About 12,000 people headed along to Christmas at the Park. Photo / Paul Taylor
‘Twas the weekend for festive fun in Hawke’s Bay as two of the biggest events on the Christmas calendar drew thousands, despite their back-to-back scheduling.
Property Brokers Christmas at the Park was held in Hastings on Saturday night followed by the Harcourts Christmas Parade on Sunday afternoon in Napier CBD.
On Saturday, about 12,000 people headed along to Mitre 10 Park for the free Christmas at the Park event, which is put on each year with the help of generous sponsors.
Organiser David Trim said it has now been running for 23 years and he was very happy with the turnout this year, particularly given it was a chilly evening for December.
“It was fantastic. It was such a neat atmosphere down here,” Trim said.
Sir Dave Dobbyn was the headline act for Christmas at the Park.
“Sir Dave got a really good reception. There were a whole bunch of screaming, yelling people at the front of the stage,” Trim said.
“Sir Dave always loves coming to Hawke’s Bay and playing and makes a good point of it.”
Trim said the children’s area was fantastic as well, and it was great to see everyone enjoying themselves with over four hours of entertainment on display.
The Harcourts Christmas Parade also received a great reception with near-perfect conditions on Sunday.
The parade started and ended at Clive Square and weaved around the CBD.
Crowds lined the streets to catch all the colour and fun and watch the floats and entertainers.
Paunovic moved to Havelock North with her family from Croatia seven years ago.