SYDNEY and Melbourne have kicked off the party that starts the world's new year by painting the night sky.
A kaleidoscope of colourful fireworks were launched into the skies of both cities before an estimated two million revellers on Tuesday - a warm-up act to the "big one" at midnight.
At the country's drawcard event in Sydney, party-goers at the iconic harbour foreshore weren't disappointed by the 9pm (AEDT) display.
Over eight minutes, red, green, pink, purple, and gold brightened the grey canvas that was Sydney's cloudy sky.
Cheers were especially loud for a waterfall of pink and gold crackers that fell from the Harbour bridge, and for a rush of gold pyrotechnics that closed the fireworks.
Earlier, thousands of onlookers at Mrs Macquarie's chair were treated to an aerobatic show with a stunt plane doing loop-de-loops and mid air stalls, and some hair-raising low flying just metres from the water.
During the night, some seven tonnes of fireworks were to light up the sky in the form of 11,000 aerial shells and 25,000 shooting comets launched from seven barges spread across six kilometres of Sydney Harbour.
For the first time in a decade, 1000 fireworks will also be shot from the top of the Opera House, as well as from the Harbour Bridge and jet skis stationed in the harbour.
In Victoria, more than 500,000 revellers packed the city centre to catch a glimpse of some of the 7.5 tonnes of fireworks launched from 22 locations, including city rooftops, by a team of 44 pyrotechnists.
On a mild Melbourne night, the mood at the family event was relaxed, with lots of kids, babies, mums and dads stretched on blankets with picnics waiting for the fireworks to begin.
New mum Nicola Sutcliffe said she was enjoying the music, but not the long queues for food ahead of the 9.30pm fireworks.
"This is the first time we have been out with a child for New Year's Eve and it's good that there is something like this event," she said.
Police in both states were out in force on the night at celebration hot spots.
A NSW police media spokesman said the night had gone well so far, with no major incidents reported.
Brisbanites were treated to the state's largest fireworks show yet.
The skies above the river city were lit up at 8.30pm with some of the 30,000 pyrotechnic effects that will be fired from three barges and three city rooftops at 8.30pm and midnight.
In Tasmania, tens of thousands converged on the waterfront and Salamanca, where the state's biggest food festival, Taste, combined with the finish of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
Partygoers looking up from their plates were treated to fireworks exploding over the docks at 9.30pm and midnight.
South Australia sang in the new year with live music in Adelaide's Elder Park, where local bands provided the entertainment on top of fireworks.
The new year will prove dangerous for some, with residents in parts of regional SA urged by authorities to leave their homes and seek safety as "catastrophic" fire danger conditions are predicted for January 1.
Western Australia will largely leave its patch of sky alone on the night, with Perth saving up its pyrotechnics display for Australia Day.
There are still a few places to ring in 2014 with a bang, including Rockingham and the Shelley foreshore.
A key draw promises to be the headline act for the Salt on the Beach NYE party at North Fremantle, New York hip-hop trio De La Soul.
