Must Do: Toowoomba Carnival Of Flowers, Queensland

What wow factor! The Toowoomba Carnival Of Flowers should be on your Queensland bucket list. 

Luckily for us, the usual ten day event was extended to a month long flower extravaganza in 2021 with 170,000 blooms! It meant the 50th birthday party we travelled to in Toowoomba, coincided with the event.

We were able to walk to Queen’s Park and soak in the blooming beauties, against the backdrop of the Ferris wheel. And a bonus – markets were on, too.

It is one of 60 individual events held in the month – including a Festival of Food and Wine, High Cheese to Spring Bluff, Twilight Tours, Night Garden, Cinema Under the Stars, Floral Parade and dog friendly events. 

Since its inception in 1949, the brainchild of Essex Tait and the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce, the Carnival was introduced as a way for the city to use its “Garden City” reputation to promote increased economic activity following the hardships of war.

On 21 October, 1950 the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers commenced with a street procession that stretched three miles in length. Led by a bullock team and watched by a crowd estimated to be 50,000 strong, it was a resounding success, as it has been ever since.

Next year I’ll be back for the 73rd event to also visit private gardens, and displays in the Botanic Gardens and Laurel Bank Park.