Darwin is usually cast as the backup dancer to Australia’s star capital cities, including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. But Australia’s smallest capital city is ready to steal the show after being named as the cultural capital of Australia. Round of applause!
This crown was awarded by language learning platform, Preply, which set out to determine the Australian capital city with the best cultural experiences per capita. We’re talking about the number of cultural tours, ‘hatted’ restaurants, cultural attractions, museums, theatre events, libraries, concerts/shows and markets available, with the data sourced from trusty sites like TripAdvisor and Booking.com.
As expected, Australia’s biggest capital cities had the highest number of cultural experiences overall, with Sydney tallying 535, Melbourne tallying 441 and Perth tallying 244. However, to level the playing field, the researchers divided the number of events by population size to determine the final rankings.
Tiny but mighty, Darwin claimed the crown as Australia’s number one capital city for cultural experiences per capita. With 102 experiences overall, it boasts the second-highest number of concerts and shows (only behind Sydney), plus a rich line-up of cultural experiences where visitors can gain a deeper appreciation for Aboriginal art, spirituality and history. That’s not to mention Darwin’s many incredible restaurants, fascinating museums and galleries, plus stunning outdoor attractions, including the World Heritage-listed Kakadu National Park, equally impressive Litchfield National Park and famous Crocosaurus Cove.
The timing of this new research couldn’t be better, coinciding with the lead up to August, aka the Christmas of Darwin’s arts and culture scene. The annual festivities revolve around Darwin Festival, which sees the city come alive with free outdoor concerts, theatre shows, art tours, comedy gigs, cabaret performances and food experiences from August 8 to 25.
Another reason to visit during festival season is for the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards (NATSIAA) exhibition, showcasing diverse works from 72 talented finalists around Australia. As the longest-running and most prestigious Aboriginal art award in the country, this exhibition will be on display at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory (MAGNT) from August 9 to January 2025.
The cultural chaos doesn’t stop there – on August 10, Darwin will host the 20th anniversary National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMAs). This pumping outdoor concert spotlights the incredible diversity of Australia’s Indigenous music, from fresh talents to international icons, like headliner act, Jessica Mauboy.
Keen to learn more about how our city stacks up on the cultural experience count? You can read the full report over here.
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