Royal Easter Show: Australia's Biggest Country Fair
For thousands of families from Sydney and across NSW, the Sydney Royal Easter Show is one of the most celebrated events of the year. Run by the Royal Agricultural Society of New South Wales, it’s also the premier showcase event for produce growers, livestock breeders and other rural industries from every corner of the state. The Royal Easter Show is Sydney’s annual “city meets country” event, and with plenty of bushwhacking, lumberjacking, sheep shearing and rodeo riding to be enjoyed, it promises to deliver all the fair dinkum fun of an Aussie country fair to the city folk who flock here over the Easter school holiday season.
The Sydney Royal Easter Show is held over 14 days in the showgrounds of the Sydney Olympic Park in Homebush. First held way back in 1832, it’s evolved into much more than just a farming and livestock show, with parades, amusement park rides, and a huge program of live entertainment sharing space with the traditional agricultural and animal pavilions.
The animals are undoubtedly the stars of the Royal Easter Show. Even grown-ups will find themselves enthralled by the astonishing array of “best of breed” critters on show. Come face to face with a Clydesdale, the gentle giants of the horse world, drop in on a dog show and marvel at the impressive assets of the show’s prize-winning bulls. There’s even a Pig Obedience Challenge, a Goat Milking Competition and a Chicken Washing Demonstration.
The Main Arena will host a spectacular evening entertainment program offering up a true taste of the Australian bush. Expect heart-thumping rodeo action, daredevil motocross stunting, utes, flames, broncos, bulls and fireworks (not necessarily all at the same time). And during the day there’s wood chopping and whip cracking, circus sideshows, street theatre and classic cars on show.
Other traditional Easter Show favourites back for 2011 include the thrill rides and carnival games, the always-amazing fruit and vegetable displays (think all kinds of colourful farm produce, painstakingly laid out into enormous landscape artworks) and of course, the frenzy-inducing Showbag Hall, which this year will offer some 300 showbags bursting with treats from your favourite brands, television shows and more.
Posted on Feb 23, 2011 by Fiona Davies
