Regional NSW LGBTIQ+ Festivals & Events
Queer Screen – Mardi Gras Film Festival
February Each Year
A celebration of the diversity of sexualities and gender identities through queer storytelling on screen, the 32nd Mardi Gras Film Festival will bring the latest and best LGBTIQ+ films to cinema screens across Sydney. So, block out your calendars and prepare to sit back and enjoy a plethora of LGBTIQ+ feature films, short films, documentaries and events, curated by queer people, for queer people.
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
14 February – 2 March 2025
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) is one of the oldest continuously operating LGBTQI organisations in Australia. SGLMG has evolved to include a strong focus on celebration while maintaining a commitment to social justice for LGBTQI communities. The 2025 Festival theme Free to be is a celebration of the strides toward true LGBTQIA+ equality while also acting as a global reminder that our fight is far from over, and that we are not truly free until we are all free to be.
Fair Day
Sunday 16 February 2025
Mardi Gras Fair Day is the biggest and best-loved free community event of the season – more than 80,000 people come together in Victoria Park in Camperdown for a fun day filled with live entertainment, Doggywood, the Sports Village and over community & commercial 200 stalls.
Parade
Saturday 1 March 2025
Join thousands of fabulous people as they unite for a glittering Pride parade in the heart of Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ district. The Sydney Mardi Gras Parade is an event that stops the nation and reverberates around the world. Born from a single night of celebration and political protest, the true Mardi Gras spirit lives on over four decades later. The Parade joyously celebrates how far our communities have come, yet recognises the journey ahead. The theme for 2024 is: Our Future…
Party
Saturday 1 March 2025
Join international and local partygoers at the largest LGBTQIA+ party in the Southern Hemisphere. Each year the Mardi Gras Party bursts with music, light and performance across stunning fantasy worlds for you to immerse yourself. Extraordinary guest performers and DJs fill the atmosphere with pulsing techno, tantalising house and euphoric gay anthems.
Sydney Bear Essentials
February – March 2025
Running since 1995, Bear Essentials is the Harbour City Bears‘ annual festival held over Mardi Gras. For Bear Essentials 29, a full schedule of events is planned to meet your furry brethren, make new friends and see our beautiful city.
Wagga Wagga Mardi Gras
Saturday 5 April 2025
Feel like a a trip to the county side? Grab, your boots and glitter, burst your outfit with colour and let’s party so hard it’s an evening to remember! Kicking off on Baylis Street, the parade of floats will march you down to a free after party on the lush grounds at the Victory Memorial Gardens, where we’ll celebrate equality for the LGBTQ+ community.
Tropical Fruits Easter Party
Saturday 19 April 2025
Come and join all our queer friends this Easter in Lismore, its is a chance for all the fruity queers peeps to get together for some dance floor magic!
Sydney Comedy Festival
April – May 2025
The Sydney Comedy Festival is Sydney’s biggest annual comedy event and includes lost of hilarious queer acts. Each year, over 250 of the best comedians from Australia and beyond take to stages across Sydney for a massive month of comedy – offering up everything from stand up to sketch, satire, impro, musical, absurdist, theatre, magic and kids comedy.
Sydney Candlelight Memorial
Sunday 18 May 2025
It's time to remember. The AIDS Candlelight Memorial is a time when members of the community can come together and reflect on and remember all those who have passed away from HIV/AIDS.
Sydney Pride Festival
June Each Year
The Sydney Pride Festival is a special time for the LGBTQI community as we remember the history and celebrate the present and look forward to a day when everyone is Equal.
bentART Annual Exhibition
June Each Year
The bentART exhibition in the Blue Mountains was established in 2005 to celebrate works in the visual arts of Australian LGBTIQ+ artists. Each year over the June long weekend, the annual 4-day bentART exhibition is held in the Katoomba just a short drive from Sydney.
Tropical Fruits Pride Ball
June Each Year
Tropical Fruits takes over the iconic Lismore skating rink, Rollerworld, for a jam-packed evening of pride & joy. A community showcase of budding and ripe fruits from across the lands – dress it up or dress it down and come and celebrate our pride!
Sydney Aurora Ball
June Each Year
Reflecting on 25 years of supporting the LGBTIQ+ community, this year’s theme is Mirror Ball. Aurora’s Annual Ball is one of the most iconic occasions on the Sydney social calendar. By attending the Aurora Ball, you are giving a helping hand to terrific LGBTIQ community organisations and projects – from youth outreach, to counselling, inclusion, education and creative projects.
Sydney Bear Pride Week
18 – 25 August 2024
Harbour City Bears is Sydney’s only community group for bears. The theme for Bear Pride Week 2024 is Intergalactic featuring a program of events for bears, admirers and friends.
Sydney Queer Screen Film Festival
28 August to 1 September 2024
Now in its 11th year, Queer Screen Film Fest is coming to lure us out of hibernation and warm our hearts with 35 fresh films from across the world. With Spring just around the corner and the zing of LGBTIQ+ love in the air, the Festival program is decidedly flirty.
Sydney Fringe Festival
1 – 30 September 2024
Each September culture creators from all over the city join forces with Sydney Fringe to demonstrate the type of city they want to live in all year round. As an open access festival, it is the largest independent arts gathering in NSW, annually hosting over 400 events across 21 postcodes during the 30 day festival.
Broken Heel Festival
5 – 9 September 2024
Come to Broken Hill for the 'The Broken Heel Festival' is a fabulous five-day festival which celebrates the theatrical anniversary of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (30th anniversary) at her spiritual home – The Palace Hotel and the township of Broken Hill, New South Wales. Expect performances from our nation’s best cultural personalities plus DJ’s Showgirls, Bio Queens, Drag Queens & Drag Kings representing every corner of Australia’s diverse community.
FRUITOPIA Fair Day
Sunday 15 September 2024
Returning once again to the Farmers Market area at Lismore Showgrounds, FRUITOPIA Fair Day is a frivolous, fun-filled, FUNdraising event for fruity families, friends and pooches. FRUITOPIA 24 will bring your beloved favourites like Bake-Off, Bar, Food, DJs, Dog Show, Entertainment, Hat Contest, Kids Activities, Photo Show, Raffles and Stalls, all with plenty of parking, loads of love and that familiar fruity community vibe.
LGBTIQ Honour Awards
Wednesday 18 September 2024
First held in 2007, the Honour Awards celebrates outstanding service to, and achievements within, LGBTQ communities in NSW. Finalists are selected from nominations across nine categories covering the health, HIV, youth, community, business, entertainment, visual arts, media and cultural sectors. The awards are also a gala fundraising event for ACON – NSW’s leading HIV and LGBTQ health organisation.
Tamworth Pride Fair Day
Saturday 28 September 2024
Tamworth Pride Inc would like to invite you to their 4th Annual Fair Day. This is an event that supports our local LGBTQIA+ community and our theme this year is Technicolour Dreams – we are inviting everyone to wear as much rainbow and bright colours as possible. With plenty of entertainment (including a dog show), there will be plenty of food, coffee and information stalls from some of our local community groups and services.
Leeton Pride Festival
September 2025 (date to be confirmed)
Leeton Pride Festival is a dedicated to celebrating and supporting the queer community and its allies. We strive to create a safe and welcoming atmosphere for everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation and gender identity. Party down Main Street, where tons of fabulous folks, extravagant outfits and colourful floats will march with pride. Then join us at Mountford Park for Fair Day.
Coastal Twist Festival
1 – 6 October 2024
Central Coast NSW’s good vibes, all out LGBTIQ A+ inclusion festival. Burst into spring with a bumper weekend of Queer happenings. This dynamic festival embodies authentic inclusion of all peoples with the intention of a Happier, Healthier and more welcoming Central Coast. 75mins from Sydney, 90mins from Newcastle. Coastal Twist is the ultimate Queer Spring getaway.
Newcastle Pride Festival
11 – 27 October 2024
Newcastle Pride is an inclusive, vibrant, fun Newcastle based incorporated association, an LGBTQIA+ community-based charity organisation established in March 2018 and is 100% run by volunteers. Our vision is to make the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Hunter Region a happier, healthier, safer and more culturally rich place for all of the LGBTIQA+ community.
Parramatta Pride Picnic
Saturday 19 October 2024
Now in its 16th year, the Parramatta Pride Picnic is a rainbow coloured day of fun and pride for the whole family at River Foreshore Reserve. The day will feature fabulous food stalls, free entertainment, activations, travel, health and sporting groups and a fully licenced bar.
Rainbow on the Plains Festival
14 – 17 November 2024
Rainbow on the Plains is a festival that happens in Hay, celbrating celebration of our local and visiting lesbian, gay, bi, trans and intersex communities, their friends and families. We celebrate with a street parade and party, alongside various community events.
Tropical Fruits New Year’s Festival
News Years
Join Tropical Fruits at Lismore Showgrounds for their famous New Year’s Eve Festival.
This article has been republished from FUSE Magazine.
