A tiny (and beautiful) piece of Sydney history has been restored, with Darling Harbour’s ornately beautiful fairground carousel opening up again to the public after eight years out of action. The return of the heritage-listed carousel coincides with the launch of Darling Harbour’s Olympics live site, which will be hosting huge public screenings of the major sporting events over the coming weeks. So if you find yourself in this harbourside corner of Sydney soon, we’d suggest swinging by the carousel and stepping back in time.
Out-lived only by the vintage carousel at Melbourne Zoo, the Darling Harbour carousel is thought to be the second-oldest carousel in the country – arriving by ship in the Harbour City way back in 1897. After travelling around the state bringing joy to regional fairs under the ownership of a family of showmen, the carousel was bought by the NSW state government in 1988, living at Darling Harbour 2015. The ride was temporarily decommissioned to make way for construction in the area, which included the hotly anticipated launch of W Sydney and the enormous IMAX. Although these additions to the city are exciting (W Sydney is one of the city’s most luxurious stays, and the IMAX is home to the third-largest screen in the world), there’s something special about the return of this charmingly vintage carousel – eight years after it closed.
An electric motor now powers the machine with the original steam boiler and engine intact but inactive. Aside from that, little has changed – with the refurbished fairground ride maintaining all original horses, and the whimsical aesthetic of a bygone era.
Here in Sydney, there are a lot of shiny new venues popping up to cater for the needs of our emerging generations (including a huge new playground at Darling Harbour), but there’s something delightful about the timeless joy of a fairground carousel. Speaking on behalf of the city, we’re happy to have it back.
Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.