The Best Way to spend NYE on Sydney Harbour 2023

Spending NYE on Sydney Harbour is a bucket list item, even for Sydneysiders. Choosing how to spend the night is a huge decision and often a pretty expensive one, so I have put together some questions that will help you pinpoint what you might want to do. 

If you already know what you want to do, then you can skip this page and go straight to my mega list of things to do on NYE in Sydney.

 

Still not sure? Then ask yourself the following questions, and we will come up with the best way for you to spend new year’s eve on Sydney Harbour.

This year NYE the Labour government made good on its promise at the last election to make foreshore area free on NYE.

Do you want to see the fireworks from the foreshore?

If the answer is yes, you have two choices:

Plan to visit one of the free NYE areas and take a picnic

If you are hoping for a cheap night under the stars, you will need to be organised and plan to get to your viewing spot early. There are both alcohol-free areas and a few areas where you can bring your own drinks along.

There are also catered areas where you can buy drinks. Drinks at these spots are pretty pricey, but it means the crowd is a little less rowdy than the BYO places. I have done a rundown of the leading free and low cost viewing spots here.

Hand over $$$ for a ticket to one of the catered outdoor areas

This will get you a prime position and a little more standing room per person. Among the best of these are the Opera House events, the packages offered by the Royal Botanic Gardens Trust and the Taronga Zoo NYE packages. 

Be aware most of these go on sale in September/October, and the less expensive tickets sell out quickly.

Sydney NYE 2006 by Rob Chandler via CC licence

The best budget option here is Barangaroo, which comes in under $50 a ticket, without catering and offers a western view of the Harbour Bridge.

Things to consider before you decide

I have tried both free and paid areas, in the last few years, the crowds have grown considerably, meaning you have to arrive by the middle of the day to secure a good location. I prefer to pay for my view and spend the day doing other things.

Free areas come with a big price – hours of waiting around.

If you choose one of these places, then be prepared to spend the best part of the day in the sun, waiting to get a good spot. Waiting around can be part of the fun – we enjoyed it when we were younger – but it’s an enormous time commitment and not a good option if you are travelling with kids.

Do you want to watch the Sydney fireworks from a boat on the harbour?

NYE Harbour cruising is one topic that gets a lot of questions on the TripAdvisor Sydney forum and also our Sydney Expert Facebook group. There is a range of options from standard BYO harbour cruises, dinner cruises, party boats, private charters, and even cruises offered by Sydney Harbour ferries.

My biggest tip is to make sure the company has some history before you hand over your money. There have sadly been stories in recent years of substandard boats and even one company that took bookings they never intended on honouring.

Prices for spending New Year’s Eve out on the water start at around $399 on average at about $600-800 per person. Cruises with quality food and drinks can sell for more than $1500 per person.

You can also rent private boats upwards of 10k if you have the cash to splash (oh and if you do, can we come too!)

All the leading cruise companies have offers available for New Year’s Eve, with most offering a 6-hour cruise with food and a drinks package. We think this is a great way to experience Sydney on NYE if you can afford it.

There are cruises to suit most tastes, so check out things like the entertainment onboard lest you get stuck listening to hours of music you don’t enjoy. On the whole, the food on the boats is usually wedding style or buffet fare and while it is adequate, and sometimes even quite good, it’s rarely outstanding.

At about 9.20pm, after the first round of fireworks is complete, many of the vessels on the harbour turn on their lights and parade up and down the harbour until the midnight fireworks. This is known as the Harbour of Light Parade.

Boats in the official Harbour of Light boats usually have a choice spot for the main event and are a popular choice. They charge a premium price as a result.

Check the official list of vessels in the harbour lights parade to see which boats will be included this year.

Tickets are on sale now, and all but the most expensive cruises usually sell out pretty by late October, so if you are considering one of the budget tickets, buy early.

So let’s go through some options:

Book on a cruise with a meal and drinks package

These start from about $399 and go all the way to $1500 with buffets, à la carte menus and BBQs. Most deals include a basic drinks package.

The following operators are best known;

  • Captain Cook Cruises – Prices start at $399 for the Matilda (BYO food and drinks). Consider John Cadman 2 for a seafood meal.
  • The Jackson – The newest and most stylish cruise boat on Sydney Harbour from $1499
  • Sydney Harbour Tall Ships – has a 5 hour cruise with finger food, bubbly, beer, wine and soft drinks and a live band. $949pp
  • Fantasea Cruises – has some more intimate options with a boat of only 70 guests, or a 6-hour luxury cruise on the Catalina.
  • The Bella Vista glass boat – offers a standing buffet and open bar for $899
  • The MV Jerry Bailey & MV Sydney are good value options starting fro $799

There are many more, and the quality varies so make sure you have checked out online reviews or ask a local in our FB community if they have heard of the company.

Hire a water taxi or rent a boat and sail yourself

  • Yellow Water Taxis are offering tickets for a spot on the harbour for the 9 pm family fireworks show for only $175 adult and $99 for kids. Midnight $350.
  • Water Taxies combined have various packages; it’s best to contact them directly.
  • You can rent a vessel from Sydney Harbour escapes – They have boats for from 4 to 800 and lots of individually ticketed boats available.

If you have a boat check out this expert advice from Amy at Out Chasing Stars about how to watch from the water on your own boat.

Join a family and budget-friendly BYO outing from Sydney Harbour Ferries

Priced a lot more reasonable than most harbour cruises, this is a BYO affair. There are two sailings; you choose between either the 9 pm show or the midnight fireworks shows. Along with being alcohol-free, there are other pickup points, so you need not trek into Circular Quay if you live close to one of the other locations. The website gives details of where the ferries will be for the fireworks shows.

Sydney Harbour fireworks Ferry view

The departure points are Rose Bay, Manly and Circular Quay. Tickets priced from $125 for kids on the 8 pm ferry to $200 for all 11 pm tickets. Thanks to Beyond the wharf, I was a guest on the Rose Bay ferry a few years ago and enjoyed it. We had a fantastic view of the Harbour Bridge, plenty of space and a friendly crowd. You can read my full review here.

A couple of other operators have since begun offering these no-frill NYE cruises including Manly Fast Ferries, Fantasea and Captain Cook.

For a very detailed list with links and the latest information on prices and availability, check my main NYE in Sydney page.

Would you like to watch the fireworks from the Opera House?

If your dream NYE in Sydney includes the Opera House, you also have a few choices. You can choose one of the Opera Australia packages and be entertained by the Australian Opera during the waiting times between the fireworks shows, dine in Bennelong restaurant or choose one of the parties happening on the Opera House forecourt.

Opera Australia Performances

Opera Australia offers two performances, a gala concert held in the beautiful concert hall and a full opera, this year La Bohème, held in the Opera Theatre. Both shows offer interval viewing of the 9 pm fireworks show from the northern foyers.

There is also a party that is ticketed separately that starts after the end of the show and includes drinks and nibbles. Considering the prices of most cruises, this is relatively reasonable.

Opera House Parties

Portside Opera House NYE Party
DJs and live acts entertain between the fireworks shows at Portside

Portside is the main event outside the Opera House and being at this party is one of my top 3 things to do in Sydney. Tickets include access to the boardwalk right in front of the Harbour Bridge.

NYE Soirée at the Yallamundi Rooms Sydney Opera House

NYE In Sydney Opera House

Thhe Yallamundi Rooms, a venue at the front of the Opera House is one of the most memorable places to take in the show.

t looks fantastic and we are sending someone along to review it so we have more details for next year. It promises to be great value, with generous deluxe catering, access to the ABC Concert held on the adjacent forecourt and a DJ afterparty, so you don’t have to fight the crowds racing to get home after the midnight fireworks.

You can check ticket availability and prices here Currently priced at $665 approx.

Opera House Bars and Restaurants

Bennelong Restaurant offers a fantastic fine dining experience. Contact them directly regarding reservations. Expect prices upwards of $700.

Opera Bar hosts a fabulous party with great music. Tickets go on sale in early October but sign up to their mailing list for exact details. I spent NYE here a long while back. You can read my review here.

Opera Kitchen offers impressive views and great food to go with it. Last year, my friend Edit reviewed her experience here on her blog. If past years are anything to go by, details for this event, go up quite late towards the end of October.

Do you want to dance the night away but see the big show at midnight?

There is a variety of dance party options each year, including venues like Luna Park, Opera Bar and other harbour-side bars and clubs. Check the list on this post for more details.

Do you want to camp on the harbour for NYE?

Cockatoo Island campsite
There are regular and glamping tents for rent at Cockatoo Island

Cockatoo Island NYE Camping Packages

If you plan early enough, you can camp on Cockatoo Island for New Year’s Eve and watch the action from the comfort of your tent right in the middle of Sydney Harbour. There is DIY camping, slightly more upmarket and comfortable campsites and also some heritage homes.

Have you booked your room?

NYE is the busiest time of the year for booking accommodation in Sydney. You need to book months in advance if you want to stay in the inner city area and most hotels have a minimum stay requirement. Even hostels request a week and many are fully booked by August.

I have a post that explains the pros and cons of the different areas to stay in Sydney and also a long list of good budget hotels in Sydney and if money is no object, my favourite hotels with a view of Sydney Harbour.

6 thoughts on “The Best Way to spend NYE on Sydney Harbour 2023”

  1. Sydney is so cool! We won’t be there this year but we will watch the fireworks on tv

  2. NYE Under the Stars was an inaugural event – maybe next year will be better…

    Food queues – as if it wasn’t bad enough to have to wait nearly an hour in the main food queue, imagine to then see trays of food being taken out amongst the crowd. The food on these was snapped up before the server had a chance to walk very far. A great idea in concept re RSA but given the stationary queue for the food, surely the food could’ve gone to the stall?
    Drinks queue – this moved quickly and the staff were friendly
    Toilet queue – how on earth did anyone think that 20 toilets + 1 disabled toilets would be enough for a capacity of 1,500??!?!? It’s lucky this was a mature and respectful crowd as otherwise, it could easily have kicked off with the frustration of this.
    Food & Drinks – Good enough food once you got it although the sandwich was more bread than filling; Not a large selection of drinks, the measures were small and a 4 drink limit would have been better than 3
    Staff – The people collecting rubbish, at the entry gate and those at the oyster and drinks counters were great but those at the food stall were stressed out by the lack of food.

    Of the 5 hours there, I wouldn’t be surprised if half of it was spent in a queue and that’s not what I had in mind for a great night out. Having had a far superior experience at Midnight at the Oasis last year, that is certainly the one I’d be recommending to friends in the future

  3. Thanks Karrie for sharing your experience. I hope you have also shared it with the event organisers. As you said being the first year hopefully they will learn from this. I was on a ferry with Beyond the Wharf and except for the complete lack of alcohol (which had its benefits), it was great.

  4. My NYE on the Sydney Harbour is my favourite one yet! I also went with one of my best friends – so that helps – but it was magical and I highly recommend it!

    Though I am biased as I now live on a used sailboat as we sail around the world and back to Australia!

Leave a comment