Sydney hosts Australia's best-known New Year's Eve fireworks over Sydney Harbour.
The celebration is centered on landmarks including the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House. A midnight fireworks display is the event's signature feature, with the harbour providing a wide public viewing area and the bridge serving as a major launch and visual landmark.
Sydney's program commonly includes an earlier family fireworks display as well as the midnight event. Other elements can include aerial performances, a harbour-of-light parade, and vessels decorated for the occasion. The exact schedule and display design change from year to year.
The event is sometimes described as one of the first major international New Year's Eve celebrations because Sydney reaches midnight before many large cities in Europe and North America. That description depends on time zone and the meaning of “major,” but the city and harbour setting are firmly established.