More shaded areas, free water stations and toilet wardens part of new and improved WOMADelaide

This year’s WOMADelaide music festival is set to sizzle on and off the stage this weekend as Adelaide braces for an autumn heatwave. Find out organisers’ heat safety plan.

More shaded areas, free water stations and mist tents will be on offer for sweltering music fans at this year’s WOMADelaide music festival in Botanic Park.

As Adelaide braces for a heatwave this weekend, event organisers have taken extra steps to ensure the safety of attendees ahead of Friday’s opening night.

WOMADelaide director Ian Scobie said they have redesigned the festival site, expanding the grounds and adding extra toilets and food stalls to avoid the long queues which plagued last year’s event.

There will also be “wardens” managing the extra toilets around the site, which have been increased by about 20 per cent.

“This is so people aren’t lining up behind a toilet when there are empty ones further down the road, which happened a lot last year,” Mr Scobie said.

“There will be an occasion possibly when one does have to line up. Lines are part of festivals.

“But the general layout of the park will make it much more convivial and comfortable for people.

“We have marked walkways, so that people can find their way easily between stages. We’ve got mist tents, we’ve got lots of free water stations around the park, and fortuitously, the redesign is giving back a lot of the space and the shading areas,” he said.

“I think all of these things will make it a significantly improved experience for our audiences.”

Angolan-Portuguese singer and Kuduro star, Pongo, at a press launch of WOMADelaide Festival taking place this weekend. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Morgan Sette.

WOMADelaide Festival Director Ian Scobie AM and SA Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison at a press launch of WOMADelaide Festival taking place this weekend. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Morgan Sette

The four-day festival, which begins on Friday and runs until Monday, will feature over 600 artists from 40 countries, including Angolan-born Portuguese singer Pongo and headliner Ziggy Marley.

Mr Scobie said last year’s crowd figure of over 110,000 was unlikely to be topped in 2024 but he was still expecting thousands to flood through the gates, with tickets still available for every day.

“Those were particularly extraordinary attendance and we loved everyone of them. We’re not expecting those kinds of numbers this year,” he said.

“Our ticket sales are going well and we’ll see where we land on Monday.”

Other global stars coming to WOMADelaide include Brazilian music legend Gilberto Gil, Grammy winning singer-songwriter Corinne Bailey Rae, British jazz wunderkind Yussef Dayes and 90s duo Morcheeba.

“There’s going to be some amazing, legendary performers … its really great to have all of these artists here,” Mr Scobie said.

Another new addition to the festival is the WoMarkets precinct, a shaded hub of 50 retail stalls.

Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said they were expecting more than 20,000 interstate tourists to come for the festival.

“Usually we have to go out to see the world but during womad, the world comes to us,” she said.