunities for festival goers to experience First Nations storytelling, art, music and dance. 

The festival is coordinated by Sound Australia, an events and brand partnerships company that has worked with the likes of CMC Rocks Queensland and the Airlie Beach Music Festival. 

Festival director and Sound Australia CEO James Dein believes the tropical location will be a prime draw for artists and festival goers alike.

"The Mareeba festival site is as good as I have seen in the country,” said Mr. Dein. “With such great infrastructure and the incredible reef and rainforest experiences on their doorstep, I can’t imagine any international artist not wanting to put this great new event on their calendar."

Besides featuring over 30 international, national and local artists for entertainment, the scale of Savannah in the Round promises to provide a boost to the local economy. Sound Australia has already secured over a dozen local community groups to provide services for the event and expects to see $4.5-5.5 million impact in the event's first year of operation. 

Savannah in the Round is just one of many events expected to bring tourism and revenue to the state this upcoming year. 

“This event will deliver a strong return for the Cairns economy and will have a great flow-on effect for local
businesses” says Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones. “Over the last five years, we’ve more than doubled the value of Queensland’s major events calendar which will generate $880 million for our state in 2020.”

The musical lineup will be announced in the next month on the Savannah in the Round website, as will discounted early-bird tickets.