Bendigo National Swap Meet expecting thousands of bargain hunters this weekend

More than 1700 sites will be set up for this weekend's event, with swap meet chairman Ashley Gray expecting at least 15,000 people to visit.

"We should get between 15,000 and 20,000 but that depends on the weather," he said.

"We open at 6am on Saturday and (in the past) have had thousands waiting for gates to open. People run around the sites first, some do half a dozen laps, 1700 sites is a lot to look through."

"Some bits that are for sale are worth thousands of dollars. We mostly concentrate on automotive parts. Money that changes hands would be in the millions of dollars."

People from all over Australia come to buy, swap or sell with some stall holders waiting years for a site.

"There is always a waiting list," Mr Gray said.

"If we had more space, we could have more sites.

"Some will wait a couple years for a specific site because they like to get a double or triple (sized) site. Then they might have two or three blokes helping them sell stuff.

"If they can bring it on site, they can sell anything. We often see a lot of cars for sale on site."

The Bendigo National Swap Meet is on at the Prince of Wales Showgrounds on November 16 and 17.

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