Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race Returns

If you’re heading to Australia during the holiday season or considering where to spend Christmas and New Year, then Sydney should be on your radar. The Rolex Hobart Yacht Race will start at 1.00pm on Boxing Day, so bring your turkey sandwiches. With over 600,000 attendees and millions of TV and online viewers, this is a mega event that’s not to be missed. 

 

Starting north of Shark Island, make a mental note to either perch your feet in this location or at the North or South Head for best viewing. With summer in full swing on the 26^th December, the fleets will be racing along the shimmering Harbour waters. Also consider taking a kayak, ferry or water taxi for even better viewing. When the cannon fires and the race begins, there are a multitude of ways to keep up with the race, regardless of where your starting point is.

If you’re in the city and prefer to enjoy the race from a couch, Seven Network will broadcast the whole 90 minute race starting 12.30pm AEDT. If online viewing is your go-to communication platform, Yahoo!7 will be covering a webcast alongside the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race website live stream. Remember to be socially active and follow @rshyr for up to the second (or half second) tweets.

We highly suggest you keep an eye on the Yacht Tracker page so you can see specific boats progress throughout the race. It’ll show you how each yacht is performing and this technology integrates with a GPS network on Google Earth. Predicting who will win is all about following the tracker and placing your virtual bets between friends.

For the lucky ones who have access to a boat, you can actually follow the fleet down the Harbour and out to sea. The organizers suggest you start around Middle Head since the fleets are racing at break neck speed so you don’t want to be left behind. 

The CYCA official spectator vessels are also available but seating is limited. The tickets are $199.50 per spectator, including food, beverages and commentary. Tickets sell fast so here’s the link if you’re looking to pamper yourself on the vessel from 11.00am through 2.30pm and watch over 90 yachts speed past you during the early afternoon.

Over the past 70 years, the Hobart has become an iconic event and attracting so many hundreds of thousands of visitors, you should really be booking your accommodation now. Cremorne Point has the best views of the Harbour and our Cremorne Point Manor books out fast. Not only for the Hobart but for Christmas and especially New Years Eve. We pride in having the best wow location to see the fireworks. No wonder Tripadvisor’s awarded us our fifth consecutive Certificate of Excellence. If you need more ammunition in making your hotel accommodation decision, take a look at our home page short video. That Harbour water, in the video, is something to absolutely cross off your bucket wish list this December!