What to see at Vivid Sydney in 2024 (and what to skip)

After clocking in 15km of walking, we checked out every free Vivid display in Circular Quay, The Rocks, Walsh Bay and Barangaroo on the first night of Vivid Sydney 2024. Here’s what we’d see and what we’d skip.

(Stay tuned, because we’ll update this page once we’ve visited the rest of the installations at Darling Harbour.)

See it: Gumscape with Road and Creatures at Customs House

Artist: Reg Mombassa

A longtime favourite of ours, Customs House’s display is always a bit of a spectacle and Reg Mombassa’s 2024 display is no exception. The playful Australiana-themed Gumscape with Road and Creatures features a surfing house, a robotic kangaroo attaching the harbour bridge and a Sydney Opera House-shaped treehouse dangling from what we sure hope is a eucalyptus tree.

Where it is? Customs House, Circular Quay

Best angle to see it from: Either in front of Custom’s House or on the train platform (toward Wynyard) at Circular Quay. (Tip: Check it out on your way back home at the end of the night or, you can always tap on and then off within 30 minutes at the same station to avoid getting charged!)

See it: Nest at Barangaroo Reserve

Artists: Leila Jeffreys and Melvin J. Montalban

With a wow-factor that is impossible to catch on camera, photos certainly don’t to this display justice. Step into the round open-air theatre that is Next and be surrounded by slow-moving birds that truly show the grace of the animals. The incredibly crisp images are projected onto mesh screens atop the hill in Barangaroo with just the stars above you acting as a ceiling.

Where it is? Barangaroo Reserve, at the top of the hill near Hotel Palisade.

See it: Echo at Sydney Opera House

Artist: Julia Gutman

Always a highlight of the festival, the Opera House’s sales did not disappoint this year. With designs reminiscent of where a scrapbook and animation meet, Echo illuminates the western faces of the iconic harbour-front building re-telling the Roman poet Ovid’s myth of Narcissus.

“The work is about the paradox of self-consciousness, the limitations of our own capacity to truly see ourselves, and the way our own unconscious wounds spill out into our perceptions of one another. It’s a story about confronting your shadow.“

Julia Gutman, artist of Echo at Vivid Sydney

Where it is? It’s projected onto the western sails of the Sydney Opera House at Bennelong Point.

Best angle to see it from: It’s best seen from the other side of Circular Quay, though. We recommend watching from in front of the Overseas Passenger Terminal. Or, you can. view it from a slight angle from above Opera Bar (where the above photo was taken).

Skip it: Portal at Barangaroo Reserve

Artists: Lucid Creates

Imagined by a UK-based studio, Portal stands 15 metres tall and towers over the waterfront trees along Barangaroo Reserve’s northern shore. Unfortunately, we found the size is the most impressive thing about this display.

Where it is? Barangaroo Reserve, near the Miller’s Point entrance,

Skip it: Horizon at Barangaroo

Artists: Playmodes

At risk of sounding old and grumpy, this display was a bit too loud and a bit too bright. And unnecessarily so. With a makeshift amphitheatre facing a screen and surrounded by white shipping containers, the use of lights along the containers travelling toward the screen was an interesting technique, but the final product seemed a bit lackluster. The idea is unique, but it could be much more interesting if other colours or images be used. Instead, it comes across as quite repetitive and went on for a bit too long.

Where it is? Wulugul Walk, Barangaroo. It’s accessible from the footpath along the water near the Crown Resort complex.

What is Vivid Sydney?

Running for 14 years now, Vivid Sydney is a festival of light, ideas and music. It features brilliant illuminations and music and speaking events. Of course, all that comes with plenty of food and drink specials from pop-up restaurants and food trucks in the Vivid Precincts and the official Fire Kitchen, complete with talks live cooking demonstrations from celebrity chefs.

How long does Vivid Sydney run for?

It runs for 23 nights in 2024. It started on Friday, 24 May and ends on Saturday, 15 June.

Is everything at Vivid free?

Unfortunately not.

Where to go next…