Kite festival coming to Wollongong during July school holidays

The one-day event will turn the air above Stuart Park at North Wollongong into a colourful sea of shapes and animals, with organisers expecting thousands to turn up and buy a kite.

Read more: 9 school holiday workshops and activities around the Illawarra during July 2023

Kaushal Parikh didn't want it to create a large-scale spectator-only festival, but rather encourage families to revive the lost art of kite flying.

"It's become a thing of the past and we just wanted to revive it," he told the Mercury.

Parikh has fond memories as a child of buying a kite from the local supermarket then running down to a park or the beach with his friends to fly it - that's the spark of joy he hopes to ignite in people again.

"I have those memories of doing it myself when I was young, but I don't see much happening these days," he said.

Several food trucks will be on offer to keep hunger pains at bay, during the tough slog of kite flying activities.

Read more: 8 of the Illawarra's best eateries with playgrounds, games rooms

People can register to attend the free event, but can only use kites purchased from the event, according to organisers. There will be 25 varieties to choose from including butterflies, mermaids, sharks, lions, goldfish, eagles and a monkey.

"Kids can fly them as well ... it's a very hands on experience and we also show them how to build the kite," Parikh said.

Parikh hopes to make it an annual event, with his main measure of success being "the smiles on peoples faces", he said.

Wollongong's inaugural Kite Festival is on from 10am to 4pm, Stuart Park, on July 9. Details are through Humanitix.

Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.