Sydney Worldpride 2023

Sydney Worldpride 2023

Sydney plays host to Worldpride in 2023, one of the most significant global events in NSW since the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

Worldpride will combine with the Sydney Mardi Gras for a bumper 17-day extravaganza across the city. Mainstay Mardi Gras events such as Fair Day, the Mardi Gras Parade, and the after parties will also go ahead. Sydney is already full during the month of March as the end of Summer season and Mardi Gras fills the city to capacity. Don’t delay your hotel booking if you are planning to visit for World Pride 2023!

Sydney Worldpride – Key Events

Worldpride will visit the Southern hemisphere for the first time in its 23 year history. Planning is currently underway, and we await the full schedule. Key events include:

Fair Day in Victoria Park

• Sunday, February 19th, 2023 – Join over 80,000 people in Victoria Park for a free, fun-filled celebration of Australia’s communities with delicious food, rides, market stalls, comedy, dance and live music to boot.
• Whether you are in the mood for a picnic or a party, whether you’re eight or 85, Fair Day offers something for everyone, kicking off the fortnight to come.
• Stay close to Victoria Park. The Old Clare Hotel has spacious rooms, a great rooftop bar and gorgeous pool.
  

Opening Ceremony in The Domain

• February 24th February 2023 – This all-ages event is the official opening ceremony concert for Sydney WorldPride 2023, featuring First Nations people through ceremony, ritual, dance and song as Worldpride respects the traditional custodians of the Sydney area. 
• A line-up of the finest LGBTIQ+ performers and friends will see new music acts alongside icons join together to give audiences an unforgettable evening of party and community.
•  The event takes place on the lawns of the Domain. Revel under the stars with loved ones, new friends and a global community in this joyous celebration to herald the arrival of Sydney WorldPride 2023.
• Stay close to The Domain.  Consider the Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Sydney a 5 star hotel with a touch of luxury, large rooms and delicious breakfast options.

Mardi Gras Parade – Hyde Park, Oxford Street, Entertainment Quarter

• Saturday, February 25th – Join over 500,000 fabulous people as they unite for a glittering Pride parade in the heart of Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ district. The Sydney Mardi Gras Parade is an event that stops the nation and reverberates around the world.  
• The Parade brings the city to a standstill, with hundreds and thousands lining the streets in support of the dazzling spectacle of sparkles and self-expression. Mardi Gras welcomes the community in a fabulous festivity of love that knows no bounds.
• Stay close to Hyde Park. Check out the Sheraton Grand, with views of the park. The hotel is right on the doorstep of the busy gay bars on Oxford Street.

Mardi Gras Party – Entertainment Quarter

• Saturday, February 25th –Join international and local partygoers at the largest LGBTIQ+ party in the Southern Hemisphere. Each year the Mardi Gras Party bursts with music, light and performance across stunning fantasy worlds for you to immerse yourself. (Program to be confirmed)

Laneway – Breseford Hotel & Surrounding Laneways

• Sunday, February 26th – Laneway, a cherished tradition of the Mardi Gras Festival, has evolved from a couple of milk crates and a portable stereo on Hill Street, Surry Hills, to a full-blown street party. Expect live music, diva drop-ins, pop-up drag shows and world-class DJs across a mix of indoor and outdoor spaces.
• Stay close to the venue in Surry Hills. Feel like a local in your own apartment at the Best Western Plus Hotel Stellar, offering full suite amenities and just steps from the bustling and vibrant gay scene.

World Pride March – Sydney Harbour Bridge

• Sunday, March 5th – Be part of this historical moment where LGBTQIA+ people walk side by side with friends, families and allies across one of our most famous icons; the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Fifty thousand people will march across the bridge in a spectacular solidarity act and come together as one.

Sydney World Pride Closing Ceremony

• Sunday, March 5th – Immediately following the Pride March, everyone will descend into the Domain for the Closing Ceremony concert. There will be fun for the whole family and a truly inclusive program of events for all LGBTQIA+ communities and their friends.
  

Bondi Beach Party

• Sunday, March 5th – This is it, Sydney! Dance it out. Release. It’s your time to party. World-class music acts will take to the stage alongside the very best DJs, taking you on that magical journey from daylight to moonlight.
• On the shores of one of our most beautiful beaches, The Bondi Beach Party will take its inspiration from the sea, sun, sand and stars. Unexpected. Full of surprises. A total immersion.
• Dance in celebration of equality and freedom. A time to bask in the beautiful memories of the last 17 days as the sun sets on Sydney WorldPride 2023.

Organisers aim for Worldpride to become a spotlight in the Asia Pacific region, representing Australian states and territories and bringing focus to Australia’s neighbouring countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

Gay Sydney during Worldpride

• Darlinghurst – In Sydney, bustling inner-city Darlinghurst is the focal point of the annual Mardi Gras festival and home to some of Australia’s longest-running and best-known LGBTQI bars, such as The Colombian and the Stonewall Hotel, where you can catch drag shows and dance on podiums until late.
• The neighbouring suburbs of Surry Hills and Potts Point are queer hubs, too; both spots are known for their concentrations of top restaurants and their well-dressed residents.
• Newtown  – (10 Mins drive from Sydney city centre) –  Think of Newtown as Darlinghurst’s wonderfully weird bohemian cousin. Newtown’s main thoroughfare, King Street, has long been a popular hangout for students, artists, musicians and members of the LGBTQI community, while its leafy backstreets and pretty old terrace houses attract hip families and young professionals. Newtown also boasts some of the best casual dining in Sydney. In nearby Erskineville, the Imperial Hotel has been an LGBTQI meeting spot since the 1980s.

Here are the hotels we recommend that have good reviews and keep you close to all the action

Best Western,    Rydges Hotel,    Meriton Suites,    Pullman Hotel