Sydney Attractions Guide: Things To Do in Sydney Australia

Spotlight

Sydney

Attractions

Sydney’s attractions are quite spread out, so don’t expect to see all of them on a swift visit. The best way to get acquainted with the city’s layout is on an introductory sightseeing bus tour, which we strongly encourage you to with Sydney Day Tours (3.5 hrs, with commentary; daily at 8:30am; $57). For more freedom, hop on and off the Gray Line Tour bus running daily along the tourist trail (look for stops with well-marked signs; $24, valid for the whole day). Once you've got your overview, complement your visit with a two-hour architecture walking tour by Sydney Architecture Walks (twice weekly; $25) run by knowledgeable enthusiastic architects.

The next must-do is a cruise around the Sydney Harbour. While you can just hop on one of the regular passenger ferries from Circular Quay, we suggest booking a Harboursights Cruise (3 daily; 1hr–2.5 hrs; $18–$24) or, for a more upscale experience, the Coffee Cruise offered by a Captain Cook Cruises (twice daily; 2hr 20min; $44, with coffee refreshments and live commentary); the same company also offers sunset and dinner cruises which showcase the city brilliantly lit up at night (several daily; $75–$159).

If you’re set on a sightseeing-filled stay, make sure you purchase the great-value SydneyPass ($110 for three days, $145/5 days, $165/week); it will get you unlimited travel on all ferries, buses and trains; three Harboursights Cruises; return transport on the AirportLink buses; plus discounts at many attractions. These are available at the airport, ferry, bus and train ticket offices, as well as the Visitor Center in The Rocks.

Main Sights
The obvious place to start your tour of Sydney is the splendid Sydney Harbor, officially called Port Jackson. Unless you have a month to spare, don’t even attempt to take in every attraction along its vast, 149-mile shoreline and outlying islands. We recommend sticking to the south shore, home to the main attractions of this bustling maritime city, including the following highlights.

There’s no sight in Sydney more iconic than the glorious white-roofed Sydney Opera House (box office Mon–Sat 9am–8.30pm, Sun 2 hrs before performances; (0)2 9250 7111; Bennelong Point), spreading majestically on 4.5 waterfront acres. Yes, this is the Aussie emblem you’ve seen on TV plenty of times, but nothing can prepare you for the splendor of the real thing. While you can admire Australia’s cultural powerhouse from different vantage points along the harbor, we recommend a close-up look at this $102 million organic structure by Danish architect Jørn Utzon that took 14 years – and his resignation –to complete. Catching a performance in one of the five main venues is a special treat (tickets from the box office; 22–$295), but if your budget or time don’t allow, make sure to at least take the informative guided tour (1hr; daily every 30min between 9am–5pm; $23, with a drink; tickets at store on the lower concourse) of the interiors complete with resplendent murals, stately auditoriums, and fine architectural details; a highly entertaining backstage tour (2hrs; daily at 7am; $140, with breakfast; (0)2 9250 7250) will get you behind the scenes.

Sydney’s other symbol, the grand Sydney Harbor Bridge, connects the north and south shores of the harbor and, together with the Opera House, provides the perfect city photo-op from many a point along the waterfront. Opened to public in 1932, this 430-ft high and 3,676-ft-long bridge was once the world’s largest single-span bridge. Even though the superlative no longer applies, it’s still a dazzling engineering feat, with eight lanes of traffic, two railway tracks, and several pedestrian walkways.

While you can admire the Coathanger, as the locals lovingly call this 52,800 ton-steel structure, from a distance, we recommend a visit to the brilliant Pylon Lookout & Museum (daily 10am–5pm; $8.50; southeast pylon of the bridge, accessible via the pedestrian pathway at Cumberland St.), in The Rocks neighborhood. Here, three levels of bridge-related exhibits include photos, original 1930s artifacts and stained-glass memorials, and – as the reward for a 200-step climb to the top – an amazing 360-degree city and harbor panorama. Adventure-seekers shouldn’t miss the hugely popular BridgeClimb (Sep–July $165 day & night climbs on weekdays, $185 on weekends, $245 for twilight climbs; July–Aug $169 weekdays, $189 weekends, $249 twilight), an exhilarating three-and-a-half hour climb to the summit in groups of 12; you’ll be briefed for an hour, decked out in space suits you’ll even need to pass an alcohol test – so no beer!), harnessed to a cable system, and then guided up ladders and walkways towards the top, where you’ll be treated to excellent commentary, awesome views and a complimentary group photo to take back home. Less adventurous visitors can instead enjoy a leisurely bridge walk (30 minutes in each direction) to the other shore along the pedestrian walkway on the eastern side of the bridge (reachable via Cumberland Street in The Rocks).

You can’t leave the area without a couple of hours’ stroll through Sydney’s most historic enclave, The Rocks, a picturesque cluster of narrow alleyways, cobblestone terraces, tight-packed cottages and winding stairways. Located right underneath the Bridge, this is Australia’s oldest European settlement, with a dark but beguiling history – it was the colony of tent-dwelling convicts back in 1788, a disease-rife port quarter notorious for gang crime and prostitution in the late 19th century, and almost demolished in the 1920s to make space for the bridge. Renovations started in 1970s and fully revived the area; these days, it’s a hub of tourist activity, with over 30 museums and galleries, and a bevy of rickety olden pubs, tax-free shops and gourmet restaurants.

To get your bearings, we suggest stopping by the Sydney Visitor Center (corner of Argyle and Playfair Streets; daily 9.30am–5.30pm) housed in the heritage-listed Penrhyn House, with a small historical exhibit plus a plethora of maps, brochures and – as an excellent buy for independent types – a self-guided tour booklet ($2.50). We strongly recommend a guided walking tour, however, as the area is a tangled maze of alleyways; our favorite is run by The Rocks Walking Tours (90 minutes; 3 daily tours on weekdays, 2 on weekends; $19; +61 (2) 9247 6678; 23 Playfair St.), but you can also take a thematic tour, like the hair-raising walk through the area’s haunted sites offered by The Rocks Ghost Tours(Tours depart from Cadman’s Cottage, 110 George St.; 90 minutes; daily April–October 6.45pm; daily November–March 7.45pm; $32; www.ghosttours.com.au); or a fun pub crawl by The Rocks Pub Tour (120 minutes; Mon, Wed, Fri & Sat at 5pm; $34.50; 66 Harrington St.), taking you to three historic watering holes, with a free drink and lots of tales in each pub. If you’re in The Rocks on a weekend, make sure you browse through the colorful street fair that sprawls along George Street (Sat & Sun 10am–5pm), with over 150 stalls selling antiques, jewelry and Aussie arts & crafts.

Before you move on to the city’s other attractions, make sure to take the high-speed elevator to the 1000-ft Sydney Tower, also known as the Centrepoint Tower (Sun–Fri 9am–10.30pm, Sat 9am–11.30pm; $23.50; 100 Market St.), for a bird-eye’s city and harbor view from the turret at the top; on a clear day, you can even discern the Blue Mountains in the distance. While here, don’t miss the thrilling OzTrek (ticket included), a 3D virtual adventure across Australia’s diverse geography and cultural history.

Museums & Galleries
While it constantly vies with Melbourne for the title of Australia’s cultural capital, Sydney offers an abundant repertoire of museums and galleries, and the art scene’s certainly alive and kicking. You could spend days touring its many museums – from masterpiece-filled art institutions and quirky treasure troves to first-class galleries showing the latest contemporary art – or get a quick sampling of the city’s diverse offerings by visiting our favorite venues, below.

Start your museum tour with the outstanding Museum of Contemporary Art (daily 10am–5pm; free, except special exhibits; two guided tours daily; 140 George St.) in a striking Art-Deco building on Circular Quay West, with an illustrious permanent collection, including several Warhols and Lichtensteins, a terrific display of Aboriginal paintings and top-end temporary exhibits of video, photography and sculpture by high-profile international artists.

The next museum not to miss is the first-rate Art Gallery of New South Wales (daily 10am–5pm; Weds until 9pm; free, except special exhibits; Art Gallery Rd.), home to the most extensive anthology of homegrown Aussie artworks; noteworthy displays of European and Asian art; nearly forty temporary exhibits per year and – as the highlight - the marvelous Yiribana Gallery dedicated to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art, all housed in an elegant Victorian edifice in The Domain.

As our favorite offbeat museum, we highly recommend the fantastic Powerhouse Museum (daily 10am–5pm; $10, two guided tours daily; 500 Harris St.) in Darling Harbour, a converted 1899 power station with 22 permanent exhibits spanning a wide range of themes – from Australian history and society to transport and communications – ingeniously presented through interactive displays and virtual reality 3D theaters; highlights include the Industrial Revolution-era Boulton and Watt steam engine and a reconstructed 1930s Art-Deco movie house, plus a rich program of performances, films and lectures.

If you have kids in tow, make sure to check out the wonderful Australian Museum (daily 9.30am–5.00pm; $10, several guided tours daily; 6 College St.) across from the CBD’s Hyde Park. This natural history extravaganza – and Australia’s first museum established back in 1827 – boasts a vast collection of 13 million cultural objects and animal, fossil and mineral specimens – where else do you get a chance to see an Australian upside-down fly and the hairy cicada? – including 2,000,000 molluscs, an entire room devoted to skeletons, and lots of Aborigine-related exhibits.

Parks & Gardens
Sydney’s cityscape is dotted with parks and gardens – from formal English-style retreats to lush subtropical oases, providing many a peaceful sanctuary from the urban hustle and bustle. If not on the beaches, Sydneysiders love to hang out in these verdant havens, so do like the locals do and wander through at least one of the city’s green beauties.

Start with the extraordinary Royal Botanic Gardens (visitor center in Palm Grove daily 9.30 am–4.30 pm; one free guided tour daily; $20 for an hour-long Aboriginal guided walk once a week, with bookings at +61 (2) 9231 8125), a lush 74-acre refuge first established in 1816 by original settlers at this breathtaking harbor-side location next to the Opera House. With an exceptional collection of native plants – including the extremely rare specimen of the ancient Wollemi Pine found in the Blue Mountains – and the first-rate Tropical Center (daily 10am–4pm; $2.20), with a walkway above the lush canopy of two giant glasshouses, this is the prime place to take in the amazing diversity of Aussie flora.

For a face-to-face look at native Aussie fauna – wallabies, kangaroos, platypus, koalas and Tasmanian devils – we highly recommend taking a 12-minute ferry ride (every 30 minutes from Circular Quay) to Mosman Bay on the North Shore and then a spectacular Sky Safari cable car to reach the 69 beautifully landscaped hilltop acres of the superb Taronga Park Zoo (daily 9am–5pm; $30 admission only; $35-$155 for guided tours; www.zoo.nsw.gov.au), home to over 340 species (including non-native animals like Andean condor and West African pygmy hippos) in faithfully recreated natural habitats; the rich daily repertoire of free events includes bird shows, seal playtimes and zookeeper talks.

For Sydney’s most scenic nature walks, head to the Sydney Harbour National Park, a protected area comprised of pristine pockets of bushland along the harbor and five outlying islands, all packed with Aboriginal rock art, incredible lookout points, splendid beaches, historic buildings and subtropical patches of forest. While you can enjoy plenty of self-guided walks in the park (maps are available from the Park Office in The Rocks (Mon–Fri 9.30am–4.30 pm, Sat & Sun 10am–4.30 pm; +61 (2) 9247 5033; Cadmans Cottage, 110 George St.), we recommend one of the ranger-guided tours (book through the park office), ranging from two-hour bush food tours (once a month; $13.20), three-hour nighttime ghost walks in the Manly Quarantine Station (four weekly; $27.50) and three-hour boat trips to Fort Denison island (two weekly; $47, with ferry ticket and brunch).

Beaches
You needn’t be a beach bunny to fall in love with Sydney’s golden stretches of sand. It is, after all, one of the world’s most vibrant surf destinations, with over 50 beaches dotting the coastline – from brash Bondi and intimate Clovelly to long-favorite Manly and up-and-coming Coogee. No visit is complete without at least a couple of sun-splashed hours on one of these, even if just for a look at the tanned, bikini-clad sun-worshippers and toned-up lifesavers. Sydney’s excellent transportation network makes it easy to visit any city beach; within an hour, you can arrive from Circular Quay to any the favorites we highlight below. Frequent public buses ply the 45-minute to one-hour route to the eastern suburb beaches (see website schedules and fares), while Manly is only a 30-minute ferry ride away (or 15 minutes, if you take the fast Manly JetCat; see website for schedules and fares).

A couple of words of warning before you dive in. Make sure you always swim between the red and yellow flags, which mark safe areas for swimming; outside of these, strong dangerous currents, known as rips, often occur. And do remember that the southern hemisphere sun is particularly harsh and stick to the local slogan – Slip, Slop, Slap (i.e. put on a shirt, sun block, and a hat).

Bondi
If you can only afford a couple of hours on a beach, make it Bondi. This much-photographed 0.65-mile strip of sand in the eastern suburbs is Sydney at its most quintessential, at the top of the world charts as a happening sun and surf mecca. Whether you want to indulge in serious people-watching; hit the waves; play a game of golf by the ocean; catch a concert or an exhibit at the 1920s Bondi Pavillion Cultural Center; down a cold beer paired with fish & chips along the buzzing Campbell Parade; or just soak up some sunshine, this is the beach to hit. If time allows, make sure to stroll the scenic coastal walk to Coogee (3.5 miles; about 2 hours); it starts at the legendary Bondi Icebergs Club – with a gorgeous saltwater pool and a top-notch restaurant – at the southern end of the beach and takes you through glamorous Tamarama, family-friendly Bronte, pretty Clovelly, and past the historic Waverly Cemetery all the way to Coogee. On the beach itself, you’re likely to come upon various waterfront competitions and surf carnivals, which seemingly take place every weekend in summer.

As you’d expect from Sydney’s most touristy beach, beach services are second to none here. For wannabe surfers, we recommend a two-hour intro class offered by Let’s Go Surfing ($69-$75; 128 Ramsgate Ave). You can rent just about any watersport equipment at Beached at Bondi (352 Birrell St.), from flippers to sun umbrellas and boogie boards. Golfers can get some tee time in at the ocean-side Bondi Golf Club.

Manly
The second-most-popular beach, and a place not to miss for the scenic 30-minute ferry ride that gets you there, is Manly, on the North Shore. Its catchy slogan, “7 miles from Sydney and 1000 miles from care” is wonderfully appropriate for its series of splendid sand strips with abundant watersport and activities; Manly Boat and Kayak Hire, on the wharf, offers sea-kayaking ($15/hr for a single) ; you can also tour northern beaches on a speed boat ($59 for a 30-minute tour), courtesy of Epic Surf. On land, you can browse Manly Wharf, a two-level waterfront retail and entertainment complex. Of the many coastal walks around Manly, our favorite is the three-hour Manly to Spit Bridge walk through unspoiled bushland; the best of the short walks is the fifteen-minute Cabbage Tree Bay Eco-Sculpture walk to Shelly Beach that starts at the Manly Surf Club on the south end of the beach and takes you past sculptures illuminating the local history and marine, plant, and animal life.

Eastern suburb beaches beyond Bondi
With Bondi and Manly under your belt, head for the less touristy beaches in the eastern suburbs, such as the flourishing surf and backpacker spot of Coogee, with two swimming pools at the southern end of it, a bustling café and restaurant scene, and excellent snorkeling; snug Clovelly, with the best diving spot nearby at Gordon’s Bay boasting a startling underwater nature trail; scuba dives are organized through Deep 6 Diving); and the off-the-beaten-path Maroubra, recently voted as the top surfing beach in Sydney and complete with a café pavilion and some pretty serious waves.

SHOPPING
Sydneysiders love shopping, and you will, too, when you discover the colorful offerings of Southern Hemisphere’s shopping mecca. Whatever your consumer style and preference, you can shop till you drop here. For excellent duty-free outlets, head to The Rocks. Fashion slaves shouldn’t miss the funky boutiques in other neighborhoods, especially so Darlinghurst and Surry Hills, or the homegrown designer stores in Paddington. If you want to check out Sydney’s one-stop shopping malls and high-end department stores, the CBD is the place to go.

Souvenir shopping is particularly fun in Sydney, with Aboriginal handicrafts and mementos of Australiana at practically every step. Note that many of these ‘hand-made’ items are actually fakes; you can get the real goods at our top stores. You can pick up a hand-crafted didgeridoo at The Rocks’ Didj Beat Didgeridoos (Clock Tower Square,). For traditional Aboriginal boomerangs, and even a lesson at throwing one, head to Duncan Maclennan's Boomerang School (224 William St.), in Kings Cross. The Sydney Antique Centre (531 South Dowling St.), in Surry Hills, is an excellent place to browse antique bits of Australiana, while contemporary Aussie arts and crafts can be found at the trendy Saturday market in Paddington (10am–4pm; Oxford St.). The best place to buy precious gemstones and designer jewelry is in The Rocks, at Opal Fields (190 George St.); quality Australian leather goods, including sheepskin and crocodile products, are sold nearby, at The Sheepskin Shop (139 George St.).

Don’t leave without a browse through a couple of local designer shops. The most high-profile, and much loved by celebs, is Paddington’s Collette Dinnigan (33 William St.), with gorgeous embroidered and beaded outfits. Also worth checking out in the neighborhood are the stylish creations at Scanlon & Theodore (443 Oxford Street, Paddington). And don’t forget to pick up a traditional Akubra hat, that Aussie icon you’ve seen in Crocodile Dundee; the best specialist store is in CBD: Strand Hatters (Strand Arcade, 412 George St.).

NIGHTLIFE & ENTERTAINMENT
You won’t be strapped for choice in Australia’s prime hedonistic playground. For low-key entertainment, we recommend touring the city’s beer haunts, swank cocktail lounges and beachside bars, while nightlife hawks can party till the wee hours at the city’s many happening clubs. High-profile entertainment options abound, too, from first-class theater and classical music to opera and ballet. To help you pick and choose, we’ve listed our favorite venues below.

Pubs, bars & clubs
Sydneysiders have a reputation for liking their beer, so a crawl around a couple of the city’s historic pubs is an absolute must. Most of these drinking holes can be found in The Rocks, our picks being the Australian Hotel (100 Cumberland St.) with weather-beaten interiors and a wide choice of local and imported beers; Hero of Waterloo (81 Lower Fort Street; +61 (2) 9252 4553), a well-worn 1843 sandstone pub with live music on some nights and plenty of ambience; and Mercantile Hotel (25 George Street; +61 (2) 9247 3570), the city’s most popular Irish pub, with beautiful tile-work and arguably the best draught Guinness in the Southern Hemisphere. Many of the pubs offered accommodation at some point in the past, and some still do; hence the locals still refer to these drinking holes as ‘hotels’. Note that most pubs stop serving by 11pm (midnight at the latest), and even earlier – by 10pm – on Sundays.

But there’s more to Sydney than beer and pubs. If you want to sample exotic cocktails conjured up by a professional mixologist, head to Longrain, in Surry Hills (85 Commonwealth Street; +61 (2) 9280 2888), a chic converted warehouse with Thai-fusion cuisine and an excellent signature cocktail – the Bloody Longrain; or try The Victoria Room in Darlinghurst (235 Victoria Street; +61 (2) 9357 4488), a dark colonial-style lounge with modern Aussie cuisine and fabulous drink concoctions. Our favorite oceanside bars include the snazzy Bondi Icebergs Club in Bondi (1 Notts Ave; +61 (2) 9130 3120) where hipsters imbibe while admiring marvelous ocean views; and the stylish Cushion Bar, in Coogee (242 Arden St; +61 (2) 9315 9130) dishing out tasty tapas and cocktails.

For night howls in search of some afterhours action, the place to check out is CBD’s ArtHouse Hotel (275 Pitt St.), an 1836 School of Arts Building with four ultra-trendy bars, regular exhibits, a top-rated modern Aussie restaurant and a Saturday club night with the dance floor rocking until 6am. Even more happening is Sydney’s star of a mega-club, the long-running Home (Cockle Bay Wharf), in Darling Harbor, with various bars and chill-out areas spread over three floors, and regular appearances by celebrity DJs. For detailed listings of all club events in Sydney, browse the 3D World Magazine online or pick up their free weekly magazine available all over town.

Performing arts
High-brow entertainment options aren’t lacking either. You can catch one of the classical music concerts, operas or ballets at the Opera House (see above for information); a play by the Bell Shakespeare Company; or a performance by the leading Sydney Theatre Company in their new state-of-the-art theater on Walsh Bay. To get up-to-date schedules of all events, check the Saturday Entertainment section of the Sydney Morning Herald. Tickets for most events can be purchased at Ticketek, or, half-price on the day of the show at Halftix (91 York St.; +61 (2) 9261 2990).

DAY TRIPS
Sydney could take weeks to explore, but if time allows, we strongly urge you to get out of town for a taste of Australian wilderness. We’ve highlighted two of our favorite destinations in the vicinity, the spectacular Blue Mountains and vineyard-rich Hunter Valley, both easily accessible by car or organized excursion from Sydney.

If you have time for only one day trip, make it the majestic Blue Mountains. This UNESCO-protected World Heritage Site, with its dreamy landscapes of eucalyptus forests, untouched bush, rare flora and fauna, picturesque villages, dramatic cliff drives, and limestone caves, lies just a two-hour car or train ride to the west of Sydney. While it’s possible to take in the main beauty spots by public transport (regular trains run from Sydney to the main town of Katoomba), we highly recommend renting a car or joining a guided day tour from Sydney. Of the many providers, our favorites include: Oz Trek Adventure Tours, with a range of trips, from bushwalking ($54) to overnight horse-riding packages ($209) and cave tours ($179); and Activity Tours, offering a day trip ($74) that includes a tour of the Blue Mountains’ highlights and a cruise back to Sydney Harbor along the Parramatta River. If you’re exploring the area independently, make sure to visit the Blue Mountains Information Centre (daily 9am–5pm; Echo Point Rd.).

Wine lovers should visit Hunter Valley, a picturesque wine region that’s home to over 100 wineries, just a two hours north of Sydney. Public transport involves too many transfers to make this a feasible independent trip, so we recommend joining an organized outing from Sydney – with the added advantage of having a driver. The top-rated agencies include Aussie Wine Tours (daily half-day tours, with a visit to 3–4 wineries; $45 on weekdays, $50 on weekends) and the more upscale Wine Country Tours (day trip for $150, with gourmet lunch, vintage wine tastings and other treats).