See Vivid Sydney in a whole new light in 2026 with a festival-first selection of daytime activities including installations, sculptures, talks, performances and food events.

Transforming our city’s iconic sights and winter nights each year into a colourful canvas of art, light and culture, Vivid Sydney attracts millions of visitors and night-owls each year. 

Now, Vivid Sydney takes its first steps into daytime programming, perfect for families, older travellers and anyone who prefers to adventure during the day. 

Equally gorgeous under the sun or stars, Circular Quay is the natural base for our inaugural daytime presence, centring on two extraordinary large-scale public sculptures: Manawan by Bard man and artist Darrell Sibosado, and THERE, NOW, HERE by American-Australian duo Wade & Leta.

They're joined by six visually dynamic Light installations nearby that transform from day to night – best experienced under both skies. These include Koro Loko, Optik, The Prism, Invisible Cities, Dear You and As Water Falls. Don’t miss the series of 38 high-resolution screens across the city featuring videos and photographic works from world-renowned artists. 

Elsewhere across the city, expand your horizons with afternoon talks with music industry tastemaker Zane Lowe, multi-Academy Award-winning filmmaker Sean Baker and award-winning US designer Joshua Vermillion as part of Vivid Minds. 

Vivid Food plates up plenty of lunch and dusk dining experiences, including A Shared Table with Yotam Ottolenghi, where the world-renowned British chef presents a gala lunch.

Two more unforgettable long lunches join Vivid Food’s flagship Regional Dinner Series, with one-off collaborative menus from Christine Manfield and Sander Nooij at Yellow, and Frank Fawkner and Alessandro Pavoni at A’Mare.

One-day food and wine festivals take over Shell House and The International with Oysters in The House and Cult & Classic | A NSW Food & Wine Party. Plus, Surry Hills’ free-to-enter street party A Taste of HQ: Street Eats Edition serves up food, wine and family-friendly entertainment from 4pm.

During the day, families with young children can explore a magic universe of light with Wonderverse, an immersive theatre adventure at the Australian National Maritime Museum.

Families can also head along early to Carriageworks’ Awesome Black Block Party, a free afternoon-to-night celebration of Blak music, culture and community, as well as free Tumbalong Kids concerts each Saturday at 5pm at Tumbalong Park.

Also at Carriageworks is boundary-pushing dance performance U>N>I>T>E>D, with a matinee edition on Saturday 13 June.

And adventurers (and gamers) of all ages can dive into Dungeons & Damper, an immersive, free experience at the UTS Data Arena that melds Dungeons & Dragons with First Nations culture and Dreaming stories.

All that is just the beginning, with more expansive daytime programming planned in years to come. In 2026, experience Vivid Sydney in a new light – day and night.