Wangaratta is a substantial rural service centre in north-east Victoria famed for its Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues which attracts artists of genuinely international stature and its proximity to some of Victoria’s finest wine growing regions. The city is located on the Ovens and King Rivers which wind through the town and have dotted the local landscape with not only lagoons and billabongs but also riverine parklands and minor tributaries including Three Mile Creek which runs along the western side of the city and One Mile Creek which runs through the city centre. Being an important service centre the city is surrounded by vineyards and the local economy is driven by textiles plants, light engineering works and a substantial retail sector.