By Ian Neubauer

The Sydney Harbour Bridge will be converted into a massive outdoor eatery as part of the NSW Master Events Calendar — a framework of events expected to generate more than $500 million annually.

Sydney Harbour Bridge will be transformed into a massive outdoor eatery

NSW Premier Nathan Rees launched the calendar today (October 16) that is built around five recurring anchor events, including three major festival seasons.

The three major festival seasons kick off in January with Vivacity. It brings together under one banner Sydney’s summer of events, kicking off with the world famous New Year’s Eve Fireworks display on Sydney Harbour and ending with the biggest celebration of Chinese New Year outside of Asia.

The second major festival, Vivid Sydney, will be launched in June and see the city transformed into a living canvas of music and light with the Opera House as its focal point.

The third — Crave Sydney — to be held in October, is an international celebration of Sydney’s lifestyle, art, culture, food, wine and outdoor living.

An enhanced Autumn Racing Carnival and Australian Open Golf Championships, both of which will benefit from major event development efforts in collaboration with Events NSW, represent the fourth and fifth anchor events.

An additional event set for October 26 will see the Sydney Harbour Bridge converted into an outdoor breakfast bar. It will cost only $20 a head and be catered by the city’s top chefs. 

Events NSW Chairman, John O’Neill, said the NSW Master Events Calendar would have a strong regional focus, with significant investments made in the World Rally Championships, Tamworth Music Festival and Awards, Byron Bay Bluesfest, Dungog Film Festival and Corowa Autofest, among other notable events.