Get Festival-Ready for Mardi Gras — The Official App Now Includes Enhanced Safety, Inclusion and Social Features
From instant check-ins to shareable rainbow moments, this updated app now has new features for safety, visibility and community.
Arriving just in time for the 2026 edition of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, the iconic event's official app now offers a suite of innovative safety and connection features. Bringing an improved sense of community wellbeing, access to help and social moments, the update goes live on day one of Mardi Gras — Friday, February 13.
There are three main upgrades to note, starting with Safety Circles. Here, users can save up to five trusted contacts and send an instant SMS update with a single tap. Using a selection of pre-configured messages like "Heading there now," or "I'm here," this feature offers a simple way to keep friends, parents and guardians in the know about your whereabouts.
Also in the realm of safety, the Mardi Gras app now includes a Strobe feature that lets users quickly enhance visibility or capture attention in low-light or busy areas. For instance, you can turn your phone into a flashing beacon, complete with customisable colours, torch light and scrolling text. This way, users can locate friends, signal for help or stay visible in a crowd.
Meanwhile, for those keen to get extra social during this year's festivities, the new app update also includes the Mardi Moments Fan Wall. Here, users are invited to share photos and moments from all the rainbow-soaked events they attend. At the same time, people can like and comment, helping to paint an interactive, visual story of the festival experience.
"Safety and inclusion sit at the core of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras," says Mardi Gras Festival CEO Jesse Matheson. "The Festival app builds on this commitment, now enhanced with new features to deliver a safe and positive Festival experience, including Safety Circles, Mardi Moments Fan Wall and Strobe designed for large-scale events."
Ready to get involved? This year's festival is as jam-packed as you'd expect, with a host of new and returning events, like the femme-charged Ultra Violet at City Recital Hall and Laugh Out Proud at the Enmore Theatre. There's also the chance to catch the latest LGBTQI+ flicks or close out the whole event with a free party at the Kinselas Hotel, headlined by Keli Holiday.
The Mardi Gras App is now available from the App Store or Google Play. Head to the website for more information.
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