Centennial Parklands is a vibrant and dynamic space within the city, receiving more than 10 million visits per year.

Visitors come to the Parklands for a wide range of reasons including sport, events, picnics, relaxation, cycling, horse riding, to shop or to dine.

The Parklands provides ample opportunities for car parking, with around 1,880 spaces available for visitors in Centennial Park alone!

While the Centennial Park and Moore Park Trust (Trust) encourages visitors to catch public transport to the Parklands (see more), it recognises that many people do drive to the parks and so seeks to best manage parking and traffic movement through this busy location for the benefit of all visitors.

Tips for parking in Centennial Parklands

Like all such busy venues, Centennial Parklands has a few rules to ensure that parking and traffic movement is as smooth and hassle-free as possible.

In Centennial Park

• always park in designated parking areas - front first along Grand Drive's parking bays
• be aware of the timed parking zones at specific points, particularly around main entry gates
• always be aware of pedestrians, cyclists, horses and dogs - and especially the presence of small children
• never park - or even stop temporarily - in the cycle lane on the left side of Grand Drive
• be aware that Banksia Way - adjacent to Centennial Parklands Dining - is now a shared zone with no general visitor parking available (see map)

When unloading your vehicle or allowing children to exit your vehicle, please be aware of the traffic and other park users that may be close by.

When leaving Centennial Park from Grand Drive, always check for cyclists and roller-bladers first.

Please note, at peak times (particularly on weekends) Centennial Park's road system can become congested and Rangers may temporarily close entry gates to control traffic impacts and for safety reasons.

In Moore Park

• the Entertainment Quarter features a 2000-space multi-storey car park (entrance off Lang Road) for visitors to the entertainment precinct.
• Moore Park Golf features restricted parking opportunities for patrons of the course or attendees at events at the Golf House. On major event days at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Football Stadium, Hordern Pavilion or Entertainment Quarter, limited pay parking opportunities may be provided for patrons.
• the Centennial Parklands Equestrian Centre has restricted parking conditions for patrons of the Centre only. Always park within designated parking bays and be aware of horses and riders at all times.

In Queens Park

• street-kerb parking is available around the perimeter of the park.
• always observe the Local Council parking conditions on parking display signage.

Pay parking within Centennial Parklands

Within Centennial Parklands there are a number of dedicated areas of pay parking. These areas are:

• the Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park - operated by third party lease
• Driver Avenue, Moore Park - operated by the Trust
• Kippax Lake and Area 2, Moore Park (event days only) - operated by licence to the Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust (SCSGT)
• Moore Park Golf (precinct event days only) - operated by Moore Park Golf

For each of these areas, parking fees are set through the annual Fees and Charges process and approved by the Minister for Sport and Recreation. These fees are competitively set with many set at a similar or lower rate than surrounding precincts or like venues throughout the city.

To encourage those who choose to drive, on event days at Moore Park, a lower daily rate is set for vehicles carrying 3 or more passengers. The set fees cover the full period of parking, usually half to full day.

Revenue raised through pay parking is retained by the Trust and is directed to the care and maintenance of the Parklands.

Moore Park on-grass parking

Traffic and transport in the Moore Park precinct, particularly on major event days at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Football Stadium, Entertainment Quarter, Hordern Pavilion, Royal Hall of Industries or Fox Professional Studios involves a whole-of-government approach, including planning input and involvement from the Trust, Roads and Traffic Authority, Sydney Transport Authority, Ministry of Transport, NSW Police, City of Sydney and the SCSGT.

The Trust allows on-grass parking at Moore Park (Kippax Lake and Area 2) on these major event days.

At peak times, the Moore Park precinct can attract more than 70,000 patrons at one time, so for the benefit of patrons, neighbours and the surrounding road network, the NSW Government believes it is far better to permit organised paid parking on-grass rather than force patrons attending events to park unorganised in surrounding streets.

However, as a means of minimising the impact of on-grass parking on the parkland environment, the Trust has reduced the amount of on-grass parking from 10,000 spaces (in 1994) to around 2,300 spaces. The Trust also manages on-grass parking areas in such a way as to ensure that they continue to be available for public recreation for the majority of the time.

In 2008, the Trust appointed the Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust to manage the on-grass parking at Moore Park (see more). This was initiated as a 12-month interim trial arrangement to assess the most coordinated means of traffic and parking management on major event days at precinct venues including the SCSGT's stadia.

While there has been public concern about the number of events and impacts of traffic and parking throughout the precinct, the number of events hosted in the precinct has actually decreased over the past three years (down by approximately 19 per cent) resulting in less on-grass parking throughout the year.

Temporary parking changes throughout the year

On occasion there may be temporary interruptions to Centennial Parklands usual parking operations. These may be due to Car Free Days (see more) or a major event including at adjacent venues. These may result in no parking availability in Centennial Park, in particular.

For the latest information or updates on events and other impacts, please check this website regularly or sign up to receive our eNewsletter.