There’s a particular feeling that settles over the north of the island as October turns into November. The paddocks are green, the Meander River runs full, and somewhere in Deloraine a woodturner is unpacking a ute full of blackwood bowls.
The Tasmanian Craft Fair is back for 2026, and if you’ve never been, this is your gentle nudge to go. It began in 1981 with 34 exhibitors in the local Community Centre and around 3,000 curious visitors. Today it’s often called the largest working craft fair in Australia (some say the Southern Hemisphere), with more than 200 makers spread across four venues, three galleries and the whole length of Deloraine’s main street.
What I love most is the word working. This isn’t a market where finished things sit quietly on tables. It’s a place where you can watch the making happen, ask questions, and talk with the hands behind the work. Every item for sale is made, designed or co-designed by the person selling it. The fair is still run by the Rotary Club of Deloraine, and you can feel that community heart in every corner of it.
When it’s on
The 2026 fair runs over the long weekend, from Friday 30 October to Sunday 1 November.
| Day | Hours |
|---|---|
| Friday 30 October | 9am – 4pm |
| Saturday 31 October | 9am – 4pm |
| Sunday 1 November | 9am – 3pm |
Sunday closes an hour earlier, so if there’s a stall you’ve been circling all weekend, don’t leave it until the last minute. Beautiful things have a way of finding new homes.
Tickets
Buying online is cheaper and gets you through the gate faster. Tickets are sold through Leap Events via the fair’s website, at the Great Western Tiers Visitor Centre, or at the gates of Venue 1 and Venue 2.
| Ticket | Online | At the gate |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | $20 | $25 |
| Child (10–16) | $10 | $12 |
| Family (2 adults + up to 2 children) | $50 | $60 |
Companion Cards are accepted with an advance online ticket.
Not everything needs a ticket. Rotary Park, the Performing Arts Centre and the Kinetic Pavilion are free to wander, and the free shuttle buses need no ticket either. If you’re on a budget, there’s still a whole day of looking and listening to be had.
Getting there
Deloraine sits in the Meander Valley, roughly midway between Launceston and Devonport, with the Great Western Tiers rising behind it.
| Coming from | Distance | Drive |
|---|---|---|
| Launceston | ~51 km | ~40 min |
| Devonport | ~51 km | ~40 min |
| Hobart | ~205 km | ~2 hr 40 min |
By car. Parking is at Venue 1, the Community Complex (enter via Rickman Street), and at the Showgrounds (Venue 2). There’s a new drop-off zone on Alveston Drive at Venue 1 for disabled parking permit holders.
By bus from Launceston. Kinetic runs a return shuttle that leaves 25 St John Street, Launceston, at 8:30am each day. It heads home from Venue 1 at 1pm and 4pm (3pm on Sunday). A return fare is $24 for adults and $12 for children, plus small booking fees.
From the mainland. Spirit of Tasmania sails daily between Geelong and Devonport, and the fair has arranged discounted rates for fairgoers. Qantas, Virgin Australia and Jetstar fly into Launceston, and QantasLink flies into Devonport.
Getting around. Free shuttle buses loop between all four venues all day, and both the venues and buses are wheelchair accessible with low floors. If you’d rather walk, it’s about 2 km from the Community Complex to the Showgrounds. Pets aren’t permitted, apart from assistance dogs.
One quiet word of advice: Deloraine accommodation books out quickly over fair weekend. Launceston has more options, and the Great Western Tiers Visitor Centre at 98–100 Emu Bay Road can help with local stays.
Must-see moments
You could spend the whole weekend simply drifting from stall to stall, and that would be enough. But a few things are worth planning your day around.
The Rajah Quilt, this year’s Feature Exhibit. In April 1841, the convict ship Rajah left Woolwich bound for Hobart Town. Over the 105-day voyage, 179 women worked together on a quilt with needles, thread and patchwork fabric supplied by Elizabeth Fry’s British Ladies’ Society for Promoting the Reformation of Female Prisoners. The work was guided by Kezia Hayter, a member of the Ladies’ Society who travelled out to Australia as matron to the convicts. Its stitched border thanks “the ladies of the convict ship committee” and speaks of the women’s industry.
It is the only known surviving convict shipboard quilt, and it was rediscovered in 1987. The original is held by the National Gallery of Australia. The fair is showing a full-size replica, faithful in both size and colour, made under special licence from the Gallery by its Tasmanian custodians, Anne and Rob Thompson. It’s on display for a limited time.
Displayed alongside the quilt are bonnets from Roses from the Heart, the memorial project of Hobart-born conceptual artist Dr Christina Henri. After visiting the Cascades Female Factory in South Hobart in 2003, she became its honorary artist in residence and chose a simple servant’s bonnet as her symbol. Since 2007, people around the world (many of them descendants) have been stitching one bonnet for each of the 25,566 women sentenced as convicts and transported to Australia between 1788 and 1853. More than 23,000 have been made so far, including 800 from women in two Dublin prisons. Christina was inducted into the Tasmanian Honour Roll of Women in 2013 and named Tasmanian Senior Australian of the Year in 2014.
Seen together, the quilt and the bonnets tell the same story from two directions. One was made by the women themselves, and the others by people who refuse to let them be forgotten.
I can’t think of a more fitting piece for a Tasmanian craft fair. These women made something careful and lasting in the middle of an uncertain journey toward this island. Stand in front of the quilt for a while. Count the stitches if you like. Every one was made by hand. The quilt and bonnets can be found Community Complex (Venue 1A, Site 121)
The Premier’s Arts Award. At $10,000, this is one of the most valuable awards for craft arts in Australia, judged on excellence of national or international standard. The 2025 award went to Gemma Haynes of Nature Matrix for Cinderis. Keep an ear out for this year’s winner, then go and find their stand.
The working exhibits. This is the beating heart of the fair. Makers in wood, textiles, glass and more work right in front of you, and most are happy to talk technique. Last year’s Best Working Exhibit, Phoenix Creations, won for spoon carving demonstrations and generous advice on tools and materials.
Live music, kids’ activities and the main street. There’s music across the venues, activities for younger makers, and Deloraine’s own galleries, cafés and public art along Emu Bay Road. Check the fair’s Entertainment page closer to the weekend for set times.
Exhibitors to look out for
More than 80% of exhibitors are Tasmanian, with a handful of artisans from interstate. You’ll find woodcraft, textiles, fashion, glass, ceramics, sculpture, visual arts, guitars, garden craft, homewares and food.
Last year’s award winners are a good place to start your wandering. Check the 2026 Exhibitor Directory on the fair’s website to see who’s returning and where they’ll be.
| Exhibitor | Craft | 2025 recognition |
|---|---|---|
| Helen Hay Ceramics | Translucent porcelain and natural materials | Premier’s Arts Award, Highly Commended |
| Phoenix Creations | Spoon carving | Best Working Exhibit |
| Naturopathic Alchemy | Natural products, beautifully presented | Stand Presentation |
| Persia’s Pantry | Gourmet food | Providore’s Award |
A few gentle tips
- Arrive early. The gates open at 9am, and the first hour is the calmest time to talk with makers.
- Use the shuttles. Four venues is a lot of ground. Let the free buses carry you between them.
- Pace yourself. There’s no need to see everything. Choose a venue or two and let the rest be a surprise.
- Linger at the working exhibits. Ask about tools, timber, fibre, glaze. Most makers love sharing their process.
- Stay a little longer. Walk the river circuit at dusk and you might spot a platypus. Liffey Falls and the Mole Creek caves are only a short drive away.
In the end, a craft fair isn’t really about what you carry home. It’s about the hours spent among people who still make things by hand, slowly and with care. Go for the objects if you like. Stay for the conversations.
I hope to see you there, among the stalls and the shavings.
With warmth, Caroline
Sources: Tasmanian Craft Fair – Event Information · Travelling to and from the fair · Feature Exhibits · Feature Artists · Premier’s Arts Award · 2025 Award Winners · The Fair · Discover Tasmania · Dr Christina Henri – Australian of the Year Awards · Dr Christina Henri – Tasmanian Honour Roll of Women · Roses from the Heart – Digital Repository of Ireland
Caroline
Editor & Maker, Tasmanian Maker’s Journal