‘Harbourfest’ To Replace ‘Salute To Australia’ & ‘Navy Helicopter Flag Display’ As A ‘Flagship’ Sydney Spectacular On Australia Day

Australia Day In Sydney‘s Salute To Australia & Navy Helicopter Flag Display, both Flagship Sydney Spectaculars, will now become part of a new larger Flagship Sydney Spectacular called Harbourfest.

Salute To Australia first became a flagship Sydney Spectacular in 2022 while Navy Helicopter Flag Display became a flagship Sydney Spectacular in 2023, after weather affected its appearance in 2022.

Harbourfest begins at 10am & concludes at 4pm. After much correspondence with the New South Wales’ Premier’s Department over the past month to clarify what exactly Harbourfest entails, we can now safely say it comprises of the following events, which means all the events below are now flagship Sydney Spectaculars:

• Great Aussie Barbeque (BBQ)
• Mega Kidz Zone
• Salute To Australia
• Ferrython
• Maritime Mayhem
• Navy Helicopter Flag Display
• Parade
• Tall Ships Race
• Working Vessel Display

It begins at 10am with the returning Great Aussie BBQ, now at Hickson Road Reserve underneath the south-eastern pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, where the multicultural diversity of Sydney come together at this sausage sizzle to let you taste test their interpretation of a sausage sanga (sandwich for international readers) among the others as well as the classical version (plus with onions). Lambda Sydney will present a Greek gyros-style version while Mr & Mrs Pho will craft an authentic Vietnamese version & the team from Turbans 4 Australia will be offering a Tandoori-inspired vegan version.

The snags (sausages) are provided by Our Cow & each purchase will result in a 100% donation to Rural Aid to help NSW’s farmers. Even though this event is scheduled to finish at 2pm, you should attend this soon as possible as the event actually finishes when the sausage sangas are sold out!

The main event of Harbourfest though, Salute To Australia, has been renamed to just Salute & in 2024, will begin at 11:40am with a new smoking ceremony from the Wirawi in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. At 11:50am, a “special vessel”, though there is a chance it will be the Wirwai (which, in any case, is a special vessel) will enter Sydney Cove/Warrane as the 21-gun salute from Bradfield Park signals the start of the singing of Advance Australia Fair. A row of jet skis, each carrying either the Australian National or Aboriginal Flag, will then ride past the Great Aussie BBQ into Sydney Cove/Warrane. As the last stirring notes of the National Anthem are sung at 12:02pm, the Royal Australian Air Force Roulettes will zoom over Sydney Harbour to begin a 15-minute aerial display – the 1st from them at Australia Day In Sydney in over a decade! It will feature loops, turns & barrel rolls at speeds up to 685 kilometres per hour & as low as 61 metres. After the Roulettes finish their display at 12:17pm, the Navy Helicopter Flag Display will conclude the Salute with a trip from the Northern Beaches, up the Harbour to the Bridge, finishing at 1:30pm. This means the Navy Helicopter Flag Display is now part of Salute.

A slight problem with the new Harbourfest format is that many events will occur simultaneously. For starters, the Ferrython will begin during the Salute at 12:05pm & conclude around 12:24pm.

For those unfamiliar with Ferrython, it is a ferry race featuring the iconic Sydney ferries. It was first held in 1977 as part of the inaugural Festival Of Sydney in 1976 & 1977 (which also held the 1st ever Sydney New Year’s Eve) as part of their Australia Day 1977 celebrations. The now-called Sydney Festival gave up the reins of the Ferrython in 2022 to pass it on to the Australia Day Council Of New South Wales to organise.

4 Emerald-class ferries will participate this year: May Gibbs, Catherine Hamlin, Bungaree and Fred Hollows, each dressed themed to their name & in good news, the Ferrython will be the fastest ever as a result of a new race route, beginning in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge before going around Fort Denison, back to the Bridge, around Fort Denison again before finishing at the Sydney Opera House. The bad news is that the race route is now in an exclusion zone so spectator boats cannot follow them anymore as they could on the old race route. The ferries will also do a lap around Circular Quay before & after the race.

On board the ferries will be more than 700 invited teachers & staff from the New South Wales Department Of Education. Tickets are not sold to be able to be on the ferries mid-race but there is a competition for family passes for 4! Enter here for your chance to win. To enter, you need to write in 25 words or less who you will take on the ferry with you if you’re a winner & why. The best original, creative & literate response wins. Entries close Monday the 22nd Of January 2024 at 4pm Australian Eastern Daylight Time.

During the Ferrython between 12:12pm & 12:25pm, Maritime Mayhem will be held in Sydney Cove/Warrane. For those unfamiliar with Maritime Mayhem, it is a rock-music-synchronised jet-ski, flyboard & tugboat show, which has been held since 2021. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, it featured yachts and tug boats only & was called the Tug and Yacht Ballet since 2014. Its debut was in 2002 as the Tug Boat Ballet.

Between 12:45pm & 2pm, the Parade will occur beginning at Jeffery Street Wharf before heading past Blues Point, Barangaroo then out to Bradley’s Head. For those unfamiliar with the Parade, it is a parade of Australia Day-decorated boats, held since the late 1990’s, originally called Flags Afloat. There are prizes awarded for the ‘best dressed’ & ‘most imaginative’ including a prime water vantage point for Australia Day LIVE, another flagship Sydney Spectacular. Also, at 1pm, the Tall Ships Race begins at Bradley’s Head, concluding at the Sydney Harbour Bridge at 1:30pm. This has been held since 1994.

At 2pm, the tugs from Maritime Mayhem, the tall ships from the Tall Ships Race & other working vessels of Sydney Harbour will be on display at Campbells Cove & the Overseas Passenger Terminal, as part of the Working Vessel Display. The Display will be accompanied by live entertainment from Junkyard Beats, a musical band with ocean-found ‘rubbish’ instruments! For a gold coin donation, you can also board the tall ship, James Craig, from the southern half of the Overseas Passenger Terminal. This event was first held last year as the Working Harbour Festival. Before 2023 & since the late 1990’s, it was an event only featuring the tall ships but under numerous and sometimes, similar names. The Working Vessel Display this year finishes at 4pm.

There will also be a Mega Kidz Zone at the Overseas Passenger Terminal Arrivals Hall, opening at 10:30am & closing at 4pm, held in 30-minute sessions. For those unfamiliar with Mega Kidz Zone, it is an interactive arcade for kids featuring a massive maze, ninja-inflatable obstacle course & silent disco as well as the classic arcade games. This event was first held last year.

The theme of Australia Day In Sydney 2024 is, once again, Reflect. Respect. Celebrate.

So from sailing and ferry races to sausage sizzles & temporary arcades to vessel displays, this will be the most spectacular Australia Day In Sydney yet!