Australia’s most vibrant source of party vibes and good times, Secret Garden, is fast approaching, taking up residence in its luscious slice of bushland just out of Sydney for its ninth year. Just like any good boutique festival, ticket numbers are limited and already sold out. So you'll have to be on it a lot earlier next year. Until then, the organisers sent us a few of their favourite moments of the festival's last eight years for you to peruse over, which might kick your butt into gear and make sure you're tuned into their WEBSITE and/or FACEBOOK to be more switched on.

IG PHOTO MOMENT

Last year a small group of friends were posing for a photo, then some people walking past joined in. In less that five minutes it turned into this.

MUM AND DAD CHILLING

In the first few years of Secret Garden, Mum and Dad were very much in the trenches with me – going to Dan Murphy’s when we looked like we would run out of booze, or being the last ones on site plucking bottle caps out of the ground. This photo is from the first year they kicked back and enjoyed the festival.

MASS DANCE

This was the year Whitney Houston died, and to celebrate her life, we taught about 1500 Gardeners a really cheesy dance on the first night, and then surprised the rest of the Gardeners with a flash mob on the second night. It was so epic! Everyone joined in and it ended up being about 3000 people all dancing to I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

FIRST YEAR OF THE KISSING BOOTH

The first year of the Secret Garden kissing booth was a really formative year for us. We designed it so it was punter-run and were therefore quite nervous that no one would jump in and start pashing strangers. Sure enough, there was someone who manned it and a queue the entire time. I took that as permission from our Gardeners that they are up for anything, so in the years that have followed, we have really gone for it and created a place they don’t just spectate, but participate too.

CLIENT LIAISON

It was so, so brilliant when Client Liaison played the festival. Adam (our music programmer) had nailed the lineup, and having Client Liaison perform the main stage was a delicious cherry on top of the most incredible weekend of music.

COSTUMES

Fancy dress is so great because it immediately puts everyone in the zone to have fun and laugh at themselves. The costumes people make at Secret Garden are incredible. My favourite from last year was the running of the bulls – a group of guys dressed as Spaniards, and were chased and tackled by their mates dressed as bulls. Very good.

RAVE CAVE

It is what it says on the label. Darude Sandstorm on repeat in a little four-walled cave in the forest. It seems ridiculous to lock yourself in such an environment when there is so much going on at Secret Garden, but don’t mock it until you have tried it!

BEATLES COVER ACT

We are all about big celebratory acts where you can throw your arms around your mates and sing in your loudest voice. Who better to create that kind of moment than The Beatles, or in our case a band that poses as them. It was so fun, it was like a giant karaoke sing-along.