'Beautiful experience': Festivale final day a roaring success

The 2024 iteration of food, drink and entertainment festival is in the running for the title of best ever after sold out days packed with more than 70 stallholders and a stellar live music line-up.

The final day was brimming with roving buskers and main-stage music served up by the likes of Scott Haigh and Nick Bennett.

Tasmanian punter Adele Freemantle and Sydneysider Tristan Witty said they had been at Festivale all three days and it had been a "beautiful experience".

"For three days straight we've been working our way down the menu, trying different food and loving every second," Ms Freemantle said.

"What I was most impressed by was the range of whisky and rum; it's just lovely how much there is to do here and the atmosphere."

While plenty of punters enjoyed eating the food, plenty others were keen to see how guest celebrity chef Matt Moran of Masterchef fame would cook up delicacies in the Chefs in Action demonstration.

"I've been to Launceston once before but never this festival and I can't believe the scale of it and how welcome everyone has made us feel," Moran said.

"To see how massive it is, the scale of the thing, it's a credit to Launceston because this is one of the biggest festivals of its kind that I've ever been to."

Moran said he was dipping into some of the city's delicious food both in and out of the festival, jumping from breakfast nooks to stallholders with popcorn chicken at lunch before restaurants and bars in the evening.

"This really is a City of Gastronomy - I mean, I went to a bar last night and it has to be one of the best places in the world," he said.

And Moran only scratched the surface of Festivale's offering, both old and new.

One such new stallholder joining in this year was Graze Tasmania, whose owner Laura Warren said the experience of the festival had been "incredible".

"It's such great exposure for any business and the atmosphere is just one of a kind," Ms Warren said.

"It's like this supporting, electric, amazing experience for the stallholders and for the patrons. I can't wait to be back next year."