Cockatoo Island

A former convict gaol and shipyard sitting in the middle of Sydney Harbour, Cockatoo Island — Wareamah to the Wallumedegal, Wangal, Cammeraygal and Gadigal peoples — is reachable only by ferry. The UNESCO-listed convict site anchors the history; waterfront camping and heritage accommodation mean you can stay after the day-trippers leave. New Year's Eve here, with the harbour on all sides, is self-evidently something else.