Tourism operators and event organisers across New South Wales are being urged to register now for the 2026 Australian Heritage Festival, with the National Trust of Australia (NSW) calling for new and existing experiences to be included in next year’s statewide program.
Positioned as an opportunity to drive visitation, reach new audiences and gain additional exposure, the Festival has been bringing heritage to life since 1980 and remains the nation’s largest community driven heritage event. It celebrates natural, built, cultural and Indigenous heritage, with a calendar spanning metropolitan and regional NSW.
The 46th Australian Heritage Festival will launch to the public on World Heritage Day, 18 April, and run until 18 May 2026. Registration is free and open to organisations of all sizes, including tourism businesses, not for profit and community groups, councils, conservation groups, museums, galleries, libraries and spiritual places.
Events can be created specifically for the Festival or submitted as existing offerings, provided they run during the Festival period and commemorate the diverse heritage that shapes NSW as a year round destination.
The Festival’s final calendar is expected to feature a mix of free and ticketed experiences, from tours, classes and workshops, concerts and performance art, exhibitions and family fun days to First Nations ceremonies, dining experiences, special markets and food fairs, talks and forums and online activities.
National Trust (NSW) Chief Executive Officer Debbie Mills said the Festival is designed to strengthen community connection while recognising the work of organisations that interpret and share heritage across the state.
“The Festival is designed not only to connect communities but also, to provide support and recognition to the many worthwhile organisations across our state that bring heritage to life,” Ms Mills said.
She also encouraged organisers to contribute to a program that reflects heritage as a living, evolving story.
“We’re calling on event organisers to join us in marking the ever changing story of who we are in NSW. History is not fixed in the past; it is a constantly evolving living force that shapes our present and guides our future,” she said.
“Spanning Sydney’s historic streets to regional towns and sacred Indigenous sites, we’re inviting people to explore the stories that have influenced our communities and to consider how each generation reinterprets our heritage.”
Registrations will close soon, with organisers encouraged to submit events via australianheritagefestival.org.au.
The Australian Heritage Festival is coordinated by the National Trust. The NSW Government, through Heritage NSW, is the principal sponsor of the Australian Heritage Festival and the National Trust Heritage Awards, which is the signature event of the Festival.
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