Sydney holds the famous New Year's Eve fireworks over Sydney Harbour and the Sydney Opera House.
Sydney's celebration uses the harbour as its central visual setting, with fireworks launched from points including the Harbour Bridge and barges on the water. The Opera House and the bridge form the recognizable backdrop seen in international broadcasts and photographs.
The modern event includes more than the midnight display. It has featured aerial shows, harbor projections, a family fireworks session earlier in the evening, and other programmed performances. Exact elements can change from year to year, but the midnight fireworks remain its defining feature.
Sydney is among the large cities to welcome the new year early in the global sequence because of its time zone. That timing helps explain why its images often appear in worldwide New Year's coverage before celebrations in Europe and North America.