The Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events has announced that White Night Bendigo will return in October.
Minister Martin Pakula said the first White Night Bendigo in 2018 had attracted a crowd of 60,000 people and was a highlight on Bendigo’s events calendar.
“The event generated $5.5 million for the local economy, and its return in 2020 will provide more good news for local businesses and jobs,” Mr Pakula said.
“Tourism is an important industry for Bendigo and the wider Goldfields region, with 7.9 million domestic and international overnight visitors in the year to September spending an estimated $1.3 billion,” he said.
“Bendigo is known for its strong cultural credentials – which White Night will continue to build.”
Mr Pakula said Bendigo was establishing itself as a leader in regional food and wine, recently awarded ‘City of Gastronomy’ status in the UNESCO Creative Cities network, an Australian first.
“Bendigo was one of 10 cities to be designated in the gastronomy category, joining the likes of Barcelona and Montreal,” he said.
“White Night will continue to celebrate the creativity and beauty of Victoria’s regional cities in 2021, with Geelong taking over as host.”
Mr Pakula said the event would transform the leading regional centre into a visual and cultural spectacular.
