Aussies look forward to a summertime of music, sport and more

Australia’s celebrated summer season runs between December and February, This is the best time for locals to enjoy the wide variety of summertime activities the nation has to offer. A recent survey of 1098 respondents indicates that of these, musical events are the firm favourite (31%), followed by sports (20%) and cultural events (11%).

The most popular musical festival is 'Big Day Out', which gets the vote of 11% of those planning to go to a specific summer event. International headline acts will travel through Auckland, the Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth between January 12th to February 5th.

'Big Day Out' 2012 features international musical sensations such as Kanye West and My Chemical Romance in addition to dozens of other entertainers ready to hit the stage to entertain thousands of fans in outdoor venues across the country. Other festivals likely to be attended by more than 5% of survey respondents include the 'Adelaide Food Festival' (8.3%), 'Park Live Festival' (8.1%), 'Splendour in the Grass' (7.7%), the 'Home Bake Festival' (6.0%), and 'Sustainable Living' (5.1%).

When it comes to enjoying the great Australian summertime, there are significant differences between the sexes. While music festivals seem to be a big hit for men and women equally, the same cannot be said for sports events, which are a favourite for 27.5% of men compared with only 15.0% of women. Of all broadcast sports, the Australian Football League draws the most crowds, followed by NRL.

Sport is practically a religion in Australia, but Aussies don't just watch it. Of its 21 million population, it's estimated that 6.5 million people are registered sport participants, involved in over 120 national state sporting organization, and of course the thousands of local and regional ones.

Whereas watching sport is far more popular with the men, the female survey respondents seem to have more 'enlightening' tastes: 12% of women favoured attending cultural events, compared with only 8% of men. So what kind of cultural event do these women like the best? Theatre, dance performances, and art exhibitions are among their favourites. There will be no shortage of these happening this summer all round the country, including the local performances offered in smaller towns by self-made musicians.

Whether you’ll be joining the music festivals, cheering on your favourite team, or enjoying a national park, there is one thing everyone agrees on – Australian summers are hot. Most of the country is desert and generally sits between 80 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the summer months. It's hardly surprising that when asked the top 3 essentials to bring to a summer activity, the most popular item was sun cream (54%) followed by a second-place tie between beverages and a sunhat or cap (30% each).