Almost 1,400 tickets have been sold to this year's Bermuda Gourmet Getaway which kicks off next weekend with a smorgasbord of delicious food, famous chefs and fun activities.

The annual culinary festival will be held at the Bermuda National Sports Centre in Pembroke from October 27 to 30.

On Wednesday tourism minister Col. David Burch launched the event, saying the event was great for tourism.

He said, "The Bermuda Gourmet Getaway was developed to encourage visitors to travel to Bermuda to kick-off our golf and spa season. And in recent years, we have scheduled the event hot on the heels of the Bermuda Music Festival to capitalise on the visitor arrival momentum generated by our number one tourism event."

Col. Burch said interest in the Bermuda Gourment Getaway, formerly the Bermuda Culinary Arts Festival, has been very positive.

Event organiser Graham Redford of Total Marketing said that the ratio of tourist to visitors was about one to four.

The main event during the festival is a Viking Village that hosts cooking demonstrations, wine tastings, and a local vendor showcase for things like jam or cheese. A new addition to the festival will be a children's village with fun activities including pumpkin carving and kid-friendly cooking with American cooking instructor and author Katie Wilton and others. Children pay $20 to get into the kids village.

Last year, the festival was held at the Bermuda Botanical Gardens. Mr. Redford said the new venue will allow the festival to continue expanding, and also provide easier access to resources like electricity.

"We believe the new more open and airy location will add significantly to the atmosphere of this premier food festival," said Col. Birch.

There will be an impressive line of renowned chefs and wine experts will make the Gourmet Getaway a must attend event as well.

Celebrity chef and restaurateur Bobby Flay, owner of the popular Manhattan restaurant Mesa Grill, and a regular fixture on the Food Network, will host the festival.

His bold style and gutsy preparations of American ingredients have earned him rave reviews and tremendous critical acclaim.

Residents and visitors will meet Mr. Flay on October 28 for an evening of 'Grillin and Chillin' with great food and wines at the Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo, and again on October 29 when Mr. Flay hosts the Gala Gourmet Dinner at the Fairmont Southampton.

Other well-known chefs will include Robert Gadsby from 'Noe' in Houston and Chicago, Alexander Smalls from 'Smalls & Company' in New York, Katy Sparks from 'Great Performances' in New York, Jeff Tunks from 'DC Coast' in Washington DC and Johnny Vinczencz from 'Johnny V' in Miami to name a few.

There are also a number of events happening outside of the Viking Village, including a dine-around with celebrity chefs at some of Bermuda's hottest restaurants, and a champagne brunch at Wadson's Farm in Southampton.

A highlight of the getaway will be the Escoffier Cup finals to be held at the Viking Village at 4 p.m. on October 30, when four local chefs will also go head to head in an iron-chef style cook-off to determine Bermuda's top chef.

The chefs competing will be Serge Botelli from Broadway Bistro, Jean-Claude Garzia from Lemon Tree Cafe, and Nick Sauter from the Newport Room.

"With such a line up of events and renowned chefs, it's easy to see why Bermuda was just voted the best island destination and in Caribbean and Atlantic," said Col. Burch.

For tickets and information go to www.boxoffice.bm or http://www.bermudatourism.com/93.aspx.