Bathurst will celebrate its position as Australia’s oldest European inland settlement this autumn with the Autumn Colours Heritage Festival and the Heritage Trades Trail.
Mayor Jess Jennings said the program is designed to place a focus on the cultural heritage of the Bathurst region through a diverse series of activities and tours that take participants behind the scenes of some of Bathurst’s most significant attractions and areas.
“There is a fantastic range of tours on offer in 2024, exploring anything from All Saint’s Cathedral and the ever-popular cemetery wanders to a range of walks and tours in our beautiful villages including Rockley and Perthville and the new ‘Treasures of the Goldfields’ bus tour of Sofala and Hill End”, he said.
“The tours of the Carillon are a special highlight. These were all fully booked in 2023 and are sure to be popular once again”.
In addition to the popular tour program, the Autumn Colours period includes the Bathurst Heritage Trades Trail on 16-17 March and the Heritage Week program from 27 April - 5 May. The Heritage Trades Trail event again includes a ‘heritage plus’ element in 2024, with a free shuttle bus service providing a hop-on hop-off service between a number of museums and heritage houses offering half price discounted entry to event attendees.
The Autumn Colours Heritage Tour Program in 2023 attracted a record attendance of 1,132 over 37 tours and activities, the majority of attendees being from the local community. The 2023 program includes a record 48 tours and activities. The 2023 Heritage Trades Trail also recorded the highest attendance at the event since it was first held in 2017 with 2,984 over the two days of the event of whom over half were attendees from outside the Bathurst LGA. The Heritage Trades Trail was also awarded Silver at the 2023 NSW Tourism Awards.
A program of all heritage tours is now available online at https://www.bathurstregion.com.au/autumn-colours/ and as a printed booklet available from the Bathurst Visitor Information Centre and numerous local businesses. Tickets for all Autumn Colours tours and for the Heritage Trades Trail can be booked online through https://www.bathurstregion.com.au/autumn-colours/ or directly at the Bathurst Visitor Information Centre, which has organised and is coordinating all tours, activities and events.