Luma festival canned
Luma organisers have pulled pin on the festival for 2025 due to rising costs and logistics.
Trust chair Duncan Forsyth will be on our Outlet Podcast, out Monday, to talk through the "difficult decision" not to stage the lights and art festival next year.
"Rising costs, organisational demands, and the desire to protect the quality of the LUMA experience have all guided us to make this tough call," the team behind the event says on Facebook.
"We’d rather take a pause than compromise the magic that so many of you have come to love."
The festival, held over King's Birthday Weekend in June, had become one of the highlights of the year for Queenstowners, welcoming around 30,000 people to Queenstown Gardens for spectacular lights, arts and music.
It had replaced Queenstown WinterFest as the annual community get-together. But it was largely organised by volunteers and, like WinterFest, had become unsustainable. It is unlikely to return in its previous form.
"But this isn't the end! Our commitment to community and the arts remains as strong as ever. Programmes like the LUMA Schools and Emerging Artists initiatives will continue, and we’re already exploring fresh ways to celebrate creativity next year and into the future.
"Thanks for being part of this journey so far. Your support has helped make LUMA what it is, and we can’t wait to shape what’s next."
