Story: Arts festivals

Revellers seek out the best camping spots as the gates open at Parachute, a Christian music festival, in 2011. An alcohol-free festival with a strong anti-drugs and family ethic, Parachute attracted people of all ages. Crowds of up to 30,000 attended the four-day festival. Artists who performed at Parachute were either of the Christian faith or sympathetic to it. Parachute began in 1992 on a farm near Waikanae and later shifted to Waikato, with the last festival held at Mystery Creek. Parachute was discontinued in 2014 as it was no longer financially viable.