Katchafire, Sons of Zion to perform summer roadie tour in Mount, Rotorua

The crowds during a Mount Maunganui Katchafire concert in 2018. Photo / Shaun Ross

New Zealand reggae legends Katchafire are going on tour this summer and will be performing in Rotorua and Tauranga before the end of the year.

The Katchafire Summer Roadie tour will play at Rotorua's Village Green on December 27 and Mount Maunganui's Soper Reserve on December 28. The tour will start in New Plymouth on December 26 and end in Hawke's Bay on February 27, also visiting Opononi, Coroglen, Nelson, Kaikoura, Christchurch, Cromwell and Invercargill in between.

The tour will also feature fellow New Zealand musicians Sons of Zion and Laughton Kora at selected shows, with the Mount Maunganui event also including HP Boyz, Tomorrow People and more on the line-up.

The Mount Maunganui and Rotorua venues can accommodate 3500 people at each event and tour promoter Pato Alvarez, from Pato Entertainment, expected all shows to sell out.

Katchafire performing at Mount Park in 2018. Photo / Shaun Ross

He described Katchafire as one of New Zealand's most popular bands, selling out just about every gig they play.

"Katchafire has a history of selling out shows in New Zealand in summer and the demand for live shows is higher now more than ever with more Kiwis wanting to go out and celebrate and create memories with good friends and family," Alvarez said.

Alvarez said there were many reasons it was important to keep concerts going, with entertaining thousands of music fans around the country being just one part of it.

"New Zealanders love outdoor concerts, it's part of our culture," Alvarez said.

"It also generates a lot of income for the local economy, people travel around the country booking accommodation, visiting restaurants and more, which is just what our hospitality industry needs now."

"It also keeps the music industry alive, providing work for our musos, security companies, bar staff, event teams, production companies and many more people who are part of our concerts directly or indirectly."

Tickets for the tour go on sale on Wednesday and will be available at ticketspace.nz.

Katchafire performing at Mount Park in 2018. Photo / Shaun Ross