Docklands fireworks

It’s cold and it’s windy, but it’s worth heading to the Docklands fireworks and making a night out of it.

Docklands is an inner-western suburb of Sydney adjacent to the CBD. You wouldn’t know by looking at it, but this area was once a swamp that became used as a dock. It had a network of wharfs, rail infrastructure, and light industry. Due to changes in freight transport, it feel into disuse and was virtually abandoned by the 1990s. Developer interest kicked off in 1996 with Docklands Stadium and urban renewal followed. Today, Docklands is mostly a kind of business park. The national headquarters of the National Australia Bank, ANZ, Medibank Private, Bureau of Meteorology, Myer, National Foods are here as well as the regional headquarters for Ericsson and Bendigo Bank. There are some shops, restaurants, and the Melbourne Star Ferris wheel.

Despite all that, Docklands has not really taken off. The lack of transport links disconnects it from the CBD. The lack of green spaces, schools, and community facilities means there aren’t a lot of reasons to go there. Most of the time, it feels like a ghost town.  But they try and the Docklands winter fireworks is a good example.

Throughout the month of July and August, there are free fireworks and other entertainment along the promenade and piazza at New Quay starting at 7pm. It’s fun for the kids and you can also have a nice dinner at one of the restaurants on the bay.