Sydney Things to Do

Sydney’s Vivid Festival will once again flood the city with a multicolored canvas of light, music and ideas in late May 2012.

Ranked one of the Top Ten global ideas festivals by the UK’s Guardian newspaper, Vivid Sydney celebrates the world’s creative industries and is the biggest festival of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Sydney Festival transforms Sydney for around 3 weeks every January, taking on major art displays that attract nearly half a million people to the numerous festival events. During those 3 weeks, Sydneysiders can expect various shows of artistry from music, dance and drama to visual.

Sydney‘s diverse food culture, ranging from trendy cafes to hatted restaurants, draws food lovers from around the world to partake in the local fare. Created from the combination of cultures that have migrated to Australia, Sydney’s local food culture presents visitors with options ranging from top Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Lebanese, Portuguese and of course, your modern Australian fare. Even American and Latin American food options have grown in Sydney in recent years.

Christmas time in Sydney seems to be the far from the stories told in books, movies and carols. Occurring during the sweltering summer months in Australia, Sydney at Christmas does not see snow and the traditional activities, like drinking eggnog in fuzzy sweaters, do not occur.

Sydney never lets its residents and visitors go bored. With a plethora of festivals, markets, art exhibits and events, there is literally something for everyone in the bustling harbor city. To help you make your plans, we’ve compiled a short list of some of the special events and activities happening in the next week.

The popular Sculpture By The Sea exhibition returns to Sydney’s cliff tops this November.

Every year since 1997, artists have been displaying their work along Sydney’s spectacular Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk. Over 100 sculptures by artists from Australia and overseas stand on the cliff top amid a dramatic setting of sea and sky.

Savvy travelers know to bypass busy summer in Sydney and head Down Under in the spring. And no, you Northern Hemisphere residents, that doesn’t mean March through May. Seasons happen in reverse in Australia, so spring in Sydney occurs primarily during the months of September through November.

Given the diverse cultural backgrounds of those living in the city of Sydney, and an overall love of being creative (or at least trying to be more creative than Melbourne), the film festival speaks to the public and presents itself across several popular events every year.

If you’ve always wanted to walk through a Willy Wonka-esque landscape then the Hunter Valley Chocolate Festival is as close as it gets!

Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach is commonly associated with bronzed Aussie lifesavers, shaggy-haired surfers and overcooked backpackers soaking up the rays of Australia’s seemingly endless sunshine. For three weeks in July, however, that very same beach will be transformed from a summer playground into an icy winter wonderland.