Tasmania – from the organisers:
Well, the venues are booked, the program is out, the boats are lined up and more than 268 volunteers have already signed up to be part of the largest wooden boat festival in Australia (well, actually one of the largest in the world!).  With 427 registered boats being painted sanded, polished and buffed in preparation for the big show, we are going to put on a display that will please any wooden boat fan with a heartbeat.  The entertainment program alone is worth a festival of its own and we have great new surprises lined up for the Children’s Village, including a circus school with a nautical theme.  The ANMM International Wooden Boat Symposium will see some of the world’s leading authorities on wooden boat design speaking to capacity audiences at the Dechaineaux Theatre and the Tasmanian Seafood Industry Council will have you salivating over fresh crayfish and other great Tassie seafood prepared by mega-chef Tetsuya Wakuda.  You will see exciting action on the water as well, with a keenly-contested match race between the Dutch yacht Oranje (owned by the Kind and Queen of The Netherlands) and local veteran Derwent Class yacht Gnome.  Julie Burgess will also be on the water to defend her 2015 win in the Wrest Point Cup ketch display.  We have a completely re-vitalised Shipwright’s Village, with master craftsmen demonstrating traditional skills and even a demonstration of the elegant craft of fly-rod making in split bamboo.  You won’t be going hungry, either, with more than 60 vendors of fine Tasmanian food and drink on site and a wonderful spot to enjoy it – the Waterside Tavern and Beer Garden overlooking Kings Pier Marina. Is there a more enjoyable way to spend four summer days on the beautiful Hobart waterfront? Not in our book!

It’s been two years since the last Australian Wooden Boat Festival and it’s been a very full program. We were delighted, early in 2016, to be awarded the Tasmanian Tourism Award for Best Major Festival or Event and then go on to win a podium finish with a Bronze Medal in the same category at the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards in Melbourne.

We saw some key retirements on the Festival Board and production team, as Colin Finch and Nigel Reeves passed on the baton to Chris Palmer and Stephen Conway. Technical Director Michael Bullock moved to Japan with his lovely wife Tamami and John Alders moved out of the state to pursue his doctoral studies.   Annette Ritchie, or wonderful Volunteers Manager, retired to her island home on Sydney Harbour and Neil Broomfield passed on his role as Boats Ashore Manager. We are very grateful for all their contributions to making this great event.
So, the site plans have been signed off, the first of our Dutch guests are with us and the USA contingent for the ANMM International Wooden Boat Symposium has lined up their air tickets and are packing their bags. We have a small army of photographers, filmmakers, journalists and bloggers requesting media passes and our volunteer army is being measured up for their colourful festival clothing. There’s a fabulous exhibition emerging at the Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery – The Early Dutch Explorers – which will open the day before the festival starts and seats are selling briskly for the Parade of Sail Luncheon at Wrest Point.

If you are down on the Hobart waterfront, have a look up for the smart white and green MyState banners with the festival logo on them. AWBF 2017 is underway!