People from around the country and beyond will make their way to the region for a festival-filled summer. Photo / Tom Grut
Rotorua will make history this summer by hosting the first NRL’s Indigenous All Stars v Māori All Stars this summer.
Meanwhile, it will be a festival-filled summer, including first-time events, in Tauranga - just a 40-minute drive from Rotorua - as the city strengthens itself as a summer destination.
This summer, the region hosts Mount Maunganui’s first large-scale New Year’s Eve drum and bass festival, L.A.B’s first large headline show in Tauranga; and the first day-night test held at the Bay Oval.
Millions will be injected into the local economy with no uncertainty around Covid which cancelled many events last summer, and a chunk of international tickets already sold to a number of events with borders open again.
Tuesday December 27: Le Currents
Set in between the trees at Riverside Park in Taupō, the indie festival, which started in 2020, is expected to sell out to a crowd of 8000, Trademark Group promoter Mitch Lowe said.
Sticky Fingers will headline the day along with a careful selection of other indie bands as well as disco and house.
The festival prides itself on being a celebration of art, music and culture.
Trademark Group also oversees Bay Dreams, Famous Last Words and UB40 this summer with the four events catering to up to 39,000 punters.
Thursday December 29: Summer Haze
Legendary Kiwi bands Shapeshifter and Fat Freddy’s Drop will headline this year’s two-stop tour Summer Haze at a stop-off in Tauranga on December 29 at the Wharepai Domain.
Organiser Alex Turnball said ticket sales were slightly slower than last year, but the 7500-capacity event is expected to sell out as did its inaugural event in 2021.
A “decent contingent” from Australia was also expected for the show.
Friday December 30: L.A.B Summer Tour
L.A.B’s first large headline show in Tauranga will be held on December 30 at the Wharepai Domain, and the 8000 tickets are expected to sell out.
“Tauranga is home for most of L.A.B, and there’s always a really special energy any time the band play here,” Loop manager Dan Clist said.
Clist said the gig would be “a massive day” showcasing some of New Zealand’s finest homegrown musical talent; from up-and-coming artists like Summer Thieves, AACACIA, Bailey Wiley, and Tipene, alongside legends like Katchafire and The Black Seeds.
The show will also provide work for about 200 local staff and 16 local vendors, and people are expected to travel from around New Zealand and Australia for the show.
Saturday December 31: Famous Last Words
“Tauranga really needs something for people on New Year’s Eve. Every year we see 3000-plus people on the street unable to enter any bars. We did this for them,” Trademark Live promoter Mitch Lowe said of the inaugural New Year’s Eve festival Famous Last Words.
Eight iconic international drum and bass artists will join 5000 festival-goers in welcoming in the New Year at Trustpower Baypark.
The early bird tickets sold out in four minutes and the first release has also sold out.
Bou, 1991, A.M.C + Phantom MC, Fred V, Koven, and V O E will be some of the drum and bass and EDM acts punters will be excited about.
Tuesday January 3: Bay Dreams 23
About 20,000 people are expected at the popular summer festival Bay Dreams at Mount Maunganui’s Trustpower Baypark on January 3 after 2022′s festival was cancelled due to MIQ uncertainty for international artists.
Ten-time Grammy-nominated artist Diplo - who has collaborated with some of the world’s biggest artists including Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber and Sia - will make an appearance.
There will be more than 35 acts including crowd favourites Sticky Fingers, and drum and bass trailblazers Hybrid Minds, as well as a large selection of local artists.
“Organising a big festival like this is so bloody exciting and it’s what gets me out of bed every day. This is going to be a massive event, with over half of the top-tier line-up being international acts.
“The 2023 festival may not be the biggest in the history of Bay Dreams, but we are working hard to make sure it’s the best-ever festival.”
Crowd numbers would be capped at 20,000 tickets.
Lowe said that in the past a full economic impact assessment showed the festival injected $10 million into the local economy, as attendees usually stayed two or three days.
The festival will also provide work for more than 40 vendors.
Tuesday January 3: Gold Rush Music Festival
Can’t make it to Tomorrowland or Coachella? No worries - Australian electronic dance music (EDM) DJ Alison Wonderland, who headlined both, will headline Gold Rush in Waihi on January 3.
She will join 13 other acts across two stages, including American EDM producer Jauz, and drum and bass icons Dimension and Friction.
The inaugural event in 2022 sold out to 10,000 and is expected to do it again, including an estimated 2 per cent being international partiers. Endeavour Live co-founder Kyle Bell expected interest to grow when the event was more established.
The sister event, Golden Lights, will be held in Christchurch on January 6 and in Auckland the day after.
Wednesday January 4: A Summer’s Day Live ft. UB40, Jefferson Starship & Dragon
The legendary British reggae pioneers UB40 will make their eagerly anticipated return to New Zealand to celebrate more than 40 years, and perform all their hits at shows in Napier, New Plymouth, Matakana, Tauranga, Nelson and Queenstown.
They will be joined by the legendary Jefferson Starship and Australasian heroes Dragon at all six New Zealand dates.
Lowe said the response has been “crazy” and the 6000 tickets for the Tauranga show on January 4 at Trustpower Baypark are on track to sell out, and provide work for 100 staff.
Friday January 6: Juicy Festival
Glenn Meikle is the promoter for the Tauranga stop of the one-day festival Juicy Fest which is scheduled for five shows across New Zealand.
“We’re expecting Juicy Fest Tauranga to be one of the biggest shows of the tour and one of the most popular music events in Tauranga this summer.”
The 2023 line-up includes some of the biggest R&B and hip-hop stars from the 1990s and 2000s, including headliners Nelly, Ne-Yo and Ja Rule. Other acts include Mya, Chingy, Lloyd, Bow Wow, Xzibit, Pretty Ricky and Twista.
Originally set for the Wharepai Domain where tickets quickly sold out, it was moved to the bigger venue, Trustpower Baypark, on January 6.
Friday January 20 to Saturday January 21: Speedway
Thousands of petrolheads will flock to Rotorua where one of the biggest events on the speedway calendar, the Superstock Championship World 240s, will be held at the TWS Paradise Valley Speedway.
Rotorua Superstock Club secretary Sonja Hickey said about 11,500 people were expected over two nights, starting on January 20, and the sport injected “millions” into the local economy each year.
There will be 150 drivers on each night including international drivers from the UK and Holland, back for the first time since 2019.
With borders open again, there will be a contingent from England and Australia.
While the cost of flights may impact this, she said this would be picked up with live streaming.
She said Superstock and Stockcar racing in Rotorua was “unique” to New Zealand where drivers are encouraged to impede the path of other competitors and laps on the 348m track took 15 seconds.
Saturday January 28: One Love Festival
The region’s most popular reggae festival has increased punter capacity from 20,000 to 22,000 - its biggest yet.
About 95 per cent of the tickets sold by mid-December which is on track to be the fastest sell-out since it was started in 2014 at the Soper Reserve.
The acts are local and international fan favourites including UB40 ft Ali Campbell, L.A.B, K Boog, Fiji, Sons of Zion, Kolohe Kai, Rebel Souljahz, Katchafire, and Sean Kingston.
It will be Glenn Meikle’s first festival as the owner - though he’s worked on the bar since the first event - with last year’s show cancelled five days out due to Covid.
Meikle said the festival boundary has been extended to half of the running track to give everyone more space and place to sit in shaded areas.
There will be between 700 and 800 staff, with many being the same contractors over the years.
He said it’s been “a tough couple of years” and he was excited to bring the festival which he described as a place everyone felt “a lot of love”.
Saturday January 28: Beach Break ft. Shapeshifter, Ocean Alley
Turnball also organised Beach Break in Williamson Park on Whangamata’s beach, where 6000 people will dance in the sunshine to Shapeshifter and Australian psychedelic-surf rock legends, Ocean Alley, on Auckland Anniversary weekend.
They will be joined by alternative rock band My Baby, and young acts Masaya and Flaxxies.
The five acts will perform at the inaugural event which will be manned by 100 staff and 12 vendors, Turnball said.
Saturday and Sunday January 28 and 29: That Weekend
The internationally acclaimed Veronicas will headline at That Weekend, a boutique two-day festival 40 minutes from Rotorua held on Auckland Anniversary weekend for 3500 people.
The rest of the diverse line-up of 45 artists caters to a range of tastes; from Australian EDM and drum and bass producer Luude, to jazz and hip hop artist Jordan Rakei, and funky disco beats by local collective Flamingo Pier.
That Weekend has grown compared to its inaugural event in 2021, which had 25 artists across two stages. Last year was cancelled the week before the event due to Covid.
Nexgen Touring director Kurt Barker said hot spring spas, a golf course, tennis courts, a proper old pub and four “idyllic” stages set across “the most beautiful festival site in New Zealand” should be “enough to get anyone excited”.
Saturday February 11: NRL Indigenous All Stars v Māori All Stars
Rotorua will create history by hosting the NRL’s Indigenous All Stars v Māori All Stars games in 2023, the first time the games have been held in New Zealand.
It will be held at the Rotorua International Stadium on February 11.
The contest, featuring men’s and women’s encounters, will land on New Zealand shores for the 12th All Stars fixture – and the fifth between the Māori All Stars and the Indigenous All Stars.
Coverage of the games will be broadcast to 110 countries worldwide across SKY New Zealand, Nine Network, Fox League, and on NRL Live Pass.
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo said the event would benefit communities in the Rotorua region and more broadly in New Zealand.
Rotorua Lakes Council events director Joelene Elliott said it was a “milestone event” and expected it to generate $4m in revenue, attracting national and international visitors.
Teams and support staff would be in the city for five nights participating in training and other events across the city.
From Thursday February 16: Blackcaps v England: 1st Test Match
English tour groups have already booked into Tauranga across five days to watch the Black Caps battle England from February 16, with thousands of Kiwis expected to join.
The game will be the first day-night test held at the Bay Oval and the first in New Zealand for five years, as well as Brendon McCullum’s first test match in New Zealand as the England coach.
Bay Oval manager Kelvin Jones said more than 25,000 spectators flocked to the grounds across the five days the last time the teams played, and he believed the record could be broken if the weather was good and the match lasted five days.
The England team will arrive a few days earlier and train at the Bay Oval, so expect to see plenty of famous English cricketers wandering the streets in the lead-up to the test.
Le Currents
When: December 27
Where: Riverside Park, Taupō
Summer Haze
When: December 29
Where: Wharepai Domain
L.A.B Summer Tour
With The Black Seeds, Katchafire, Summer Thieves, Bailey Wiley & AACACIA
When: December 30
Where: Wharepai Domain, Tauranga
Famous Last Words
When: December 31
Where: Trustpower Baypark, Mount Maunganui
Bay Dreams 23
When: January 3
Where: Trustpower Baypark, Mount Maunganui
Gold Rush Music Festival
When: January 3
Where: Waihi A&P Showgrounds
A Summer’s Day Live ft. UB40, Jefferson Starship & Dragon
When: January 4
Where: Trustpower Baypark, Tauranga
Juicy Festival
When: January 6
Where: Trustpower Baypark, Mount Maunganui
The Coro Classic 23
When: January 7
Where: Coromandel Luxury Escapes, Matarangi
Superstock Championship: World 240s
When: January 20 and 21
Where: TWS Paradise Valley Speedway, Rotorua
One Love Festival
When: January 28 - 29
Where: Tauranga Domain
Beach Break: Shapeshifter, Ocean Alley
When: January 28
Where: Williamson Park, Whangamatā
That Weekend
When: January 28 - 30
Where: Okoroire Hot Springs Hotel
NRL Indigenous All Stars v Māori All Stars
When: February 11
Where: Rotorua International Stadium
Blackcaps v England: 1st Test Match
When: February 16 - 20
Where: Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
Te Ngae Rd's speed limit will rise from 50km/h to 60km/h after a review.