Australia’s home of Olympic sport, Sydney Olympic Park, just 13 kilometers west of the Sydney central business district, is now the home of New South Wales’ first Wavegarden surf park, with an investment in excess of 75 million Australian dollars ($48.4 million). Although Sydney is blessed with a large number of surfing beaches, access to those beaches and crowding in the lineup are becoming increasing issues. The 46-module Wavegarden Cove surfing lagoon at URBNSURF Sydney is now able to provide an alternative to ocean-based surfing for Sydney residents and visitors.
The surf park is scheduled to open to the public in May and will be operate for 16 hours per day, 7 days per week, from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The prices for a 1-hour session vary from AU$30 to AU$159 depending on the level. Each surfer will enjoy approximately 10-12 waves per session and there is a variety of different options to choose from, from introductory lessons through to sessions for the most advanced professionals.
The 3.6-hectare (8.9-acre) site features the latest version of Wavegarden Cove technology and is designed to accommodate 1,000 visitors per day.
Following the success of URBNSURF Melbourne, the URBNSURF Group has become the first repeat client of Wavegarden by opening its second surf park, further solidifying their commitment to bringing surfing experiences to urban areas.
“This innovation is going to help surfers improve much faster than surfing in the ocean,” said Reef Heazlewood. “People in Sydney are going to be blown away when they see how good the waves are here.”
With a north-south lagoon orientation, URBNSURF Sydney has been designed to suit prevailing wind conditions. LED lagoon lighting means surfing night and day. The facility also features sustainable design elements, renewable energy, and water-saving systems, in keeping with Sydney Olympic Park’s strong environmental sustainability ethos.
Situated less than a kilometer from the Olympic Park train station, URBNSURF Sydney will be accessible to over 2 million Sydney residents in under 30 minutes. Additionally, national sports bodies, professional surfers, and coaches have already demonstrated that a Wavegarden Cove, like the one in Melbourne, is a valuable resource for their training prior to each competition.
For Wavegarden, this milestone not only celebrates the opening of URBNSURF Sydney but also marks a significant achievement for the company as it represents their 8th facility worldwide and the first instance of a client launching their second wave park.
“We created URBNSURF Sydney based on the invaluable experience and insights we gained from successfully developing, launching and operating Australia’s first surf park URBNSURF Melbourne in 2020,” said Damon Tudor, CEO of URBNSURF. “We’re proud to be considered a pioneer in this exciting new industry as we become a global first in opening our second park in Sydney. We can’t wait to show our local customers in Australia and the world what we have achieved.”
