Dark days lure visitors to winter wonderland

DARK MOFO has “broken the back” of the traditional aversion to visiting Tasmania in winter with even locals now wanting to get out and about in the cold, tourism gurus say.

Hobart’s accommodation sector is reporting solid bookings over the next few weeks with city rooms starting to get scarce.

Tasmanian Hospitality Association chief executive Steve Old said things were looking really solid a week ago and building as the festival got under way.

This year’s Dark Mofo program runs from June 8-24 with the Winter Feast, which begins on Friday, signalling the festival’s peak — when visitation to the capital almost equals the summer high.

“We expect June to be the equivalent of summer and a visit up the East Coast this long weekend showed there were plenty of mainland visitors around,” Tourism Council of Tasmania chief executive Luke Martin said. “We are expecting a big few weeks.

“Dark Mofo has broken the back of the traditional aversion to coming to Tasmania in winter. Even Tasmanians are getting into it and getting out of the house.

“Add in the upcoming Festival of Voices and the winter hoodoo really is a thing of the past due to event-driven tourism. We now have to find ways of getting more people out into the regions before and after Dark Mofo.”

Salamanca Inn yesterday reported solid bookings with accommodation becoming very tight next week.

The story was the same at Customs House Hotel, where rooms were “basically sold out” and there was also a steady flow of people going in to eat and drink.

Dark Mofo continued yesterday, with international artists gathering at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery to explore issues relating to incarceration.

A Journey to Freedom is guest-curated by Swiss-born Barbara Polla and brings together thought-provoking works by 13 European and Australian contemporary artists, including a photographic series by Tasmanian Ricky Maynard. Sydney between October 20 and 27.

Kensington Palace said the tour would be an official visit. It said further details of the trip would be announced at a later date.

“Their Royal Highnesses have been invited to visit the Realms of Australia and New Zealand by the countries’ respective governments,’’ Kensington Palace said.

— with JIM ALOUAT