Year of the Monkey begins at Sydney Opera House

An 8x15 metre lantern, lit day and night. Traditional red envelopes of festive goodies. Lobster buns, pork belly and themed Lunar Feasts by top Australian chefs.

The Sydney Opera House will be transformed into the ultimate Chinese New Year destination this month, when the giant inflatable lantern by Chinese-Australian artist Laurens Tan, featuring three wise monkeys, ushers in the year of the Monkey on Bennelong Point as part of the City of Sydney's Lunar Lanterns exhibition.

The Opera House sails will be bathed in red from 6 to 8 February to mark the start of the Lunar New Year, while special celebratory food and drink experiences, tours and commemorative gifts will be on offer at the Opera House from 6 to 21 February, when Sydney will host one of the biggest Lunar New Year celebrations outside of mainland China.

The City of Sydney expects more than 600,000 visitors from Sydney, interstate and overseas with over 16,000 already booked on a Mandarin-speaking tour of the Opera House.

Guests taking the Opera House's Mandarin-speaking tour will receive special festive goodies including a traditional red envelope and free souvenir photo. There will also be roving Lunar New Year performers, opulent floral decorations by The Flower Room and special menus across the Opera House precinct " a decadent Lobster Bun and Monkey See, Monkey Do cocktail at Peter Gilmore's celebrated Bennelong restaurant, or a succulent braised pork belly with Hainan dressing and cucumber at Lauren Murdoch's Eat Drink, Western Foyers. And wherever you choose to dine at the Opera House, your meal will finish with a fortune cookie.