As if a visit to the Blue Mountains isn’t magical enough, last year, the World Heritage-listed site welcomed the first edition of Nocturnal: a world-class immersive light experience hidden within the magical rainforest setting. After a sold-out debut season, the incredible immersive exhibition is back – bringing otherworldly visuals to life under the star-studded mountain skies.
Running for an extended season, the luminous interactive experience is popping up from Thursday, April 3 until Saturday, May 11 – taking over the forest surrounding Scenic World with a sparkly new program of light displays, holograms and magnificent dynamic light structures.
On select nights throughout April and early May, visitors will have access to this surreal luminous universe – with Scenic World’s Scenic Railway offering enchanting night-rides through the forest, and the Skyway offering sky-high views of the sparkling setting.
Marking 80 years since Scenic World officially opened to the public, this year’s displays are a celebration of the unique landscape and wildlife of Gundungurra Country, and Scenic World’s engineering masterpieces. Highlights (literally) of this year’s program include a huge holographic lyrebird basking in the moonlight, a forest walk illuminating the secret language of trees and magnificent light projections inspired by the local landscape and history. Expect moving holograms of native creatures, and spellbinding projections mapping ancient rock formations.
Through consultation with lighting specialists and ecologists, the exhibition has been designed in line with the Environmental Protection Act 1998 to ensure minimal impact on the surrounding environment.
Tickets to Nocturnal will score you access to all Scenic World rides after dark – including the world’s steepest railway – and hours of immersion in the magical luminous setting. The experience is free for children under three, and general admission for kids starts at $40.90, with adult tickets starting from $54.90. A child’s ticket will also include a special "Nocturnal quest" to help little explorers uncover hidden clues to the Gundungurra Story of Creation. Last year’s event sold out, so you’ll want to plan ahead – you can plan your visit and grab tickets over here.
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