Simon's relief as rookie Kiama music festival, three years in the making, rated a hit

Smoothly gliding along on top of the water, but furiously paddling underneath.

"I am full of emotion. I just can't believe that it's actually here."

The festival, which debuted at Kiama Showground at the weekend, has been three years in the making.

Battered by COVID, with his house on the line and reputation as an events organiser up in the air, it all came down to these two days for Mr Felice.

But he needn't have worried.

With the mercury getting just a smidge over 30, blue skies with a scattering of clouds and the national youth broadcaster talking up the festival in the weeks running up to the event, you couldn't have asked for better conditions for a summer festival.

"It's such a relief," Mr Felice said.

And the punters were feeling it too.

As Australian singer-songwriter G Flip kicked the crowd into gear, Kiama Showgrounds was abuzz with festival goers.

With matrix-style sunglasses, oversized shirts for guys and mesh dresses for the girls, the oval was a mass of swaying, wristbands hands, as fans moved to the curated line up of Australian indie-rock favourites.

Erika Bayard and Jack Hooper, dropping in from Coolamon near Wagga Wagga, said they were blown away by the cliff-top location.

"It's amazing, I've never been to a festival on the beach before," Ms Bayard said.

While Aidan Taylor and Steph Trainor from the Central Coast were stoked with the single stage, avoiding the headache of headliner clashes.

"It's a beautiful spot for a festival," Mr Taylor said.

While the headliners might be at the top of the Hottest 100, the festival retained a boutique vibe throughout the afternoon, a testament to Mr Felice's background staging bands at his family's winery, Crooked River, down the road in Gerringong.

Local outfits were supplying the food and booze, while a surfboard made by Mathew King of South Coast Kook was being auctioned off to raise funds for Indigenous domestic violence charity.

"It's a dream come true that all of this is falling into place," Mr Felice said.

Having enlisted heavy hitting touring outfit Mushroom Group to handle the logistics, the event flowed smoothly, with minimal lines - except when the train pulled in - and a quality sound system so that those sheltering from the sun in the Allan Norman Stand could enjoy the acts as much as revellers in the front row.

As the heat radiated down through the afternoon and into the early evening, seasoned gig-goers Rob Trinnie and Kaye Moroney from Sydney were hoping that the south-easterly shift came a little sooner but in the meantime were suggesting other ways of getting cool

"Misters," Mr Trinnie said, were the one thing missing. "Walk-in, walk-out and get sprayed."

With the couple lucky enough to have a cabin booked at Surf Beach Holiday Park, not having a ticket - yet - for the second day meant the couple were contemplating making shapes to dance music trio Pnau from a cabana on surf beach.

But if the infectious positivity of day one so far was anything to go by, it wouldn't surprise if the strength of these tides brought these and many others back in for a second go.