End of an era for Rhythm and Vines as festival announces ‘final dance’ for Gisborne

Tuesday, 21 July 2026

After 24 years ringing in the new year at Waiohika Estate, Rhythm and Vines is packing up its Gisborne stage for a new, secret location in 2027. Organisers say it is time to grow, but festival fans are left wondering where the party goes next.

Rhythm and Vines is leaving Gisborne after 23 years with this years event set to be the last at Waiohika Estate.

The long-running festival will move to an undisclosed location from 2027.

Festival organisers say the move will support the festival’s “long-term future and continued evolution”.

It is the end of an era for one of New Zealand’s longest-running music festivals, with news that Rhythm and Vines will leave Gisborne after 23 years.

Festival organisers have announced that this year’s event will be the final edition held at Waiohika Estate, with Rhythm and Vines moving to an “undisclosed location” for 2027.

They said the move will support the festival’s “long-term future and continued evolution”.

In a statement, Rhythm and Vines CEO Kieran Spillane said they were proud of what the festival has built in Gisborne, a city that he called “the heart and home of Rhythm and Vines”.

“We are incredibly proud of what we have built alongside the community, and deeply grateful to everyone who has helped create 24 years of New Year’s magic at Waiohika Estate,” he said.

Founded by university mates Hamish Pinkham, Tom Gibson, and Andrew Witters, Rhythm and Vines was first held in 2003 at the Waiohika Estate, where it has remained ever since.

Rhythm and Vines is one of New Zealand's largest music festivals.

The first set of artists performing at the “final dance” in Gisborne are set to be announced next Wednesday, with Spillane promising a send-off deserving of the region.

“We want to make sure we give Gisborne and Waiohika Estate the send-off it truly deserves - and we believe that this year’s lineup will deliver just that,” he said.

Spillane told Stuff it was a “tougher climate” for events right now and that their annual review “pointed” them towards another location for the festival.

Kyle Bell, one of the organisers of Rhythm and Vines music festival, spoke to Brodie Kane on Kiwi Yarns.

“This year, that review pointed us toward a location that gives us better scale, access, and long-term viability, so we can keep growing R&V rather than just holding steady,” he said.

Rhythm and Vines’ new home has yet to be announced, but speculation has already been building, with one source telling Stuff that Mystery Creek in Cambridge was being considered.

Not so, Mystery Creek told Stuff on Tuesday. No conversations with Rhythm and Vines about hosting the festival had taken place, a spokesperson said.

Still, the venue would “welcome a conversation” if the festival was “looking to move to the Waikato,” the spokesperson said, adding that it would be a “great addition to the region’s summer calendar”.

Stuff also asked Spillane to confirm whether Mystery Creek was the new venue, but he remained tight-lipped.

“We’re not confirming any specific location today. What we can say is that there’s an exciting new chapter ahead, and we’ll share full details when we can,” he said.

For the first five years, the festival was a one-day affair held on New Year’s Eve before it expanded to a multi-day event from 2008.

Originally, Rhythm and Vines had only one stage, and the first event attracted 1800 people. By 2006, the festival had four stages and had grown to accommodate 15,000 festivalgoers.

The festival’s growth has continued at pace, with the 2025 event attracting around 26,000 punters, making it one of the country’s largest music festivals.

Over the years, Rhythm and Vines has attracted some of the world’s biggest names to Gisborne, including Public Enemy, Mark Ronson, Chance the Rapper, Disclosure, and Kid Cudi.

Rhythm and Vines is not the first major festival to move homes in recent years.

Homegrown left Wellington last year after 18 years. The annual festival held its first edition in Hamilton in April.

The decision to leave Gisborne also comes amid a challenging time for the festival scene, with several festivals finishing up for good due to economic pressures.

Splore held its final event in February, 28 years after its first festival, while the Others Way announced they were pulling the plug in May after 11 years.

In 2026, Womad also took a year off, citing “rising costs and shifting conditions”, with the festival set to return in 2027.

Pre-sales for Rhythm and Vines begin on August 3, with three-day festival passes and camping options available.

Rhythm and Vines: The Final Dance in Gisborne will be held between December 28 and 31.