From millions of petals and chilli-fuelled festivities to camp oven cook-offs, giant silo art, strawberries, wine weekends and cowboy boots with a little Bach, Queensland Country is putting on quite a show this spring.
Spring does things a little differently in Queensland Country.
Yes, there are flowers – millions of them – but there are also avocados flying through the air, strawberries ripe for picking, camp ovens firing, sheepdogs working, cowboys competing, winemakers pouring and, from October, an artist taking to four enormous grain silos in the Lockyer Valley.
From September through November, here are some of the best reasons to head for the country and make a weekend of it.
BLOOM: SEE THE COUNTRY IN FULL COLOUR
The undisputed queen of Queensland spring celebrations, the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers returns from 18 September to 5 October, transforming the Garden City for its 77th year.
More than 80 events and experiences unfold across three weekends, led by the Grand Central Floral Parade on 19 September, alongside FEASTival, #trEATS, Twilight Tours, Behind the Blooms and the four-day Weekend Table.
Just down the range, the Laidley Spring Festival (11–13 September) brings three days of gardens and good old-fashioned country celebration to the Lockyer Valley, with a street parade, Twilight Feast & Fest, Spring Garden Fair, orchids, gems, quilts and plenty of local characters.
And for a more hands-on take on spring, Wild Acres Flower Farm at Veradilla in the Lockyer Valley opens its fields for just a few weeks each year in spring, when its everlasting paper daisies burst into bloom. Book a Pick Your Own Wildflowers session to wander among the pink and white blooms and gather a bunch straight from the field to take home.
By November, another splash of colour begins appearing across the countryside as lavender season gets underway.
GO A LITTLE AVO
Spring gets considerably greener in the South Burnett on 12 September, when the Blackbutt Avocado Festival celebrates one of the region’s favourite crops.
Expect farmers’ avocado games, avo rolling, tossing and juggling, markets, entertainment and a street parade. Then there’s the Avo Drop, when skydivers descend into the festival from above.
Entry is free and, yes, competitive avocado tossing really is a thing.
TASTE: SPRING HAS A NEW FLAVOUR
There’s something else blooming in Toowoomba this spring: its food scene.
Danny Patisserie is turning out cakes and desserts in flavours such as matcha lemon and rose lychee; The Book Pour combines an independent bookshop with a wine bar pouring exclusively Granite Belt wines; while Hachi Hachi Bar channels the tiny bars of Japan from a hidden Toowoomba laneway, with Japanese-inspired cocktails, sake, shochu, whisky and highballs.
For those who like their spring considerably hotter, head down the range on 20 September for the Murphys Creek Chilli, Craft & Cake Carnival.
More than 60 chilli-themed vendors and food trucks come together with hundreds of chilli sauces, eating challenges, cakes and crafts to mark the beginning of chilli season – and, happily, the end of the chilly season.
RAKED OVER THE COALS IN MILLMERRAN
For anyone who thinks food tastes better cooked over fire, the Australian Camp Oven Festival is a date worth circling.
Held in Millmerran on 3–4 October, Australia’s biggest camp oven cooking event brings together cooking competitions, live entertainment, workshops, heritage displays, damper throwing and plenty of good old-fashioned bush hospitality.
Onsite camping turns the biennial festival into a proper country weekend away. And just an hour’s drive, west of Toowoomba, it’s an easy addition to a spring road trip.
CREATE: WATCH A NEW LANDMARK TAKE SHAPE
This spring, visitors to Forest Hill in the Lockyer Valley can watch one of Queensland Country’s newest landmarks quite literally take shape.
From early October, an artist is expected to begin transforming four enormous GrainCorp silos into a major new public artwork, with approximately six weeks of painting ahead of a planned November reveal.
A purpose-built viewing precinct is being created alongside the artwork, with parking for cars and RVs, coach access, landscaping, seating and shade.
Around an hour’s drive from Brisbane, Forest Hill is set to become one of the most accessible silo-art experiences for South East Queensland – and this spring offers the unusual opportunity to see it being created.
GET COUNTRY: SHEEPDOGS, SADDLES AND A LITTLE SYMPHONY
For a taste of traditional country life, Spring at the Woolshed takes over the historic Jondaryan Woolshed (an hours drive west of the Lockyer Valley) on 26–27 September, with shearing demonstrations, sheepdog trials, wagon rides, a mini train, animal nursery and tea and damper.
Then it’s time to dust off the boots.
The legendary Warwick Rodeo and Gold Cup Campdraft returns in October, bringing some of the country’s best riders and campdrafters to the Southern Downs for a week of competition and one of Queensland Country’s great sporting traditions.
And in the very same week, the Southern Downs swaps saddles for strings.
From 23–25 October, Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra heads to the region for a special weekend of music, wine and food, with performances and experiences across the Southern Downs and Granite Belt.
It’s a rather lovely reminder that a country weekend can involve both cowboy boots and Bach.
SIP, STAY AND GRAZE THE GRANITE BELT
By September, the Granite Belt is hitting its spring stride, and this year there’s even more reason to raise a glass.
The region has just scored a remarkable double at the 2027 Halliday Wine Companion Awards, with Balancing Heart Vineyard named Dark Horse Winery of the Year – the first Queensland winery ever to claim a major Halliday award – while Ballandean Estate’s 2023 Saperavi was crowned Wildcard Red Wine of the Year.
It’s timely recognition for a cool-climate wine region increasingly attracting attention well beyond Queensland.
Grazing the Granite Belt returns 7–8 November, inviting visitors to hop between local wineries and producers for a progressive weekend of food, wine and cool-country hospitality.
At Ballandean, Mētēora Vineyard is bringing another new dimension to the region, with estate-grown wines, Mediterranean-inspired dining and Queensland’s first wine cave, carved more than 25 metres into a granite hillside.
Nearby, the restored Ballandean Lodge, a 1910s farmhouse surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, makes a cosy base for a weekend among the vines.
Then, on 14 November, the Stanthorpe Berry Festival celebrates the Granite Belt’s strawberry harvest with local berries, food, wine, cooking demonstrations and family festivities. Or head to one of the region’s pick-your-own farms and taste strawberries straight from the field.
ONE MORE COUNTRY MILE
In the Western Downs, Wandoan is preparing to celebrate its centenary in November, marking 100 years of a Queensland country town shaped by generations of local families, farming and community.
It’s a chance to look back at the people and stories that built the town – and ahead to Wandoan’s next century.
Queensland Country Tourism CEO Sally Scott said spring was one of the best times to discover the diversity of Queensland Country.
“Spring really shows off the personality of Queensland Country,” Ms Scott said.
“You can spend the morning surrounded by flowers, pick strawberries straight from the farm, discover a new wine or restaurant, watch an artist transform a grain silo or finish the day at a rodeo, concert or country pub.
“Queensland Country is also more accessible than many people realise. It’s an easy road trip from South East Queensland, while visitors can fly directly from Sydney into Toowoomba and be in the heart of the country in no time.
“However you get here, come for an event, stay for the weekend and you’ll quickly discover there is much more happening in Queensland Country than you might expect.”
SPRING IN QUEENSLAND COUNTRY – AT A GLANCE
11–13 September – Laidley Spring Festival, Lockyer Valley
12 September – Blackbutt Avocado Festival, South Burnett
18 September–5 October – Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers, Toowoomba
20 September – Murphys Creek Chilli, Craft & Cake Carnival, Lockyer Valley
26–27 September – Spring at the Woolshed, Jondaryan
3–4 October – Australian Camp Oven Festival, Millmerran
Early October – Forest Hill GrainCorp silo mural painting begins, Lockyer Valley
October – Warwick Rodeo & Gold Cup Campdraft, Southern Downs & Granite Belt
23–25 October – Camerata Weekender, Southern Downs & Granite Belt
7–8 November – Grazing the Granite Belt, Southern Downs & Granite Belt
14 November – Stanthorpe Berry Festival, Southern Downs & Granite Belt
November – Forest Hill GrainCorp Silos and viewing precinct reveal, Lockyer Valley
28 November – Wandoan Centenary, Western Downs
GETTING TO QUEENSLAND COUNTRY
Queensland Country is easily accessible by road from Brisbane and South East Queensland, while interstate visitors can fly direct from Sydney to Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport with Qantas, with more than 12 return services each week.
Wellcamp is less than 25 minutes from Toowoomba CBD and is a convenient starting point for exploring the wider region by hire car, including the Darling Downs, Southern Downs and Granite Belt.
For road trippers, Queensland Country begins around an hour from Brisbane, with touring routes extending west and south across the region.
