People relax, enjoy first day of 2024 in Wollongong's Stuart Park

Stuart travelled to the Illawarra from Liverpool on the morning of January 1 to spend the day with a few families, all hailing from the Sydney area, in what has become an annual tradition.

"We used to do it overnight but life got a bit busier, so now we just come down for New Year's Day," he said.

The group plans to spend the day picnicking, enjoying some drinks, and playing card and board games in Stuart Park before heading home in the late afternoon or evening.

Typically a swim would also be on the agenda, but the weather has put a stop to that.

Stuart's group was not the only one to brave the inclement weather to spend the first day of the year outdoors, with plenty of people setting up gazebos in the park.

At least one person left their Sydney home in the pre-dawn hours to catch the first sunrise of 2024 over the ocean.

Meanwhile lifeguards were busy earlier in the morning cleaning up Shellharbour North Beach following the revelry of the evening before.

Resident Annette Regan said there were "lots of kids running around, lots of people" who were "extremely" well-behaved.

People let off fireworks on the beach to welcome in the new year and, while such behaviour is illegal, Annette said the display was "amazing".

"It was awesome, I'd never seen such big fireworks in the area," she said.

Some people were seen packing up tents and camping chairs from the beach in the morning.

There were no official fireworks in Shellharbour, but Wollongong had two displays - one at Belmore Basin at 9pm, and another in the CBD at midnight.

Kiama also celebrated with a fireworks display at 9pm.