The campaign - Heathcote Harvest - marks the first time the town has had an autumn-based visitor campaign.

Heathcote Tourism and Development president Peter Young said it was a good time to launch the campaign as the region's wineries harvest grapes and began producing wine.

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"It's great in autumn in our region because it's also our harvest time," he said.

"We have got more than 60 members who have vineyards, grow grapes and have cellar doors and wineries.

"This time of year there is a whole lot of activity going on with the harvesting of grapes and making of wine, so its a great time to visit."

Mr Young said the launch of Heathcote Harvest told the world that the town is ready to welcome visitors again.

"It's really important we have visitors," he said.

"Tourism is really important for our region now and we want people who come here to have a great experience.

"It's been a struggle for us over the last few years because we rely on visitation and there have been times we have had to close down.

"It has been pretty rough for the cellar doors because we haven't had the visitation and when we have, there have been restrictions. As things open up, we want people to come out and visit us, enjoy the climate and experiences and be part of it all.

Heathcote Harvest Festival will debut on Saturday from 4pm at Barrack Reserve and will feature a twilight market with a variety of local and regional market stalls including local produce, sweet treats, jewellery and crafts.

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Tastings from some of Heathcote's famous local wineries, craft beer, gin and cider producers will be available while food trucks offering a diverse selection from paella to tapas will be open. Live entertainment will include the Hot Potato Band and local musicians Vino Sapiens and The Ratbags.

City of Greater Bendigo major events and tourism manager Terry Karamaloudis said getting visitors to Bendigo out to smaller towns was important for the region's economy.

"The visitor experience is a total package," he said.

"It's not just about what is in the city centre of Bendigo, it is about getting out and seeing the region - and there is so much in the Bendigo region.

"There is no better place to encourage the dispersal of visitors (to Bendigo) than Heathcote with its world-class wines, natural beauty and other nature based experience like Lake Eppalock or the O'Keefe Rail.

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Mr Karamaloudis said encouraging visitors to stay overnight would benefit more businesses in the region.

"The impact of Heathcote Harvest and people coming in and making it a long weekend - the economic impact of that will be very significant.

"What we aim for is to extend length of stay. We know overnight visitors leave more money in the city and region than day-trip visitors.

"We want to see both types of visitor but obviously what we aim to do is put compelling things together so people can stay a bit longer, which leads to spending more money.

"It's about moving people around but you need a compelling reason and Heathcote Harvest and its inaugural event will be terrific."

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