8 Reasons to host your next global business event in Sydney
An iconic harbour. World-famous beaches. Incredible culinary experiences with views to match. Indigenous stories to tell. Yachts to sail. New hotels. Unexpected venues and places to discover.
All of this and a stunning array of Australia’s vast landscapes just beyond make Sydney a remarkable destination for an unforgettable incentive experience.
As the world begins to meet again after the disruption of the pandemic, Sydney’s offering is bigger and more diverse than ever, making the city an exciting proposition for future events.
Here are just a few of Sydney’s new business event offerings.
Crown Towers Sydney
Home to Sydney’s highest hotel room, the superbly luxurious hotel in Sydney’s newest waterside precinct Barangaroo has 349 rooms, suites and villas, with room sizes starting at a generous 47m2 and getting larger from there, right up to a 250m2 three-bedroom villa. The 20 villas come with check-in at a private lobby and a 24-hour butler service at guests’ disposal. The skyline shaping Crown complex also hosts several fine dining restaurants, including Nobu and Oncore by Clare Smyth.
Experience wildlife up close
The recently opened Wildlife Retreat at Taronga is an unmissable opportunity to experience an Australian wildlife oasis. Stay overnight in sustainable luxury at the boutique retreat built around a native wildlife habitat filled with koalas, wallabies, echidnas and other Australian animals inside the conservation-driven Taronga Zoo. A short boat ride from Sydney’s city centre, incentive delegates might just wake up in the morning with a koala outside their window.
New Harbour Bridge climb
See Sydney’s harbour and city landmarks from a new perspective with BridgeClimb Sydney. A knowledgeable guide will lead you to the peak of “the coat hanger” which forms the top of Sydney Harbour Bridge 134m/440ft above sea level. The BridgeClimb team have introduced two new climbs in 2020 and 2021: the Ultimate Climb, which takes groups to the north side of the bridge for the first time, and Burrawa, which is led by an Indigenous guide and tells stories of Sydney’s First Nations history.
Australian Museum
The cultural institution reopened in December 2020 after a 14-month $57.5 million renovation, debuting its most flexible event space to date right in the centre of the Australian Museum, partially surrounded by sandstone walls. The striking Hintze Hall can host up to 450 people for a cocktail event or up to 270 delegates seated and leads off into the museum’s exhibition spaces around and above it. Dramatic exhibition spaces can also host a night at the museum – drinks and dinners can be hosted in the shadow of a dinosaur or amongst a tribute to the extraordinary past and present animals of Australia.
Watersedge at Campbell's stores
After a multi-million-dollar restoration, Watersedge at Campbell’s Stores launched in The Rocks in mid-2021 between the Overseas Passenger Terminal and the Park Hyatt, with stunning views of both the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. The venue features a series of interconnected dedicated event spaces on its top floor which can each be hired individually for up to 120 people for long table dining or be used as a “blank canvas” event setting. The entire venue, including restaurant spaces on the bottom two floors and the outdoor ground floor terrace, extending out onto the Campbell’s Cove public thoroughfare can be hired for up to 5,000 attendees.
The WINX stand at Royal Randwick
A new large-scale event venue opened at Sydney’s inner-city racecourse, Royal Randwick, at the end of 2021. The WINX Stand, named after the record-breaking Australian racehorse, comprises three flexible spaces over two floors looking out over the turf. On the first floor, two gallery spaces can host up to 500 people each, with an interconnecting outdoor terrace. On the ground floor, there’s capacity for up to 3,000 people standing, or 1,800 for a seated meal, in an expansive space with ceilings of over 6m/19ft, which can open onto more outdoor space.
The Jackson
A new super yacht has just launched exclusively for incentive and corporate groups to cruise Sydney Harbour. With high end finishes throughout all three indoor levels and outdoor decks, plus digital media walls on every floor, The Jackson can host up to 500 delegates standing across the entire vessel, 280 on a single level for formal dining or 420 people across two levels. The bespoke creative catering focuses on local seafood and beef and Australian wines while the moving views of Sydney from the water are second to none.
Shell House
Shell House, spread over three levels of the historically significant building of the same name, opened in late 2021, with some serious fine dining talent behind its four-venue offering comprising Sky Bar, Clocktower Bar, the Dining Room and Terrace and the Menzies Bar. Each of the four offerings at Shell House can hired exclusively for events of up to 200 cocktail. The level 9 and 10 venues can be hired exclusively for up to 350 people or all three levels can host 600 cocktail-style exclusively.
