VIVID SYDNEY FESTIVAL IS RETURNING!

The Vivid Sydney Festival is returning in 2023! You should start making plans now to experience this wonderful festival of light, music, and art. Next year’s festivities begin 26 May and run through 17 June 2023. It would be a perfect trip to start the summer on a great note!

We were fortunate to have visited Australia in 2019 (see 9 Perfect Days In Australia) while the Vivid Sydney Festival was going on and were mesmerized by all the lights, shows, and energy that was all around us. Seeing the Sydney Opera House light up with not just lights but all sorts of awesome visual effects and the Bridge constantly changing colors was legit cool. I’ll go over which areas were our favorites from that visit.

Winter Camp (Barangaroo) – MARRI DYIN

I’m not saving the best for last. I’m starting out with the most badass exhibit of the festival. Her name is Marri Dyin (which means Great Woman) and she was not just our favorite but the crowd favorite as well. At almost 20 feet in height, this puppet makes a spectacular entrance and it is fascinating to watch her walk, talk, and move her arms. To everyone’s surprise she can even get down on her knees and hug people! Marri could be found in the Winter Camp that year but I’m not sure where she’ll be in 2023. Check out the Vivid website for details.

SAMSUNG ELECTRIC PLAYGROUND

Now here’s a place where you can spend a lot time time entertaining yourself with all the interactive activities spread out throughout the 32,000 square ft. events area. The dynamic light poles and light up dance floors were fun to play around with. We also felt like little kids trying out the Sky Walk and Infinity Slide. Of course, it didn’t hurt that we had a few cold ones before stepping foot inside 🤷‍♂️😁. The dizzying combination of lights and sound had us floating on cloud 9. This is must see if you visit!

COCKLE BAY WHARF

According to Wikipedia, “Cockle Bay is a small bay in inner-city Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the western edge of the Sydney central business district. Cockle Bay is one of the bays in Darling Harbour, which opens into the much larger Sydney Harbour. The locality around the bay is also known as Darling Harbour.”

I don’t know about you but after reading that description, wtf. That’s too many bays and harbours for me to remember. So don’t pay attention to all that. Just remember the Cockle and you’ll be good to go. This area is lined with restaurants and bars and is a great spot to watch the lit up boats and yachts. They also have this giant transformer type exhibit that lights up and blasts loud music periodically that was a major hit with all the little kids out and about.

CIRCULAR QUAY

The ultimate spot to watch the lights and the throngs of people. During the day this was one of my favorite places in all of Sydney but at night during the VIVID SYDNEY FESTIVAL, this quay really comes alive! I recommend trying to get an outdoor table (if you can find one) at one of the restaurants by the opera house. You’ll have the perfect views to take in the experience.

WHERE TO STAY FOR VIVID SYDNEY FESTIVAL?

The Rocks. This area is walking distance to everything you want to see at the festival. Not only that but there’s tons of bars, restaurants, street food, markets, and much more. We stayed at the Rydges Sydney Harbour hotel. It’s got a great rooftop swimming pool that has excellent views of the Sydney Opera House and the Bridge. And did I mention that it’s close to everything!? This property is currently a Traveler’s Choice on TripAdvisor. Have a look, you won’t be disappointed. You can’t go wrong with any hotel choice in the Rocks.

I’m personally happy that the VIVID SYDNEY FESTIVAL IS RETURNING. It really is a great festival and we had such an amazing time every night while staying in Sydney. Check out the official website https://www.vividsydney.com/ for more information. You can use all the links on my resource page to start making your plans today!

Oh and one last thing. You can get beer with your pancakes in the Rocks. Yeah I know that was random, but I feel that this post wouldn’t be complete without sharing that 😎.