Gisborne is ready for Rhythm and Vines (RnV), according to the local mayor.
The New Year's Eve festival is in its 16th year and currently underway at Waiohika Estate vineyard. It will finish on January 1.
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Gisborne Mayor Meng Foon said festival planners have been working with a number of organisations to ensure the event runs smoothly.
"The police, the fire service, the rural service, the council, the hospital, the business association have been communicating well with them and ensuring that we are as ready as they are," he said.
More than 20,000 people have flocked to the region for the festival, meaning the normally 37,000 strong city is bursting at the seams.
"All the accommodation is full, we have a cruise ship come in, with another thousand odd people coming on shore so that's been fantastic for our district," Mr Foon said.
But it's going to be a safer festival due to the introduction of a liquor ban across the town for the event, and a no BYO policy that was introduced at RnV in 2016.
"With the new process for enjoyment of alcohol rather than intoxication I think the festival's actually become a very safe festival, that's why more people have come," Mr Foon said.
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