Winter Deco Festival boost for Hawke’s Bay as international visitors return

Hannah Patterson in the driver's seat of a 1929 Pheaton, with Niki Warren (left), Hannah McMinn-Collard and Emily Coppell in the back. The well-dressed group give a taste of what's to come from Friday onwards for the Winter Deco Festival. Photo / Warren Buckland

People from as far away as the US will descend on Hawke’s Bay as the region celebrates its boutique Winter Deco Festival.

The Art Deco Trust confirmed tickets for the event, starting Friday, had sold “exceptionally well”, which would come as a relief to the many staff, retailers and punters who missed out on February’s summer Art Deco Festival because of the impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle.

The cancellation of the festival in February came as a blow to many local businesses who “were hoping for a return to some sort of normalcy post-Covid”, Art Deco Trust chair Barbara Arnott said.

“The summer event has significant social and economic benefits for Hawke’s Bay, injecting millions of dollars into the region.”

This year was the third year February’s summer Art Deco Festival had been hit with disruptions.

In 2021, it was cancelled just a day before it was due to start, because of Covid-19 alert level restrictions.

One year later, in 2022, the event was hit yet again by alert level restrictions after the Omicron outbreak.

Napier mayor Kirsten Wise said it was great to have an event like this happen in the city during the winter after February’s cancellation.

“It was a huge disappointment for the Art Deco Trust and event attendees when the February event had to be cancelled, so it’s great that we have Winter Deco to give the city a mid-winter tourism boost,” she said.

“Art Deco is quintessentially Napier. I have always loved getting involved in the festivities, whether it’s summer or winter.”

She said the city welcomed visitors from all over and it was great to see that the event would help the city’s accommodation and hospitality providers during the winter months.

“I know our iSite team are ready and waiting to promote Napier and encourage visitors to come back for another stay in Napier.

“Word of mouth is important for promoting our city and I hope all visitors to Winter Deco come away with fantastic reviews to share with their friends and family.”

Arnott noted that this year’s Winter Deco festival would be particularly special. It includes the re-emergence of some summer events that were cancelled and also has a focus on showing support for communities affected by Cyclone Gabrielle through fundraising activities.

Highlights of the festival include the Spirit of Hawke’s Bay Parade, the new Sound Shell Shindig at the Sound Shell, vintage games, classic 1930s entertainment, and a gold coin sausage sizzle to support the Cyclone Relief Fund.

Art Deco Trust general manager Jeremy Smith said the Spirit of Hawke’s Bay Parade was an open-invitation event where the community could celebrate local heroes who had made an impact after and during Cyclone Gabrielle.

“Vintage cars, modern service vehicles, first responders, defence force personnel, and volunteers will make their way through the CBD, and we extend an open invitation to anyone who contributed to the relief efforts to join the procession,” he said.

Niki Warren (Left), Hannah McMinn-Collard and Emily Coppell liven up the Napier CBD. Photo / Warren Buckland

The festivities officially start on Friday, but keen visitors were already making their presence felt in the Napier CBD earlier in the week.

The Art Deco Trust said they came across a tweed-clad Aucklander who was already getting into the spirit of the festival.

“I love shopping in Napier, it’s such a pleasure being able to walk everywhere, although I might need a hand to get my haul back to the hotel,” the tourist said.

It was also made clear that the festival would happen rain or shine.

A large marquee is planned to go over the Sound Shell in the event of forecast bad weather.