Taupō delivers event triple-header for Auckland Anniversary weekend

Petrol-heads and art enthusiasts will be making their way to New Zealand’s Events Capital, Taupō District, this Auckland Anniversary weekend as it delivers three world class events; the annual New Zealand Body Art Festival, the Toyota Racing Series at Taupō Motorsport Park and the ‘Thunder on the Great Lake’ Offshore Powerboat series.

District Events Manager, Nick Reader, says the long weekend is going to be a big one for Taupō. “If you’ve been thinking about visiting Taupō now is the time. We’ve got the fastest things on water, on the track and the freakiest creatures on land, so this is a weekend not to miss.”

The third annual New Zealand Body Art Painting festival, starting on Friday 27 January, is three days of interactive art, colour and illusion held at the Great Lake Centre. The festival will feature the world’s best body painting artists delivering demonstrations and exhibitions of their work. There is also a series of workshops on special effects make-up, extreme hair-ups, mask making and more, as well as competitions for those that want to give it a try. The festival culminates on Sunday 29 January with the International Body Painting Competition and awards from 6.00pm at the Great Lake Centre. For more information on the festival visit http://festival.bodyartawards.co.nz

The Toyota Racing Series on Saturday and Sunday at Taupō Motorsport Park is set to be a thrilling two days of racing for serious motorsport fans. The series, now in its eighth year, includes competitors from 12 nations driving high performance single seaters and is a stepping stone into international single seater classes. For more information on the series visit www.toyotaracingseries.co.nz

The New Zealand Offshore Powerboat Racing series hits the calm waters of Lake Taupō on Sunday 29 January from midday. The annual race, known as the Thunder on the Great Lake, attracts huge crowds of locals and avid powerboat enthusiasts. This year the race will also feature the Grand Prix Hydroplanes, an even faster and louder class of boat with the ability to travel up to 300km/hr. For more information on the series visit www.nzoffshore.co.nz

Taupō’s busy summer of events continues the following Waitangi weekend with the Taupō Summer Concert, a double international rock line up with the Doobie Brothers and Little River Band. “Why not make a week of it and stay for both weekends,” says Mr Reader. Concert tickets are only $89 and are available from Ticketek.