Common Questions, Answered!
We’re very close to announcing the dates for 2025!
The weekend is a celebration of the book filled with author talks, presentations and thought-provoking conversations in the beloved historic Victorian township of Clunes.
Yes, you need a ticket to enter the Festival precinct, and for any author talk/panel you wish to attend.
Last year we made entry to the Festival free. And while this was a great success for many punters it left us with a lot less in the bank than we need to successfully run the 2025 Festival. So we have made the decision to reinstate the gate fee of $10.
If you’d like to think about other ways to give back to Booktown – we are a registered charity and accept tax-deductable donations to Booktown at the info tent over the Festival Weekend or via our website!
Yes, but…
…if you can you should buy your tickets now. Last year our Saturday night evening event, our workshops and over half of our author talks were completely sold out before the event even be
Yes.
Author signings for speakers will occur after each talk. These are hosted in the Readings marquee on Fraser Street. You are welcome to bring along books for signing, or to purchase them on site.
Many visitors choose to stay and enjoy both days of the event, and explore our amazing region.
Local B&B and accomodation options traditionally all sell out in Clunes in advance of our event, so book asap!
Within 15 minutes drive of Clunes are the lovely towns of Creswick and Talbot, and beyond that Ballarat, Castlemaine, Daylesford and Hepburn are all popular options once the options in Clunes are booked.
Within 15 minutes drive of Clunes are the lovely towns of Creswick and Talbot, and beyond that Ballarat, Castlemaine, Daylesford, Hepburn and Trentham are all wonderful places to explore.
Check out the Visit Hepburn website for information on regional highlights, events and attractions.
While in previous years we have sometimes offered a discount when purchasing multiple author talks, we have elected for a new structure this year.
Yes.
You are welcome to bring your dog to our event. Dogs are:
- to be kept on a lead at all times inside the event precinct.
- not permitted inside our venues, aside from assistance animals.
- to be removed by the owners if requested by festival volunteers or staff.
This year we are thrilled to be bringing back our booktraders to Fraser Street and across the town in historic buildings.
Over sixty specialist book traders will offer an extraordinary range – new and second-hand, antiquarian and contemporary, rare and popular – covering every imaginable topic and theme.
Our program (to be released on our website soon!) will provide more detail on each book trader.
Yes, just show your ID at the gate and you’re in!
Locals will still need tickets for our talks, workshops and the Saturday evening entertainment.
And, locals should be aware that parking will be impacted by the influx of visitors.
You may have difficulty accessing central Clunes by car and we encourage you to plan around this.
We also encourage locals to consider volunteering to help out during the event, for more information click here.
All our amazing local restaurants and cafes will be open, and these will be complimented by food trucks and coffee carts offering a range of cuisines to fill your bellies. YUM!
Yes.
In addition to the regular schedule, extra services are run by VLine over the festival weekend.
Our station is disability accessible with a raised platform and no steps. We offer a free shuttle bus from the Clunes Railway Station to the town centre (a 2 minute drive or 12 minute walk).
As VLine haven’t yet confirmed the extra services yet, check with VLine directly closer to the date for information on the extra services.
There is street parking across the centre of the town. There is also a dedicated carpark at the Clunes Showgrounds. From the showgrounds to the main gate is a 5 minute walk, and we also run a shuttlebus between the train station, showgrounds and gate.
We offer accessibility parking close to our festival entry on Bailey St next to Town Hall.
Yes.
We organise accessibility parking close to our festival entry on Bailey St next to Town Hall. The map in our program (available on the homepage) shows these sites.
Yes.
We organise additional ATMs onsite during the event. We strongly encourage pre-purchase of your Festival Weekend Pass and event tickets. We recommend bringing some cash in case of any network outages or issues on the day.
We can accept card payment at our gates, but the queues are greater for those paying at the gate. Once inside the precinct some of our book traders will take card and some will take cash. All food vendors will accept cards.
