COUNTDOWN TO CARNIVAL
Thousands flock to Garden City
THOUSANDS of people were out in force in Toowoomba’s parks last weekend to check out the gardens ahead of the Carnival of Flowers.
Both the Botanic Gardens at Queens Park and Laurel Bank Park were filled with people all day checking out the flowers ahead of the carnival.
Tens of thousands of people are expected in Toowoomba on Saturday for the annual parade which will take over the centre of town.
Toowoomba Regional Council tourism spokesman Geoff McDonald said it wasn’t surprising to see visitors here already.
“It happened last year as well,” Cr McDonald said.
“It’s amazing to see so many people already converging on our region.
“If the flowers hold on like the gardeners hope, we could still be seeing people come up here after carnival has ended right through the school holidays and into late October.”
He said the crowds that had already visited Toowoomba to see the gardens included a mix of different ages.
“What’s really interesting about the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers is that it resonates through the generations,” he said.
“You see small children with parents and grandparents wandering around. The grandparents might sill live in Toowoomba or vice versa.”
Cr McDonald said he was beyond excited about the festivities beginning this week.
“The excitement starts to build with me months in advance, but now we’re getting right to the pointy end for the level of my excitement,” he said.
“I’d say I’m up to 11 out of 10 on the excitement scale.
“It will go well past that as we get to the Thursday evening for the Qantas Gala dinner and then it’ll go right the way through to September 30.”