Iconic Christmas event under threat as Bronte residents demand ban on backpacker party
Every year on December 25 thousands of people flock to Bronte Beach for the 'Orphan's Christmas' backpacker event.
Last year up to 15,000 people, who were largely backpackers and visitors, attended the impromptu beach party, leaving the area trashed the following day.
Outrage has been building in recent years over the state of the beach, with the grass area often resembling a rubbish-strewn wasteland everyoxing Day.
At a fiery public forum hosted by Waverley Council on Monday night, residents described the infamous Bronte Beach bash as a booze-fuelled 'mass urinal' and demanded urgent action to 'break the cycle' of chaos that unfolds each year, The Daily Telegraph reported.
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Rubbish left over after the hectic Christmas party at Bronte Beach in 2024. NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone
Credit: NewsWire
Ideas, reportedly floated by residents, included banning alcohol entirely, geofencing the suburb to block ride-share pick-ups, and flooding the area with police and drug detection dogs to send a clear message that the beachside suburb would no longer tolerate unruly revellers.
One man said that last Christmas, 'a thousand people' bolted up his street within 10 minutes of the drug dogs arriving.
The community forum was initially designed to gather feedback on four official options ranging from continuing the event unmanaged, to implementing a paid, ticketed, alcohol-free version complete with a 1km fence at a cost of at least $90,000.
However, attendees rejected all of them, proposing instead a fifth solution, to stop endorsing it all together.
'All they want to do is party, so we need to get a message out … we're not going to let them abuse our area anymore,' one resident said.
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Thousands of beachgoers were seen at Bronte Beach, Sydney, on Christmas Day, 2024: NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone
Credit: News Corp Australia
Alma Douglas, the chair of the association Bronte Precinct, questioned why locals had to keep tolerating the annual chaos.
'We can get rid of it. Why do we have to have it? Why are we accepting that it has to be here?' she said.
Nearby resident Joel Stuhler said the official options only 'condoned the behaviour'.
'There's broken glass outside my home, vomit on my driveway, people making out outside my house, my neighbour got parked in for six hours, it's just mayhem,' Mr Stuhler said.
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Waverley locals push back against backpacker party they say turns Bronte into a 'mass urinal'. NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone
Credit: NewsWire
One man described the laneway behind his house becoming a 'mass urinal', while a woman recounted watching someone get 'knocked out cold' in a fight and then continue drinking after regaining consciousness.
At the end of the forum, Waverley Mayor Will Nemesh conceded change was needed.
'Council will look at enhancing increased communication and get the message out there that what has occurred is not sustainable and we will not accept that,' he said.
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Last year, an estimated 15,000 mostly young international travellers flooded the beach, leaving behind mounds of rubbish. NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone
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The public outcry follows years of local frustration over the growing size and cost of the Christmas Day event.
Last year, an estimated 15,000 mostly young international travellers flooded the beach, leaving behind mounds of rubbish and sparking calls for state government intervention.
Waverley Council spent $60,000 managing last year's Christmas Day party and $75,000 maintaining a police presence during the summer period. The council is now moving to formally request funding support from the NSW Government.
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Thousands of beachgoers were seen at Bronte Beach, Sydney, on Christmas Day, 2024. NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone
Credit: News Corp Australia
Mayor Nemesh warned the event is 'currently unsustainable' and that costs for crowd control, lifeguards, rangers, cleaners and security should not fall solely on local ratepayers.
Despite this, a NSW Government spokesperson told The Daily Telegraph its position had not changed.
'Waverley Council collects significant revenue from beaches in its local government area including millions each year in parking revenue,' the spokesperson said.
'Every council in NSW manages the maintenance of its beaches including events, and Waverley Council should be no different.'
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