The best things to do in Sydney this August

The Harbour City does a good line in immersive light experiences, and if you can’t wait until Vivid takes over the city later in May, Luna Park is here to help. The iconic attraction’s newest installation – Sonic Neon – will be opening to the public from Saturday, April 13, and tickets are on sale now. Housed in Crystal Palace – a building which dates all the way back to 1935 – Sonic Neon will take visitors on a journey through six different rooms, with state-of-the-art visuals and a layered soundscape creating a transportive experience. Illuminating more than 150 metres of the historic building, the experience will feature more than 26,000 lights set to a pulsating soundtrack using state-of-the-art technology that’s never been used before in Australia. Tickets to the event are available now, and first release ticket holders will be afforded access to what Luna Park has described as a “secret zone”. Details about this mystery “Blacklight Dessert Bar” are thin on the ground, but Luna Park has confirmed: “Visitors will be able to purchase glow-in-the-dark desserts including custom treats by Sydney’s famous Tokyo Lamington along with glowing fairy floss and soft serve ice cream.” The experience will run daily from 10am for approximately four months, though the exact end date is yet to be announced. Tickets for the self-guided Sonic Neon experience (estimated to take around 30 minutes) start at $29 per person, and the first month of tickets are on sale now. If you’re keen to secu

Discover the hidden marvels of marine life and the remarkable woman who paved the way to better understanding marine conservation at Valerie Taylor: An Underwater Life. This free homegrown exhibition is more than just a tribute to one of the world’s most celebrated underwater storytellers, shark researchers and conservationists. It’s a call to action for all environmental enthusiasts and future changemakers to protect our beautiful oceans, their animals and their habitats from further threat. Dive straight into 60 years worth of stories as told through objects and ephemera donated by Valerie and her husband Ron Taylor, including cameras and underwater housings, Valerie’s iconic blue fins and dive suits, and the stainless-steel chainmail suit she wore to get up close and personal with sharks. You can also admire Hollywood movie posters from the past fifty years, including Jaws and The Island of Dr Moreau, plus more than 500 images from the Maritime Museum’s collection of animals, people and places now under threat.   Valerie Taylor: An Underwater Life is one of the headline exhibitions in the Maritime Museum’s summer program and will run until August 31, 2024. Be sure to catch the other special exhibitions while you’re there including Ocean Photographer of the Year. For more information on the exhibition head here. 

Spend a leisurely Sunday morning in France without the jet lag at these fabulous French markets in Sydney’s north. Le Marché is the only fortnightly French market in the whole of Australia, popping up every second and fourth Sunday of each month at Laurelbank Cottage in Willoughby. Here, you can say bonjour to more than 45 talented Frenchies selling everything from raclette and rillettes to choux buns and Champagne.   Start your morning in Le Marché’s culinary corner, which channels the vibes of a mini French supermarket. Fill your reusable baskets with farm-fresh eggs, truffles, saucisson, duck confit and of course, all the French cheeses your heart desires. Thirsty? Take a detour to sample fine French wines and locally brewed gin, or skip straight to the Champagne bar for a bubbly start to your day.  Experience the lively spirit of a French village market by chatting with Le Marché’s passionate line-up of artisans selling striped Breton t-shirts, colourful berets, linen tablecloths, straw baskets and more. Take a leisurely browse through the stalls, and when it's time to refuel, hit up the hot food stalls serving everything from buttery escargots and boeuf bourguignon to raclette and truffle-infused rotisserie chicken. Seal the deal on your market rendezvous with a flaky croissant, creamy eclair or delicate choux bun. Bring a taste of the markets home too by buying a freshly baked baguette or colourful box of bite-sized macarons.  RECOMMENDED: Hungry for more? Look at our

It’s imperative that you do not eat before you visit the Carriageworks Farmers Markets. You’ll want to save maximum belly space for your personal version of The Bachelorette where you decide who gets your dollars and what delicious produce gets to come home with you. Maybe you like something soupy and savoury first thing? In that case head to Bar Pho for a traditional Vietnamese start to the day. On the veggie train? Hit up Keppos St Kitchen for a falafel breakfast, or head to Food Farm for a classic bacon and egg roll.Once the hounds of your hunger have been quieted it’s time to prepare for your next meal, or seven. Stock up on artisan cheese from Leaning Oak, smoked salmon from Brilliant Foods and Sydney’s favourite sourdough from AP Bakery and brunch is sorted. You can spend a whole lot of money if you want to here, but equally you could just grab a kombucha on tap from Herbs of Life and find a chair for some of the best dog-watching in the city.   Hungry for more? Look at our list of the best markets in Sydney – produce or otherwise. 

Considering that when Luna Park opened in 1935, the only other major attraction in Sydney was the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Art Deco amusement park has long been a significant site for the city – an important destination for escapism, especially considering it opened during the Depression. Although new rides have cropped up over the years, the heritage-listed park has retained a lot of its original features – which is why there’s been much hype since Luna Park announced that it would be opening a brand-new, first-of-its kind, high-tech attraction to appeal to new audiences and reignite Sydney’s love for the park. An immersive experience created right here by a bunch of talented Sydney creatives and technicians.  On December 22, Luna Park swings open the doors to a high-tech ‘Magic Box’ inside Luna Park’s existing 3,000 square metre Big Top building – a venue for the park’s first immersive adventure, ‘Dream Circus’. Time Out got a sneak peek at Dream Circus before opening day, and we have to say, it’s hard to sum up in a few sentences what you’re in for. It’s part-3D movie, where actors take you on an adventure through the circus, to the seaside, underwater and into magical dream-like states. It’s part-musical, except that the action envelops you on three sides of the room, as well as the floor and ceiling. It’s a little like a Van Gogh Alive or Frida Kahlo multi-sensory exhibition, except that rather than images being projected onto flat wall and floor surfaces, the set is b

Slide into your glass slippers and prepare for a feast that will leave you feeling happily ever after. Sydney's whimsical and innovative fine dining favourite, Nel, has announced the fifth chapter of its hugely-popular, Disney-themed degustation, and this iteration is pulling out all the stops. Cruella de Vil, we’re looking at you. Once Upon a Time is an eleven-course degustation inspired by chef/owner Nelly Robinson’s favourite Disney classics. While Robinson aims to surprise guests during their dining experience at Nel, we do have some of the magical details about what’s in store for the fifth chapter. Strap in. First up is a dish inspired by the film Mulan called ‘Lucky Cricket.’ Think: a purple puffed prawn toast with a theatrical chicken and eggplant pastry baked in a crisp tulle ‘wand’. Next, Robinson has created a Frozen-themed course featuring Nordic-style cured ocean trout with a pickled onion snowflake, cream cheese snow, and a lemon and dill dusting done tableside. Cruella de Vil gets her moment with a dish consisting of black and white ricotta gnocchi, pan-seared mushrooms, and finished with a celeriac velouté (a type of soup). Dessert will spotlight The Jungle Book with a sweet treat called ‘King Louie,’ featuring a banana-shaped cream with roasted white chocolate and peanut butter brittle (yum). Plus, there’s a dessert inspired by Peter Pan called ‘The Pixie Hollow’ – a fairy dust made from golden, sweet pastry crumble. Robinson said: “I am taking our diners on

It’s a good week to be a female pop star in Sydney. Not only is Taylor Swift taking over the city with shows, activations and a general wave of Swift-mania, but the South Korean-born K Pop sensation Aespa has just announced dates for their Aussie tour. The quartet’s SYNK: Parallel Line world tour is currently set to comprise 19 concerts across 13 cities in Australia and Asia, and they’ll be bringing their hyperpop magic to Sydney on the last day of August 2024. When is Aespa in Sydney? Winter, Karina, Ningning and Giselle will be taking to the stage in Sydney on Saturday, August 31. The exact venue is yet to be announced. How can I get tickets to the Sydney Aespa show and how much do they cost? The release date for tickets is yet to be confirmed, but you can sign up to the waitlist via Ticketek to make sure you’re the first to know. What will Aespa’s Sydney show be like? Details are thin on the ground, but their agency has stated that the show will “take place in the parallel universe story that Aespa has as its musical backdrop.” Based on their last world tour, it’s likely that they’ll change the setlist up a little for each show, and we’re expecting the kind of surreal high-energy hyperpop that they’re known for. Who will the Sydney Aespa support acts be? The support acts for Aespa’s SYNK: Parallel Line tour is yet to be released, but we expect the K Pop theme to remain strong. More details on the tour will be released via their Weverse page – so we’d recommend keeping an e

Every Saturday, more than 100 stalls line the grounds of Paddington Uniting Church and the neighbouring public school selling Australian-made fashion, handmade crockery and metal costume jewellery. The market has been operating on the same day since 1973, and the all-weather event is a profitable fundraiser for the church. Many of the stallholders return week on week, like the elderly Japanese couple selling Bonsai trees and the Spanish shoemakers selling espadrilles. It’s predominantly an art, clothing and design market – and alongside the kitsch bric-à-brac and Australiana-print tea towels you’ll find straw hats from local milliners and soft Tunisian-made ‘Turkish’ towels from young Eastern Suburb entrepreneurs. Antique, vinyl and vintage stalls are few and far between, but leather satchels, beach photography prints and patterned baby rompers are two a penny. On a hot day locals gather at the shaded tables and stools by the snack stalls. Turkish women hand roll yufka dough at the gözleme tent and vegetables are blitzed in a blender at the fresh juice stand. Chin’s Laksa stall, proudly MSG and gluten free, is a popular choice – as are the vegan cookies and sourdough scones on offer at the bakery stalls. It has a bohemian flair compared to its Oxford Street location and customers joyfully take up fortune readings, as well as reiki and Japanese massage. It’s an oddball mix, but one that works strangely well in an area known for its designer boutiques and gentrified pubs. Ou

A new wardrobe doesn’t have to mean popping tags on hundreds of dollars worth of swag, especially when you’re shopping at this long-standing secondhand market in Rozelle. The schoolyard of the Rozelle Public School has been a hive of weekend crate digging for more than 20 years, and while some stalls have almost earned long service leave, there are always newcomers keen to swap their good and chattel for some cold hard cash.The market runs on Saturdays from 9am to 3pm, and you can find bargains for less than you’d spend on a coffee – it’s all about the chase. Don’t be afraid to dig down into the tables of tops and skirts, T-shirt piles and racks of leather jackets. And if you don’t need vintage boots, a floral dress or a designer bargain, stroll through stalls selling antiques, cut glass crystal, old suitcases, DVDs, furniture and bric-a-brac. When you’re completely overstimulated head to the top right corner of the market where a handful of food stalls sell Himalayan fare, fresh juices squeezed on demand, gozleme, and dim sum. Because it’s a school there are no soft drinks sold on site, but a watermelon and rockmelon juice should sort out any dusty heads, and if nothing in the second-hand market grabs your attention, you can always grab a plant from the garden stall on your way out.   Want to know about markets in other parts of Sydney? Here's our guide.

It’s 10pm on a Thursday night, and Luke Mangan – the acclaimed celebrity chef and restaurateur – is pouring Champagne over my dessert. I look around to check that I haven’t somehow found myself on the set of an Australian remake of The Great Gatsby, but the setting (an intimate dining room just off the marble-trimmed foyer of Kimpton Margot Sydney hotel) only compounds the illusion. Taking the lead from my dining companions, who are tucking into their Champagne-soaked chocolate tarts with gusto, I take another sip of Taittinger and follow suit. The event is the first of a series of intimate dinners that Mangan is running in partnership with the Champagne brand, and at $395 a head, it’s not one for the budget-conscious. But if you’re in the market for a once-in-a-lifetime dining experience to bring some sparkle to your autumn evening, this is it. And it should be noted that these kinds of ambitious experiences are something that Mangan manages to pull off consistently, while simultaneously championing accessibility in the industry. Currently overseeing the operations at six kitchens across the city (Glass Brasserie, Luc-San, Luke’s Bistro & Bar Sydney Airport, one particularly surreal space within the Harbour Bridge and the Kimpton Margot’s Harper Rooftop Bar and Luke’s Kitchen) he’s a man of mammoth talent, scope and ambition, and he carries it with warmth and a jovial, welcoming sense of humour. He’s the kind of person you want to spend an evening with eating pasta at a bus