Ever since its inception in 2009, the VIVID Sydney festival, a spectacle of color, light and sound, has been delighting locals and tourists. There are 3D art projections, performing artists, interactive attractions and lots of culinary offerings. Another feature is an 8 km light walk that encompasses the various neighborhoods throughout the city. This year’s (2023) festival ran from April 26 to May 17th. When we planned our four-week Aussie east coast road trip which ran from Port Douglas to Sydney with a side trip to Uluru, Vivid Sydney wasn’t even on our radar. As luck would have it, we’d be in Sydney around that time, so the dates ended up being perfect. Like all modern big cities, Sydney was busy, lots of vehicular and pedestrian traffic. There is however a great public transportation system in place which we found to be clean, efficient and very user friendly. For us, riding the train was the most convenient way to get downtown. Payment can be done through the local Opal card (a rechargeable card). We used our credit cards to tap and go, then tap on exit. Your fare is automatically calculated depending on the distance traveled, very convenient. Since we were going to do a side trip to Uluru, we decided to stay at a hotel close to the airport in Mascot. The walk to the train station was about ten minutes and we always felt safe walking back to the hotel in the night. The Circular Quay station is the stop that puts you in the heart of the area of the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and the trendy Rocks neighbourhood. This is the most visited area of Sydney.

The ride from Mascot station took about 20 minutes and cost 3.79AUD (2.56 USD)

The feeling you get when you finally see these iconic structures up close is indescribable. Very much looking forward to our upcoming Harbour Bridge climb. This is by no means a cheap attraction but it’s one of those things you do once in your life. For those not willing to pay the 3 – 400AUD, you can walk across the bridge via the 1.5 km pedestrian walkway and still enjoy some great views of the city.

As part of the Vivid festival, the Royal Botanical Gardens, which is adjacent to the Opera House, presented Lightscape, a walking tour with several lighting installations set to music. It offered a bit of a break from the massive crowds at Circular Quay where the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge are located. This, as I understand, used to be a free attraction but now costs $40 AUD. There was some controversy and backlash surrounding the introduction of this new pricing, but nevertheless it was well attended. The atmosphere was family friendly.

We planned our trip for a weekday to avoid the chaos at the weekend. Entrance into this attraction was at fifteen-minute intervals to allow for the crowd to be spread more evenly. This was a nice and easy, roughly 90-minute stroll, on a cool autumn evening (Southern Hemisphere) with the May temperatures around 20/10 Celsius, (68/54 Fahrenheit)

We returned the following day to do the Harbour Bridge Climb, 1332 steps and 134 meters, (440 ft) above the water. Climbs go rain or shine. The weather was great, not too cold or windy and the 360-degree city views were spectacular. We scheduled our climb to finish up a few hours before the light show began. That gave us time to enjoy a nice dinner before our evening stroll.

After five days in Sydney, we have a newfound love for the city. There’s so much to see and do, from churches and other historical buildings, museums, indigenous (first nations) art galleries, botanical gardens, international cuisines, night markets and the nearby Blue Mountains. You name it, Sydney has it. In five days, you barely scratch the surface.