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Of all the seasons, autumn is one of the most magical given its resounding colour schemes and crisp weather in many parts of the world.

In New Zealand, Arrowtown was once a gold mining town that emerged in 1862. The miners and settlers who arrived in the town from all across the world planted many deciduous trees of European origin, resulting in the fact that every year around April the leaves of these trees burst into riotous red and gold hues, which in turn sets the entire surrounding scenery on “fire”!

This change of scenery and colour is greeted and celebrated with much pomp and pageant by the residents of Arrowtown each year, for the past 28 years since the inception of the Arrowtown Autumn Festival in 1985. What started out on a somewhat small scale, has since then become a full blown festival with over 50 individual events, spread out over 10 days that attract both locals and foreigners from near and far.

The street parade is a must see and people throng each side of the road in a bid to be a cheering part of the crowd. The Buckingham Belles event during lunch time is also a crowd pleaser. Rousing up the crowd is the arrow miners’ band that plays on an old red truck. Apart from these type of showpieces, there are traditionally held festivals that coincide with the Autumn Festival such as the long standing Art Exhibition, Vintage Car Exhibition, the Grand Variety Concert, Arrowtown Entertainers Musical and the Shotover Country Music Concert. Each year new events and programmes are added in a bid to keep the festival fresh and appealing. Many locals have always volunteered, contributed or been a part of some aspect of the festival.

If you enjoy unusual events with old school charm together with unsurpassable surrounding natural beauty then the Arrowtown Autumn Festival is certainly for you. If you hope to visit and look out for a Queenstown hotel you can be assured of being centrally located. Millennium Hotel Queenstown is an ideal option and is a much sort after luxury hotel Queenstown that makes an ideal base for your travels to this picturesque part of New Zealand.

Chandrishan Williams is a travel writer who writes under the pen name, Caleb Falcon. He specializes in writing content based on the many exciting world adventures that await intrepid travellers.

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