Sydney Things to Do

Sydney is Australia’s most visited city, but how many of these are things you didn’t know about Sydney?

Beaches are a top attraction in Sydney. Locals know it, visitors know it, and many of the most well-known beaches can see dozens of thousands of people in a single day. If that sounds crowded, then you might be a person on the lookout for those hidden and secret beaches instead. Although we understand that sharing secret and hidden beaches means they will no longer be as such to the public, Sydney is blessed with mile after mile of coastline meaning hidden beaches are really a dime a dozen.

Ballets, musicals, comedy shows and concerts fill event calendars in Sydney, so the possibility of booking into a night out or two during your stay is extremely high. The most coveted destination for a show in Sydney would be at the world famous Sydney Opera House, right on the stunning Sydney Harbour, as it had been constructed inside to produce and carry the richest, warmest sound. Other popular show locations include the ANZ Stadium, the State Theatre, and the Allphones Arena.

Locals in Sydney know Oxford Street for two main reasons: partying and shopping. We’ve already written about partying on Oxford Street, so this post will cover the shopping aspect.

The Royal National Park lags in age behind only one other national park in the entire world: Yellowstone. This old park, lying 20 miles (32 km) to the south of Sydney city, was established in 1879 and it today bears the honor of being on the Australian National Heritage List.

Sydney attractions are both must-see sites and huge expenses, especially when tickets are purchased one by one. Luckily, some companies have bundled the entrance fees for several of the top attractions into one simple pass, ultimately allowing you to save a pretty penny along the way. Granted, buying an attraction pass and keeping the discount only applies when you use the card correctly, so passes do require a little bit of planning and forethought. Nothing like buying a 5 attraction pass and only making it to 3 on the list!

The stereotypical Australian sunshine and hot, hot weather appear through December, January and February, but you will be happy to know that the average high temperature across these months runs just around 80ºF.

Is there any better time to be a Sydneysider or visitor in Sydney than in the summer?

While foreigners, and locals, joke that Australia was founded by nothing more than a bunch of convicts, the truth of the matter remains that British officials chose the distant and remote land of Sydney to act as a penal colony in its earliest days. The first fleet of settlers to New South Wales came in 1788 with over 1,000 individuals – 778 of which were convicts, both male and female. Development was slow initially, but eventually roles were assigned to prisoners that focused on the proper building of the colony itself, such as brick makers and brick layers.

A real night out on the town in Sydney doesn’t exclude the biggest and the best: Oxford Street. During the day, this Sydney street near the Central Business District (CBD) is a relaxing and pleasant area lined with bars, shops and restaurants; but at night the nightclubs and small bars come alive in full force. Stretching for kilometers across Sydney from Hyde Park to Bondi Junction, Oxford Street has become a nightlife legend not only because of its sheer size and convenience, but also because of its LGBT friendly atmosphere.

Savvy travelers know to bypass busy summer in Sydney and head Down Under in the spring. And no, you Northern Hemisphere residents, that doesn’t mean March through May. Seasons happen in reverse in Australia, so spring in Sydney occurs primarily during the months of September through November.