High Tide Festival Eyes Growth with Move to Waitangi Park

Locally-grown multi-genre music festival, High Tide, has announced a move from Lower Hutt’s McEwan Park to Wellington’s Waitangi Park for its 2025 event.

Debuted in 2022 and featuring drum & bass, house, grime, hip-hop and UK garage genres, High Tide has attracted strong crowds for the past three years running and will now offer even more capacity at the new waterfront venue, as well as increased accessibility for out-of-region festival-goers.

Expected to be bigger and better than ever – both in size and calibre of performing artists – the R18 event is scheduled to kick off summer season celebrations on Saturday 8 November. For the first time, the event will be supported by WellingtonNZ, the city’s regional economic development agency.

“The shift from Petone foreshore to the Wellington waterfront presents a real growth opportunity for High Tide, which has had sell-out crowds since its inception, so this is a natural step for us,” says Luke Williams, General Manager of Audiology.

“High Tide’s identity blends coastal charm with modern music flair – a ‘seaside paradise’ vibe – so it was important for us to retain our connection to the water when considering bigger venues for this year’s festival. Waitangi Park balances both a spacious waterfront location with easy access to the vibrant CBD, so there’s no doubt it’s a good fit for us.”

Williams says that McEwan Park was a fantastic venue for the event in its early years, however the festival needed increased capacity and more accommodation nearby to cater for the growth aspirations of the event, including welcoming more attendees overall and with the hopes of attracting a larger proportion of visitors from outside the Wellington region.

Organised by experienced promoters and offering a safe and accessible festival experience, High Tide will be a great way for festival fans to start their summer in style.

Mark Oldershaw, Chief Executive at WellingtonNZ, says: “High Tide’s impressive audience growth, positive attendee feedback and strong engagement with the city’s youth population over the years have all contributed to it being an appealing partnership for the city.”

The lineup announcement is expected later this month and is set to feature some big international headline artists from the UK, Belgium, Austria and Australia.

The festival is presented by Audiology Touring, Coastal Promotions and George FM. Tickets will go on sale to the public on Wednesday 27 August at www.audiologytouring.com

Date published: 15 August 2025