Festival to open with a bang

Catch the Woodend Winter Arts Festival opening night fireworks at Buffalo Stadium tonight. 

But make sure your doggy friends are safe and sound at home when the sound and light show gets underway. This Woodend pooch, Monte, looks a little worried!

Woodend is set to triple its population - and explode with fireworks - over the Queen's Birthday long weekend, thanks to the free Woodend Winter Arts Festival opening night fireworks at Buffalo Stadium tomorrow night.

Food and refreshments will be available from 5.30pm.

And the festival organising committee is urging Woodend residents to make sure their doggy friends (and other pets) are properly secure at home when the fireworks get underway - particularly between 6.30pm and 7.30pm.

In addition, traffic in and around Buffalo sports ground will be busy as around 1500 people attend the fireworks - mostly in a lot of cars! Local emergency services will assist in traffic management, but everyone is urged to be patient and careful - there will be hundreds of children excitedly running around the area.

Traffic for most of the festival weekend will be much busier too - about 50 per cent of the festival audience drives from Melbourne to attend events which mean many more cars in and around Woodend.

Finally, ticket sales have been swift since online bookings opened in March. All residents are encouraged to book their tickets in advance - including booking places for the popular free children's events.

The festival box office will be open at St Ambrose School Office throughout the weekend for ticket collection, and bookings/sales (where tickets are still available). Please check the website for opening times (click the Booking Info button on the left of the webpage).

* Bookings at www.woodendwinterartsfestival.org.au or by phoning 0447 570 327.