Things to do in Sydney today

If outdoor movie trivia, mouth-watering eats, and a dash of Irish folk music sound like your kind of night, mark your calendar – Spot On is back for 2025, and it’s shaping up to be a goodie. The beloved street festival will transform St Pauls Street in Randwick into a vibrant hub of food, music, and community spirit every second Thursday evening from September 4 to November 27, running from 5:30pm to 9pm. And the best part? It’s completely free. Whether you’re planning a family outing, a date night, or rallying the entire group chat for a long overdue catch-up, Spot On has something for everyone. During the festivities, St Pauls Street will be closed to traffic, with the usual traffic replaced with a bustle of activity. Local cafés and restaurants will take over the street with extended alfresco dining serving up Thai, French, Italian, Spanish, Indian and more. Expect live performances from talented local acts. Some to look forward to are Jordan Chung Duo, Steyer Brothers, Crawfish Po’Boys, Blue Rhythm Band and more with their sweet jazz sounds ranging from bossa nova to New Orleans-style. Funded by the NSW Government’s Open Streets Program in partnership with Randwick City Council, Spot On 2025 is all about celebrating local businesses, artists and musicians, while bringing the community together. The best transport options are to bus it, catch the light rail to Randwick terminal and take a short stroll through High Cross Park to The Spot or see if you can nab a local...

Spring is officially upon us, daylight savings is fast approaching, and for Barangaroo’s 20,000+ office workers, Thursday lunchtimes just got a whole lot more lively. To encourage people to get outside this spring season, Barangaroo has re-launched its Spring in the Streets series – bringing live music, roving entertainment and affordable lunch specials to the waterside precinct every Thursday until Thursday, October 30. For the next eight Thursday lunchtimes (from 11am until 3pm), Barangaroo will come to life with seasonal festivities; think free ice cream scoops, live musical performances and excellent lunch deals. On the music line-up, performers include electronic artist and producer GabZak, live DJ and saxophone player SaxBeatz, genre-bending indie artists BLOKBSTR and more. On the food front, you can score a heap of lunchtime deals for less than $30 – with Bottega Coco serving up $18 Panuozzos (plus a soft drink), Love.fish offering $28 lunch specials, Zushi offering 10 per cent off bento boxes and Rivareno Gelato serving up free scoops to the first 50 people who spend $20 or more at The Canteen.Barangaroo’s springtime celebrations will run every Thursday until October 30. You can learn more here. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED:These are the best beaches in Sydney These are the best gardens in the city. And these are our favourite outdoor pools. 

The state’s largest independent arts festival, Sydney Fringe Festival, is back for 2025 – with more than 460 events hitting our stages for one very entertaining month. Presented across the city throughout September 2025, the dynamic program spans theatre, music, comedy, visual art, film, musical theatre, dance, circus, street festivals, literature and poetry – and it's going to be ace. Clover Moore, Lord Mayor of Sydney, says: “The Fringe is as diverse as our city – and I’m very proud of that.” This year, Sydney Fringe Festival is presenting a city-wide playground of entertainment, with ten key hubs hosting immersive theatre shows, boundary-pushing cabaret, comedy galas, dance shows, live music performances and so much more. Time Out's picks: 10 of the best shows to see at Sydney Fringe Festival 2025Spanning a full four weeks from now until September 30, the Sydney Fringe program includes a heap of interactive, community-focused events, including a free street party taking over The Rocks on Thursday, September 4 and a child-friendly ‘Kids Fringe’ popping up in The Entertainment Quarter for the school holidays.  You can learn more and plan your Sydney Fringe experience over here. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED:  Want fun now? Here’s what’s on in Sydney this weekend. In the mood for a show? Here’s our list of the best theatre to see in Sydney this month.

Scrap the seat and get moving at this interactive theatre show that engages all your senses, including taste, with cocktail (and mocktail) tastings embedded into the show. Imagine a theatre production, your favourite dimly lit bar and a haunted house (just way less scary, and heaps more playful) all rolled into one.  Setting up camp at the Union Bond Store in The Rocks this August and September, When Night Comes is part of Sydney Fringe Festival’s ‘Sideshow at The Rocks’ hub. You’ll follow performers between multiple rooms, each with a setting more hedonistic and sensory than the last. Your ticket includes a number of cocktails tastings, plus some gold-star entertainment, of course. Not a big alcohol drinker? You can still get involved by selecting the mocktail option when you check out.  Catch When Night Comes at Union Bond Store from August 22. Find out more here and book your tickets here. 

Didn’t make it to Rome this Euro summer? Us neither. And in excellent news for art enthusiasts of the Harbour City, one of Europe’s most famous and beloved cultural sites is coming to us. From Friday, August 29, the Sistine Chapel will come to life in Sydney thanks to an immersive multisensory experience. For context, the Sistine Chapel is a world-famous Renaissance chapel in the Vatican City, celebrated not only as the Pope’s private chapel but also as an artistic masterpiece – with Michelangelo’s famous painting The Last Judgment framing the ceiling, and other masterpieces lining the walls. The 15th century chapel attracts millions of visitors every year, but if you’re not up for facing the crowds in Italy, you can get a taste of the space right here. Opening soon in Sydney’s Fever Pavilion, Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition will bring the Renaissance masterpiece to life. Inside the Sydney Showground Pavilion, 34 of Michelangelo’s ceiling frescoes from the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel will be recreated in true-to-size scale. Masters of immersion Fever will use a specially developed printing technique that mirrors the texture, colour, and detail of the original works. While nothing quite compares to the real thing, the Sydney-based iteration of the chapel comes without the crowds and access-restricting scaffolding of the Roman version, allowing up-close encounters with the artwork. So far, the exhibition has mesmerised art lovers around the world – popping up in...