Moomba festival

It’s late summer here in Australia, which means it’s festival season. And Melbourne is no exception.

A few weeks ago, there was White Night, and this weekend it’s Moomba.

Moomba is a family festival in the heart of the city, starting Friday night and lasting the entire long Labour Day weekend. There’s lots to see and lots to do, so we decided to give it a go.

The festival is centered around families and children, with lots of tents with activities for the little ones. There was face-painting, arts and crafts, a play-tent and a few other things. There was a scooter competition set for the skate park. And there was ongoing entertainment in the big circus tent and from the main stage. All of this are free activities, which is the big incentive to draw the crowds.

The schedule looks very impressive, and if you’re lucky / early enough to get into the activities, they are a lot of fun.

However, the main focus, to me, were the carnival rides and the food tents, both of which there were many. And with prices starting from AU$ 10 for a hot-dog and AU$ 9 for a ride, this festival can get real expensive in a hurry.

Overall, I have to say I was a bit underwhelmed with the festival. What was marketed as a family affair turned out to be a big carnival with a side show of kids activities, average food and expensive entertainment. It was hot, crowded and noisy. There was just no special atmosphere.

In the end, we stayed mostly around the skate park, watching the kids do their thing. But even here, it was too full for Kai to skate himself.

Maybe, after the fun we had at White Night, I was just expecting the wrong thing. Maybe I am just not a carnival person. But I doubt that we will be coming back here next year.