Luna Park

Luna Park Sydney sits on the northern shore of Sydney Harbour at Milsons Point, directly beneath the Harbour Bridge. It opened on 4 October 1935, built largely from rides and equipment shipped from Luna Park Glenelg in Adelaide by a group of showmen including Herman Phillips. Its entrance, a giant grinning face flanked by Art Deco towers, remains one of the most recognisable sights on the harbour.

The park's history has been troubled. In June 1979 a fire in the Ghost Train killed seven people, and the park closed immediately. Some original structures survived all of this. Coney Island, a 1930s funhouse full of slides, spinning barrels and distorting mirrors, is the last opening-day attraction still in use and is often described as the only working funhouse of its era anywhere; the Crystal Palace is another heritage-listed building from the early park. The whole park was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register in 2010. Today it has around twenty rides, including several roller coasters, among them a modern Big Dipper, alongside gentler rides for small children.

Outside the New South Wales school holidays it generally operates only from Friday to Sunday, with longer hours in holiday periods, so check the calendar before going. It works best for families with younger children and for anyone who enjoys vintage fairground architecture, and a few hours is usually enough. Even without riding, the lawns offer some of the closest views of the Harbour Bridge.

Getting there

The park is at 1 Olympic Drive, Milsons Point, about 1.9 km across the harbour from Sydney's central business district. Milsons Point railway station is a short walk away, and ferries stop at Milsons Point wharf beside the park; walking across the Harbour Bridge from the city is also practical. Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport (SYD) is about 11 km away, and from the airport station trains run into the city, where a change to a North Shore line brings you over the bridge to Milsons Point.