New England Travel

New England is an area of the Australian state of New South Wales north-west of the Hunter Valley and inland from the North Coast.

Tamworth (population 56 000 of 2007) is a large town in the New England region in New South Wales, Australia.

Tamworth is nationally famous as the "Country Music Capital of Australia", annually hosting the Tamworth Country Music Festival in late January. Tamworth is recognised as the "National Equine Capital of Australia" because of the high volume of equine events held in the city and the construction of the World Class National Equine and Livestock Events Centre. The city additionally is known as the "City of Lights", being the first place in the Southern Hemisphere to utilise electric street lights.

Things to See at the Hunter Valley

• Tamworth is Australia's country music capital. Visit the Golden Guitar, a memorial to country music, on the New England Highway just south of the city.

• Take a drive to the New England National Park west of Armidale, and see Wollomombi Falls, the largest in Australia.

Events and Festivals at the Hunter Valley

• The Tamworth Country Music Festival is an annual music festival held in Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia and is a celebration of Australian country music culture and heritage. The festival lasts for two weeks during late January and during this peroid the city of Tamworth (or 'Tam-vegas' as it has become known by visiting celebrities and journalists) comes alive, with visitors from all across the country and worldwide who come to join in the festivities.