The potential for the event's cancellation arose in late September, but the final nail was driven into the coffin the day after the Tasmanian lockdown was lifted.

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Event chairman David Dunn may have been the most disappointed of them all, but he said the lockdown was a stark reminder of the volatility of the current state of events.

He said the cancellation of the Unconformity festival at the final hour highlighted the risk organisers faced with the threat of COVID still ever-present.

It takes the Festivale committee about 10 months to fully plan the event - from booking acts and a celebrity chef, organising infrastructure like marquees, to finalising stallholders.

Stallholders themselves make their perishable order shortly out from the festival, and Mr Dunn said a similar situation to what happened to Unconformity besieging Festivale would devastate those involved in the event.

Tourism, Hospitality and Events Minister Sarah Courtney expressed her disappointment regarding the event's surrender, but maintained support for the embattled event calendar.

As part of Festivale's announcement to pull the pin on the 2022 event, Mr Dunn revealed the committee would strive to find some kind of replacement to fill part of the void left by the event.

Ms Courtney said the potential for a replacement was "exciting" and that the government would work with organisers towards getting it up and running.

Visit Northern Tasmania chief executive Chris Griffin said he felt for the festival organisers.

He said the loss of the iconic event which traditionally attracts more than 10,000 punters and injects millions of dollars into the community would have wide-ranging ramifications.

"It's very disappointing to see Festivale is not on the schedule for the summer," he said.

Mr Griffin said the immediate impacts would be apparent, but the dispersal of the cash injection - the amount of money that would flow into the community as a byproduct of the event - would be equally harmful.

Mr Griffin's fears were echoed by the Launceston Chamber of Commerce.

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Chamber president Andrew Pitt said Festivale was a "keystone for the region's premium food and wine producers" as well as a significant tourist attraction.

"Its cancellation is another blow to our tourism and hospitality businesses, many of which are still under an enormous amount of pressure in a covid-world," he said.

"Businesses who are stallholders at the event, to accommodation providers, to the restaurants, bars and cafes that enjoy the increased street traffic that comes with the event [will suffer]."

CIty of Launceston mayor Albert van Zetten agreed the impacts of the festival's cancellation would be felt across the community.

"It will be disappointing for the stallholders and service providers in Launceston who traditionally generate business from the event," he said.

For Launceston residents the removal of the flagship event from the calendar came as sad news.

Since the initial Festivale in the 1990s the effect of the event has been broad, launching businesses and wine labels, and lasting long in the memory of attendees.

Wilma De Haan and daughter Mikala, from Launceston, had fond memories of the event, as much in a way of supporting local business as engaging in festival frivolities.

"We like to support local produce, so it's a shame it has been cancelled," Mrs De Haan said.

Her daughter, a healthcare worker, cast a practical lens on the cancellation, wondering whether February would be the time for "living life with COVD".

"After two years of it, by February, we've done the right thing, we've tried strategies of lockdowns and they've worked to a substantial degree," she said.

"But at the same time you've got to start returning to normal and that means trying to do everything we can to manage it, but also getting back to our regular lives."

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Cara Tatnell, also from Launceston, was once a Festivale regular. She estimated she had not been for about 10 years, but remained saddened by the event's cancellation.

"I think it's a real shame it won't go ahead. It's probably the most iconic event on the Launceston calendar and it would have been fabulous because it generates so much business for so many local producers, hospitality and entertainers," she said. "It'll be a huge loss to the economy."

Fellow resident Jayden Staggard had been to Festivale a couple of times and said he felt for local businesses who would not have the opportunity to market themselves at the event. But he understood the cancellation, saying it was "best to be cautious".

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