Falls Will Learn From Splendour’s Byron Mistakes

The Falls Festival's inaugural Byron Bay leg will learn from the day one mistakes of Splendour In The Grass regarding punter movement around the site, according to the promoter.

The first day of this year's Splendour was plagued with transport issues, with ticket holders staying in Bryon central waiting up to five hours to get into the site. It was the first event held on the new North Byron Parklands site, which Falls will hold its Byron leg on.

Today Falls, Splendour and Homebake co-promoter Jessica Ducrou told theMusic.com.au, “Hindsight is everything, you can do all of the planning in the world and when everything comes down there will inevitably be teething problems, especially at a brand new site that has never been used for this style of event.”

She added, “We gathered a lot of information this year and will be implementing a number of changes to ensure the arrival experience is smoother.”

Falls will be held on a different part of the site to Splendour, which utilises a natural amphitheatre and features a large lilly pond. It will have a capacity of approximately 15,000, 10,000 less than Splendour, as is determined by the Parkland's trial period.

“Obviously less people means less traffic congestion, but the reality is that any event, sports, music or community, that plays host to thousands people will result in some kind of traffic delay, there is no real way to avoid that,” Ducrou said.

“We encourage people to bring some food, make up a playlist, relax and enjoy the time hanging in the car with their mates. It is unrealistic to expect that there will be no wait when you are entering any kind of large scale event.”

She said that the Byron extension, “keeps with the established feel of the events in Lorne and Marion Bay, a gorgeous coastal venue with a lush site that embraces and utilises the surrounding environment.”

After the day one Splendour issues, which also included the unforseen cancellation of headliner Frank Ocean, Splendour organisers told fans, “We hear you loud and clear and are in the midst of rectifying the issues as best we can. It is our first year at our new home and we feel we laid the best plans, however they have not been executed to the standard Splendour has always prided itself on.”

Falls' Byron leg will take place Tuesday 31 December through Friday 3 January and this morning announced its line-up of The Roots, Vampire Weekend, London Grammar amongst others.