Sydney Airport’s lost property auction features a treasure trove of unclaimed items, including tech gadgets, designer perfumes, surfboards, and Lego sets.

Sydney Airport’s Lost Property Auction: From Laptops to Lego, Thousands of Unclaimed Items Up for Grabs — All for a Good Cause

Travellers passing through Sydney Airport have left behind a staggering assortment of belongings — and now, thousands of these unclaimed items are going under the hammer in the airport’s much-anticipated annual lost property auction.

From everyday essentials to unusual oddities, the auction features a wide range of goods including a vacuum cleaner, an air fryer, 250 laptops, 250 pieces of jewellery and watches, and even boxed Lego sets. More eccentric items like an electric keyboard, a violin, a sleep apnea machine, and a full *Lord of the Rings* book collection are also up for bidding, with starting prices from just \$10.

This year alone, around 7,000 items were left behind by travellers, and while 5,000 have found their way back to their owners, the rest are now being auctioned off by Theodore Bruce Auctioneers.

Categories include:

Tech & Gaming: 250 laptops, 40 gaming consoles, 60 Kindles, 200 headphones/earbuds, 50 cameras
Fashion & Accessories: 250 clothing items, 100 sunglasses, 80 handbags & wallets, 250 pieces of jewellery and watches
Home & Beauty: 50 bottles of perfume, 40 hair dryers and straighteners, a coffee machine, air fryer, vacuum cleaner, frying pan
Toys & Collectibles: 30 plush toys (including a 90cm teddy bear), 10 boxed Lego sets, a footy signed by the 2020 Sydney Swans, time capsule
Sports & Instruments: Surfboards, bikes, golf clubs, binoculars, violin, electric keyboard

Bidding is already live and staggered across categories throughout the week, wrapping up next Thursday:

Tech & Gaming: closes Monday, 11am
Jewellery & Watches: Tuesday, 11am
Clothing & Shoes: Wednesday, 11am
Sunglasses, Bags & Accessories: Wednesday, 2pm
Beauty, Alcohol & Home: Thursday, 11am

Beyond bargain hunting, the auction supports a noble cause. Proceeds this year will fund free swimming lessons and water safety programs across Sydney. For every \$25 raised, one child will receive a swimming lesson. Sydney Airport has also pledged a \$100,000 donation to kick-start the initiative — the equivalent of 4,000 free lessons for children who might otherwise miss out.

“Swimming is a vital life skill, but our research shows nearly half of Year 6 students in Australia can’t swim 50 metres,” said Louise Smalley, Health Promotions Manager at Royal Life Saving Society. “This program will make a real difference.”

Items that don’t find buyers will either be donated to charity or held over for the 2026 auction. Travellers seeking missing checked baggage should contact their airlines directly, as airline-handled items aren’t included in the auction.

Whether you’re looking for a bargain, a unique find, or simply want to contribute to a life-saving cause, this auction offers something for everyone.