THEY came, they strummed, they did not quite conquer, but Cairns ukulele faithful still have their eyes on a world record prize.

Thousands of people braved windy and damp conditions to flood through the Fogarty Park and Tanks gates over the weekend as part of the third annual ode to the famed four-string instrument.

And despite narrowly missing the world record mark, organisers and participants alike are adamant next year they will go one better.

"It just means we’ve got to bring a few more of our mates down next year," festival goer Phil Warring from Kuranda said.

"It’s nice that it gets bigger every year … and it seemed like this year there were lots more people from out of town.

"I think ukulele really reflects the town, it’s a tropical place and we beat (former world record holders) Hawaii and that’s good enough for me."

In the end, 1395 people strummed out Travellin, a song specifically written for the festival by John Butler Trio member Nicky Bomba.

It fell short of the current record set in Sweden of 1547. However, Bomba will use footage from Saturday’s attempt in the official film clip for the song.

Brinsmead’s Bridget Fearon said the festival struck a chord with her and daughter Siobhan, 6.

"We’re locals so we just popped down to have a go and it was just great," Ms Fearon said.

"It sounded fantastic and the best thing I liked was all the ukuleles waving in the air at the end."

The festival finished with a concert day at the Tanks yesterday, culminating in the Uke Art Auction.

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