Workers remove 20 tonnes of rubbish after massive Coogee Beach party

Workers have cleaned up 20 tonnes of rubbish after massive beach party in Sydney which saw the riot squad called.

While backpackers were told to stay away from Bronte Beach, which in the past has been packed for December 25, thousands headed to neighbouring Coogee.

Randwick Council said staff worked throughout the night to clean up after the "large backpacker Christmas party."

READ MORE: Man charged for allegedly performing Nazi salutes in public

Randwick Mayor Dylan Parker said Waverley Council also sent staff to help.

"In total, more than 20 tonnes of rubbish was picked up and sent to the tip in four truck loads," Mayor Parker said.

"While many people behaved responsibly, it's disappointing that some chose to litter heavily and urinate in public spaces."

He said staff had prepared for crowds as a "precaution."

READ MORE: Turkey detains dozens of IS suspects planning attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations

The bins and bathrooms were struggling to cope with the thousands of partygoers, who continued to stream in.

Waverley Mayor had Will Nemesh urged people to stay away from the usual location this year multiple times after a huge gathering left tonnes of rubbish in previous years.

Last year more than 15,000 people gathered at Bronte Beach for the annual 'Backpacker Christmas' gathering.

That message was reissued in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.

READ MORE: The top 20 greatest movies of all time ranked

"The redevelopment of the Bronte Surf Life Saving Club means half of the park is a construction site and off limits, so we were very concerned about the safety risks of a huge number of people crammed into such a small space," Nemesh said.

"Just in case, knowing we can't ban people from public places and always keen to be prepared, Council devised a multi-pronged management plan to help cope with crowds, bad behaviour, traffic, noise and the clean-up task."

So, instead, the masses made other plans and all turned up at Coogee instead.

"We originally went to Bronte Beach but it was dead and someone said come to Coogee, so we jumped into a taxi and it's much better here," one partygoer told 9News.

The drinks were flowing across the alcohol-free zone, and the riot squad arrived, but with generally good behaviour, no arrests were made.

READ MORE: Crane hits Gold Coast building after snapping in storm

Firefighters were called to put out a small barbecue fire that started to spread but otherwise, police only needed to keep an eye on the crowd.

Once it was clear the party was moved to Coogee Beach, Waverley Council shifted its support and resources to Randwick to help manage the crowd. 

READ MORE: 'This Christmas is a different one', says Albanese as he serves festive meals

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.