Sydney is hosting the eighth WorldPride festival from Feb. 17 to March 5 along with their traditional Mardi Gras celebration. It’s the first time in history WorldPride is being held in the Southern Hemisphere.

Oxford Street, located in Darlinghurt, is home to a vibrant LGBTQIA+ community. The street is where the Mardi Gras parade occurred on Feb. 25.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Sydney has held an annual Mardi Gras celebration for the LGBTQIA+ for the last 45 years. In 2023, Mardi Gras is being combined with the WorldPride celebration for a massive festival.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Crown Street, just off of Oxford Street, is one of the Pride Villages that’s been created for WorldPride. From Feb. 24 until March 5, the street will host daily performances, stalls and places for friends and family to connect. Crown Street will also have nightly shows and weekend entertainment.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Massive crowd gathers on Oxford Street awaiting for the start of the parade on Feb. 25. Tens of thousands of people from Australia and across the world attended the parade.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

The Mardi Gras parade opened up with LGBTQIA+ members riding motorcycles down Oxford Street and waving pride flags. It was the first time the celebration returned to Oxford Street after being held at the Sydney Cricket Ground for the past two years.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Over 12,000 people marched in the Mardi Gras parade on Feb. 25. The parade is one of 300 events taking place during WorldPride during the 17-day period. The most notable marcher was Anthony Albanese, who became the first sitting prime minister to march in the parade.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Float going down Oxford Street during the Mardi Gras parade. There were about 300 floats at the celebration which lasted over three hours on Feb. 25.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Sign on Oxford Street with the 22 different pride flags and numerous communities within the LGBTQIA+ community.

Photo: Andrew Isaacson/Eastside FM

Sydney WorldPride was recently ranked as the seventh best thing to do in the world by Time Out Magazine. The 17-day festival will conclude on March 5.