VIVID EXTENSION PAYS OFF FOR SYDNEY

THE decision to extend Vivid Sydney by five nights has paid off, with the festival bringing in $110 million of visitor spend to the city.

Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events Stuart Ayres says 184,000 visitors travelled to Sydney specifically for the festival, generating more than 621,000 visitor nights for NSW.

"$110 million in visitor spend is a huge result and is up 75 per cent on last year's figure. Not only did we smash visitor expenditure, we became Australia's largest event with 2.31 million attendees experiencing the spectacular Vivid Sydney," says Ayres.

Destination NSW Chief Executive Officer and Vivid Sydney Executive Producer Sandra Chipchase, says the results are driven by exceptional marketing, partnership campaigns and outstanding programming.

"Our biggest ever program of light, music and ideas saw Vivid Sydney expand into new precincts including the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and Taronga Zoo and present over 190 Music and 180 Ideas events. These initiatives supported by our marketing and partnership campaigns were instrumental in increasing both visitor numbers and the length of stay."

Vivid Sydney 2017 will be held from Friday 26 May to Saturday 17 June.