Winter is well and truly here, and although Sydney is a city that thrives in the summertime, there’s a lot of fun to be had in the winter months, too. To bring some extra sparkle to this year’s (exceptionally) chilly season, the Northern Beaches Council has launched a cosy-af new winter festival: complete with a European ski resort-inspired pop-up, a series of wellness workshops, ten nights of live music and a whole lot of winter-themed dinners to keep you fuelled.
Running from Friday, June 20 until Sunday, June 29, Rise Manly will take over heaps of venues across the Northern Beaches with a program designed to warm you up from the inside. Highlights include a magical pop-up ‘European Ski Village’ at Manly Pavilion (complete with winter cocktails, a Euro-inspired menu, inflatable igloos, ice sculptures and more), a ten-night music series at Felons Manly, a gorgeous long lunch by Alessandro Pavoni and Giovanni Pilu at Cibaria Manly and a series of jazz nights at Henry G’s.
Other participating venues include 4 Pines Manly, Fika, Winona Wine, Noon, Tenacious Bakehouse and Sunset Sabi.
Keen to get cold? Join Manly’s bold and beautiful swimmers for the Ice Cold Classic: a one-kilometre charity ocean swim on the winter solstice. Not ready to take on a full kilometre of laps? Join a snorkelling experience to watch giant cuttlefish light up the ocean floor. Want a guaranteed post-swim warm-up? Q Station is playing host to a pop-up Finnish sauna, so you can dip in the harbour then warm your bones the Scandi way.
The festival will also feature a series of interactive activations, including a magical glow tunnel, live artist demos and alfresco musical performances.
You can check out the program and the full list of participating venues over here.
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