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An influx of visitors drawn to Adelaide’s major festivals and cultural events saw a quarter of a million people pass through the city’s East End in early March, with the extra foot traffic giving a major boost to small local businesses.
According to foot traffic data from the Adelaide Economic Development Agency (AEDA), about 250,000 people visited the East End – Adelaide’s hub for entertainment – between 7 to 10 March. The dates coincided with the Adelaide Festival, Adelaide Fringe, WOMAD and the Adelaide Motorsport Festival.
Adelaide Fringe data also shows that 52,000 visitors have attended the festival from interstate, with 980,000 tickets sold in total. Around 30 per cent of Adelaide Festival’s tickets were sold to visitors from interstate, with 365,000 people attending the major cultural event so far.
Total visitation during the first three weekends of Adelaide Fringe - which started on 21 February – from Friday to Sunday hit 687,656, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 40 per cent.
“The 2025 festival season has outdone itself with tens of thousands of people coming to South Australia for Mad March,” Minister for Small and Family Business Andrea Michaels said.
“Not only does this cement South Australia’s reputation as the festival state, it also injects millions of dollars into our state’s economy and boosts small businesses.
“Cafes, restaurants, small bars, hotels and retailers are all benefiting significantly from the influx of people the festival season has brought to Adelaide with the East End experiencing its biggest weekend since before the COVID pandemic.
Adelaide Fringe chief executive Heather Croall said the event is a major driver of economic activity for small businesses, injecting millions into the local economy each year.
“The Fringe’s ability to draw thousands of visitors from across the country and internationally not only boosts ticket sales for artists but also brings significant trade to cafes, bars, restaurants, hotels, and retail businesses.
“This year’s record-breaking visitation highlights just how crucial arts and cultural events are in supporting small business growth and keeping our city vibrant.”
Exchange Coffee owner PJ Tebyanian said the recent long weekend saw the café packed with people lined up out the front to get a cable.
“It’s been a very busy time for us during the festival season,” he added.
“Events like the Fringe and WOMADelaide are fantastic for us and draw more customers to the East End to support local businesses.
“During Fringe, we have customers come back to Exchange from all over the world and every year, it is exciting for us to see them back again.”
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