Sydney Australia Day Celebrations

Sydney has something for everyone to do on January the 26th, Australia Day. Darling Harbour has free entertainment all day. This includes children's entertainment, short films, music from all over the world and the Australia Day Spectacular. Big crowds will attend the Australia Day Spectacular as the Premier and Governor of New South Wales appear, there is a boat parade, concerts and then finally a large fireworks display.

The waters of Sydney Harbour are filled with excitement too, and there can be aerial displays in the air above as well. The Great Aussie Swim takes place in the morning, it is a 2.5km ocean swim. The Australia Day Regatta takes over the afternoon on Sydney Harbour with yachts and skiffs. Yet another popular water event is the Ferrython. The ferries over a course that goes from Circular Quay to Shark Island to the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

At Hyde Park North there is family entertainment with shows and concerts, also included is the Lord Mayor's Citizenship Ceremony. Out at Olympic Park there is more to do with events for children and families. Pony rides, face painting, Sheep dog trials, art workshops, amusement rides, concerts, dancing shows and a fireworks display provide a great day of entertainment and it is free.

Located at Macquarie, College and Bent Streets is a vintage car show called Motorfest. Over 1,000 cars are on display. At The Rocks there is a free concert that goes for ten hours.

flickr image by BeauGiles

An event called Sample Sydney allows people to visit many of Sydney's famous locations with free, or cheaper than normal, entry prices. Some of the locations open on this day include Government House, Powerhouse Museum, The Mint, Sydney Observatory, Reserve Bank of Australia, Museum of Contemporary Art and the Parliament of NSW.

The biggest Australia Day on Sydney harbour may have been in 1988 for the Australian Bicentenary. On that day, there was a historical re-enactment of the First Fleet arriving in Sydney.