Irrespective of when you are heading Down Under, there is guaranteed to be something to celebrate. A year round calendar of entertainment from watching the first rays of sun open the new year in Gisborne to the spectacular fireworks over Sydney Harbour at the year’s end.
There is something for everyone:
Colourful festivals such as the annual Festival of Sydney, the biennial Wellington Arts Festival, the Sydney Mardi Gras or the Wearable Arts Festival in Wellington.
Food and wine events across the region from October through to March with highlights such as the Hawkes Bay Harvest Festival in February or Jazz in the Hunter Valley vines in October.
Celebrations of national identity with events such as the Australia Day festivities on Sydney Harbour, Waitangi (National) Day celebrations in New Zealand or a Christmas celebrated in the sun. Along with perplexing oddities which reflect the region’s irreverent sense of humour such as the Henley on Todd – where leg powered bottomless boats race along the Northern Territory’s dry river beds !
And then of course, there is sport .. it is no secret that these nations harbour a passion, bordering on obsession with their sport. As a result the region is host to a wide range and number of local and world stage sporting events. The Australian Open and A1GP in January, Super 14 Rugby in February, the Formula Grand Prix in Melbourne in March. June opens the ski season whilst July brings with it the Northern Territory’s Camel Cup! The Darwin Rodeo is held in August, the Aussie Rules Grand Final follows in September. The international test cricket season across the region opens in October. The Melbourne Cup Horse Race stops the nation in November. A parade of sail fills the harbour as the Sydney to Hobart contestants set sail in December. Even countries that don’t play rugby, know that New Zealand does and visitors to the region can watch matches played by all ages throughout the Southern Hemisphere autumn and winter months.
The Polynesian peoples also love to sing, dance and celebrate. Colourful local parades, sporting competitions, festivals and traditional feasts entertain visitors across the region and throughout the year.
Arty, sporting, musical or just plain quirky Australia celebrates all year round. The following calendar gives a flavour for some of Australia’s annual events:
January
- Sydney Festival – kicks off the year with a month long celebration of open air concerts, street theatre and fireworks
- Tamworth Country Music Festival - attracts artists from across the country and around the globe
- Australia Day – is celebrated with fireworks and festivities across the country (public holiday - 26 January)
- The Australian Open Tennis Championship in Melbourne - is one of the four world Grand Slam tournaments
- Tour Down Under – is Australia’s premier international cycling race held in Adelaide
February
- Leeuwin Estate Concerts – attract acts from around the globe watched by fans in t-shirts and top hats picnicking in a picturesque Margaret River vineyard setting
- Adelaide Fringe Festival – celebrates fun and spontaneity in the arts
- Womadelaide – is a lively outdoor festival of world music and dance is showcased in Adelaide
- Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras – the famous street parade and party are the culmination of a colourful month long festival
March
- Adelaide Festival of the Arts – a biennial celebration of the arts, held in even numbered years
- Staircase to the Moon – a natural light phenomenon off the coast of Broome (on the full moon of each month between March to October)
- Melbourne’s Moomba Waterfest – a celebration of life in the city, culminating in a colourful street parade.
- Melbourne Food and Wine Festival – a showcase of Australia’s finest chefs, growers and winemakers
- Australian Formula One Grand Prix – the first round of the Formula One motor racing championships, held in Melbourne
- Ten Days on the Island Festival – a collection of performing arts, literature, food and wine events across Tasmania
- Australian Surf Lifesaving Championships – a carnival of surf lifesaving races between Australia's top surf clubs
- Coles Bay Classic - game fishing competition off the coast of Tasmania’s Freycinet Peninsula
- Kakadu Klash - Barramundi fishing competition in the Northern Territory
- Blues Fest – Easter jazz music festival in Byron
- Easter Surfing Classic in Torquay and the Rip Curl Pro in Bells Beach, Australia’s most prestigious professional surfing events.
- Tasmania’s Three Peaks nautical rush sails from Beauty Point (north of Launceston) to Hobart, covering 335 nautical miles and pausing to climb three mountains in 4 days
April
- Melbourne International Comedy Festival – laugh ‘til it hurts at one of the world's funniest and largest comedy festivals
- Melbourne International Flower Show – a celebration of the great outdoors at the largest horticultural event in the Southern Hemisphere
- Canberra Balloon Fiesta – see more than 50 hot air balloons floating over Canberra’s national attractions
- Barossa Valley Vintage festival - celebrates the release of the new vintage with music, art and entertainment throughout the valley.
- Targa Tasmania – motor rally along Tasmania's scenic coastal routes and mountain passes
- ANZAC Day – dawn services, military marches and traditional ‘two-up’ games played in pubs across the country (public holiday, 25th April)
May
- Whale Shark Festival – welcomes the gentle giants of the sea back to Western Australia’s Ningaloo Reef
- Lovedale Long Lunch – a weekend of progressive wining and dining in the Hunter
- Outback Muster and Drivers Reunion, Longreach – includes Outback Games and campfire dinners
June
- Alice Springs Beanie (woolly hat) Festival - brings together central Australian communities to celebrate the quirky works of Indigenous and non indigenous artists.
- Opening of the Ski season in NSW and Victoria (June to October)
- Rugby season kicks off with Union highlights including the Tri Nations series with New Zealand and South Africa and the Bledisloe’s ultimate trans-Tasman rivalry. The League calendar also includes a hotly contested three game State of Origin competition between Queensland and New South Wales.
July
- Melbourne International Film Festival – a feast of cinematic delicacies from over 50 countries
- Darwin Beer Can Regatta – fun spirited sailing race on boats made from empty beer cans
- Yulefest in the Blue Mountains – a celebration of Christmas in July
- Alice Springs Camel Cup – entertainment is ensured at these annual camel races
August
- Hamilton Island Race Week – a colourful yachting festival and regatta in the Whitsundays
- Garma Festival – a spectacular display of indigenous cultural practice and cross cultural learning in Arnhem Land
- Opera Under the Stars – spine chilling opera performances staged in an open air amphitheatre by the sands of Broome’s Cable Beach
- Fraser Island whale watching season (Aug to Nov) – whales can be seen passing the coast and daily cruises take you closer to the action
September
- Sydney Marathon – the 42 km course through the city crosses the Harbour Bridge to finish on the steps of the Opera House
- Birdsville Races - three days of horse racing and entertainment in the Queensland outback
- Henley on Todd – boat races along a dry river bed in Alice Springs.
- Floriade – a spectacular month-long celebration of Spring in Canberra with more than a million bulbs in bloom
- Marvel at the explosion of colour with the start of the wildflower season in Western Australia’s South West
- Catch the excitement of the Aussie Rules and Rugby League grand finals
October
- Barossa Music Festival – two weeks of wine, picnics, music and theatre in the vineyards
- Jazz in the Vines and Opera in the Vineyards – picnic music performances in the Hunter Valley
- Surfers Paradise Indy Car Rally – the main streets of Surfers are transformed into a temporary race circuit
- Motorcycle Grand Prix on Philip Island
- Leura Gardens Festival – see the Blue Mountains’ magnificent cool-climate gardens in all their spring glory.
- Black Marlin Classic – international sportsfishing competition in the waters off Lizard Island
November
- Tasmanian Craft Fair – candle wicking to kite making, blacksmithing to painting is on display at Australia’s largest arts and crafts fair in Deloraine
- Coral spawning on the Great Barrier Reef – a night dive spectacular, attracting hundreds of brightly coloured fish
- Melbourne Cup – frock up in your finest for the horserace which stops the nation held the first Tuesday in November
- Noosa Multi Sport Triathlon – a weeklong celebration of sport and entertainment, incorporating one of the largest Triathlons on the world stage
- Margaret River Wine Festival – indulge your tastebuds with this premier Western Australian celebration
- International cricket series - games featuring touring teams from countries such as England, Sri Lanka, South Africa and New Zealand can be seen from November through January at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Melbourne Cricket Ground, and Adelaide Oval
December
- Australian Open Golf Tournament
- Sing Carols by Candelight in parks across the nation and celebrate Christmas by the beach
- Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race – one of the most challenging and exciting yacht races heads down Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day (26 Dec)
- International Test Cricket, Boxing Day (26 Dec) in Melbourne
- New Years Eve celebrations and spectacular fireworks display in Sydney
- The Hyundai Hopman Cup is an international mixed teams event between Christmas and the New Year in Perth
There are dozens of other local and special interest events to excite, amuse and entertain throughout the year, and nearly every year, Australia plays host to a number of other international sporting and cultural one-off events. Check with us for tickets and events of particular interest during your visit to Australia.
Throughout the year opera, jazz, symphony and live bands perform in theatres, pubs, parks and vineyards across the country, colourful local markets and special exhibitions brighten up towns and galleries all around Australia, whilst local, regional and international sporting teams battle it out the on the field, court or course.