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Sunday 6 March 2016

Sydney’s swashbuckling line-up of holiday activities for an awesome Easter break



With the Easter break just a few weeks away and the Autumn school holidays soon after, Sydney offers families a fun-filled calendar of events and activities including swashbuckling pirate exhibitions, exhilarating adventure activities and superhero sleepovers.

According to Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events, Stuart Ayres, “Sydney is the perfect spot for a family trip during these school holidays, with warm sunny days creating ideal conditions for getting the family outside, and an exciting line-up of family-focused events that will keep children of all ages entertained and stimulated.”

Destination NSW CEO Sandra Chipchase says “The Sydney Royal Easter Show is one of the major events on the NSW Autumn events calendar, but there’s so much on offer in Sydney over the Easter and school holiday breaks that families will want to stay longer to fit it all in. From exciting arts-focused workshops at the 20th Biennale of Sydney to superhero-themed activities at the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney has all you’ll need to excite the family for the whole holiday break.”

Destination NSW suggests these fun-filled activities in Sydney to beat the boredom these school holidays:




●  Superman fans and Batman buffs will love the action-packed line-up of events and activities running at thePowerhouse Museum these school holidays. Be sure to check out the popular Art of the Brick: DC Comicsexhibition featuring more than 120 large-scale LEGO sculptures inspired by legendary characters such as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Joker, Harley Quinn and others. Dress up as your favourite superhero and star in your own green screen photograph, contribute to the Museum’s giant comic strip, or book the popular Minecraft, movie-making, coding and claymation workshops. Budding superheroes are invited to see the Museum after dark at a Powerhouse Museum Sleepover from 15 – 16 April. Dressed up as your favourite comic book character take a tour of the museum by torchlight, hearing your favourite superhero stories before settling down for the night at the Museum.


●  Australia’s largest and most exciting contemporary arts festival, the 20th Biennale of Sydney, is on from 18 March to 5 June with the full program of events, exhibitions and family days free to the public. Pick up a Kids’ Passport, designed specifically to guide children and families through the city to explore a variety of artworks across all the Biennale precincts. Collect stamps in your passport at each venue you visit. Art-loving kids may also want to join adrop-in contemporary art workshop at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), or Tour for Tots, an art-making tour for 3-5 year olds at the Art Gallery of NSW.


●  Budding artists can step into the shoes of famed contemporary artist, Grayson Perry, at the MCA these school holidays in the free pop-up family space, ‘My Pretty Little Art Studio’. Join an in-gallery kids’ art trail, spotting riddles and patterns in Grayson’s work, and take this new inspiration back into the artist’s Studio to create artwork of your own. Make and decorate paper planes and get creative at the ‘design-your-own-pot’ station. Kids of all ages can step into the artist’s studio on weekends during the school holidays from 10.30am to 4pm and children under 12 get free entry into the exhibition.


●  Ahoy me hearties! Swashbuckling lads and lasses can walk the plank these school holidays, all the way to theAustralian National Maritime Museum for Horrible Histories – Pirates: the exhibition, an interactive, hands-on exhibition based on the best-selling children’s books, Horrible Histories. Take command of a pirate ship, design and project your own pirate flag, test out cannons and cutlasses and find your fate on the wheel of misfortune. Horrible Histories – Pirates: the exhibition is on until 27 April 2016 and runs in conjunction with a full program of school holiday activities at the National Maritime Museum including daily art making, games and dress ups as well as lively and interactive Science Show Performances and Family Film Screenings.



●  The iconic Sydney Royal Easter Show at Sydney Olympic Park is a must-visit event over the Easter break, showcasing the best of Australian agriculture and country life from 17 – 30 March 2016. Rides, animals, prize-winning produce and hours of entertainment await for the whole family and no trip to the Easter Show is complete without a visit to the famous Showbag Hall, where treats, toys and tonnes of fun can be found at every stall.


●  For those who are after a little adventure these school holidays, spend a day or two at the adrenaline-fuelled adventure facilities in Penrith. Book into indoor skydiving at iFly for the chance to feel the exhilaration of flight in a high-tech wind tunnel, or get wet at Penrith Whitewater Stadium on a guided or self-guided whitewater rafting course. Head to Jetpack Adventures to fly as high as 15 metres above the water on your very own jet pack, or jump on a fly board to soar super-hero style above the water before diving under it like a dolphin.


●  Who doesn’t love an Easter egg hunt? One of Sydney’s biggest and best is The Great CP Egg Hunt at Centennial Park on 26 and 27 March 2016. Join this fun and engaging Easter quest, follow the trail map, complete the activities and be rewarded with chocolate. For older visitors, explore Centennial Park at your own pace with their free self-guided Centennial Park History Walking Tour app, and learn more than 125 years of tales, intrigue and challenges of the parklands.


●  This Easter break, beautiful Manly Beach will play host to Australia’s biggest beach volleyball competition,Volleyfest. Running from 18 to 28 March, the whole family will enjoy the excitement of watching some of the world’s best players from 14 countries compete in a series of top quality international volleyball competitions. Aussie Stars Nicole Laird, Mariafe Artacho del Solar, Issac Kapa and Chris McHugh will be just some of the talent on show, hoping to qualify later this year to represent Australia at the Rio Olympics. For further information and tickets visit www.volleyfest.com.au.


●  The Kids in the Park program at Sydney Olympic Park offers more than 50 activities to choose from during the Autumn school holidays. From BMX racing and flying trapeze, to Sand Art Fun and filmmaking workshops, Kids in the Park offers oodles of fun for kids of all ages, whatever their passion. There’s also a range of walking tracks, bike tracks, BBQ areas, playgrounds and fountains to explore.


●  The Sydney Opera House is inviting all curious minds to come and play, to look for clues, laugh at rules and ask silly questions in their April school holidays program that runs from 9 – 24 April. Join the beloved characters of David Walliams’ acclaimed book, Mr Stink, as they come to life on stage, or get the most out of your visit with a Day Pack; an A reserve ticket to Mr Stink, delicious lunch, souvenir photo and a Junior Adventure – a jam-packed journey through the iconic Sydney Opera House. Bring your children’s creative imaginations to life at Creative Play: Digital Drawing Wall, when professional illustrators invite kids to help them turn the walls of the Western Foyer into a large scale creative artwork. Award-winning actress Virginia Gay appears in a comic cabaret, Cautionary Tales for Children, a show as wicked as it is hilarious. And, if you’ve got some restless tweens and teens on your hands, the Flying Fruit Fly Circus has you covered with its edgy show Stunt Lounge.


For more information about spending the school holidays in Sydney please visit www.sydney.com.

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