More footage has emerged of “absolutely crazy crowds” at Sydney’s Vivid festival, showing visitors barely able to move along the harbour.
Earlier this week, video captured thousands of visitors flooding Circular Quay train station as they tried to get home from the music and light show.
That video was said to have been taken over the weekend, when audiences are expected to be at their highest, but the latest TikTok footage was apparently shot on Wednesday night.
TikTok users said the huge numbers at the port on Wednesday were due to the Written in the Stars drone show, which ran from 9:10 p.m. to 9:20 p.m.
“People are always worst at the end of the finished show,” one commenter wrote. “I would recommend finding a place to sit and just wait an hour or so for things to calm down.”
More footage has emerged of ‘absolutely crazy crowds’ at Sydney’s Vivid festival, showing visitors barely able to move along the harbor
Another wrote: ‘Sooooo wild, I went on a Tuesday night and it was super chill. Went on Wednesday and was stuck in this chaos.”
A third suggested: ‘Wednesday would be busy because of the drones, avoid those days, it will be better.’
Trains on the T2 and T3 lines into the city did not stop at Circular Quay from 8:30pm to 9:30pm on Wednesday, and organizers recommended visitors use Wynyard Station instead.
Two more drone shows are scheduled from 9:10 pm to 9:20 pm on Monday, June 7 and Wednesday, June 14, when the same arrangements are in effect.
A spokesman for Vivid Sydney said the festival had attracted a record number, already exceeding 1.5 million, possibly due to several new attractions.
“The drone show, Written in the Stars, is also incredibly popular and we expect a large audience for the final two planned episodes,” the spokesperson said.
The crowds at Vivid have been described as a ‘nightmare’ after footage of thousands of attendees trying to go home went viral on TikTok
“Measures have been put in place to ensure everyone can safely enjoy the drone shows, and from many vantage points around Sydney Harbour.”
Lively crowds were described as a ‘nightmare’ when TikTok footage shot at Circular Quay train station went viral.
In one video, we saw commuters slowly shuffling through the ticket gates, leading some viewers to compare it to busy cities like New Delhi or Tokyo.
Many viewers said Vivid was not worth the trip due to overcrowding, with one Sydneysider saying it was a “big reason why I hate going.”
“I’d rather be anywhere else than there,” said another.
“I pass, everyone just wants their new TikTok video and Instagram photo,” said one person on TikTok.
Another commented, “Last time… the crowds were so bad. I’m never going again.’
Vibrant is a highlight on Sydney’s events calendar, and those eager to get in on the action have long been warned of huge crowds in the city while it’s going on.
Sydneysiders responded to TikTok with their own tips, urging others to walk to Wynyard or St James stations to avoid the crowds
‘In general, Friday, Saturday, Sunday evening and Monday evening as a holiday [June 12] draws the biggest crowds,” states Vivid’s website.
For those who still want to watch the lights, the festival has handed out some tips to avoid the crowds.
“Those with young families and pushchairs should also consider coming to Vivid Sydney on weekday evenings when attendance is expected to be lower than at weekends, and earlier in the evening,” the organizers said.
Visitors traveling by train should consider arriving and departing from Wynyard, Martin Place or Town Hall stations and traveling down George Street on foot.
Vivid recommends checking transportnsw.info/vivid-sydney schedule a visit.