Bus Design Competition for All Ages!

📣 Calling all creatives

Are you the next designer of our much-loved Free Festival Bus?

Enter our competition celebrating creativity, community, and the magic of the TSB Festival of Lights.

Submit your design and you could see your creation transformed into a bus-sized work of art, travelling between Centre City and Pukekura Park throughout the Festival.

What's up for grabs?

  • Your design turned into a moving artwork seen by thousands!

  • A $450 Centre City voucher

  • A $300 Prezzy Card

Now, more people can take part!

Originally launched for local rangatahi earlier this year, the competition has now been opened to all ages. We're looking forward to seeing heaps of creative ideas from right across our community.

Who can enter?

  • Anyone of any age who calls Taranaki home, whether you live here now, used to, or hope to call Taranaki home one day

  • Enter on your own or collaborate with others

  • No design experience is required, but entries must be submitted as a vector PDF

Entries close

5pm, Sunday 25 October 2026.

The design brief

Using the resources as a guide, create an eye-catching illustrated bus wrap inspired by the TSB Festival of Lights and Pukekura Park.

Your design could feature iconic park elements like the Band Rotunda, Fountain Lake, and Poet's Bridge, or share your own interpretation of what the Festival means to you.

Artwork requirements

  • Design for all four sides of the bus

  • Use an illustrated style (not photos)

  • Include colours from the Festival brand guidelines (you can use additional colours too)

  • Leave space for Festival logos (logo placement examples are included in the resources below. We'll add the logos later)

  • Submit your artwork as a vector PDF

  • Include a short, written statement (up to 150 words) explaining your design and what inspired it.

What's a vector PDF?

Vector artwork can be created using programs like Inkscape (free), Affinity Designer or Adobe Illustrator, then exported as a vector PDF. Unlike photo images, vector artwork can be scaled up to the size of a bus without becoming blurry or losing quality.

Resources

Ready to submit?

By entering this competition, you agree to our terms and conditions.

Remember, entries close 5pm, Sunday 25 October 2026.

Need help?

This competition is all about creativity. If you have any questions about the brief, artwork requirements, or submission process, we're here to help.

📧 tsbfol@npdc.govt.nz

Thanks to our competition supporters

A big thank you to our friends at Centre City and Tranzit Coachlines for supporting our Festival Bus Design Competition.