Carnival of Flowers

In a public meeting in the Toowoomba town hall in September 1949, a decision was made to revive the garden competitions and festivals that had ceased during World War II.

[1] The first Carnival of Flowers was held in October 1950 and was a resounding success, with more than 50,000 people lining the main street to watch the opening parade.

This heralded eight days of festivities focused on Toowoomba's beautiful gardens, both public and private.

The following year, the date of the carnival was moved to September, to coincide with the school holidays.

[8][5] In 2020 during the COVID pandemic, the carnival was held for the full month of September rather than the usual 10 days as part of the COVID-safe plan, which had all venues unfenced and outdoors to enable social distancing.