Sydney is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world – and I do agree with that. So in this post will tell you about Sydney! I loved Australia, and Sydney holidays were a memorable experience. You can also check out my Australian travel review. Now I wish to talk more about cities specific details and here I will be writing some of my general observations about Sydney. I will write Sydney Travel Review Part – 2 with more tourist attraction specific details.
Let’s begin!
Enjoy your walking in Sydney
I think you don’t need to plan a lot about travelling in the Australian cities. You can just take walks around, sit down if tired and relax, grab a cup of coffee, talk to the locals who are very friendly to help you. If you like walking, Sydney is indeed a great place for you to stroll around. The Opera House and Sydney Harbour can be explored by just walking as they are located adjacent to each other. Royal Botanic Garden Sydney is located just in front of the opera house.
City of Sydney travel map
You can definitely enjoy walking in Sydney; however, walking would be more fun if you have a travel map. You should plan a detailed map.
You may want to check my related post – Trip planner – create travel map using Google My Maps.
Public Transportation in Sydney and the Opal Card
Well, in order to use the Sydney public transportation and enjoy your Sydney holidays, you need to get the Opal smartcard first. It’s like a prepaid card and that can be used in all the public buses, ferries, light rails, and trains in Sydney. The card can also be used in nearby areas, such as Parramatta. You can get the card at any local train station, or convenience stores, post-offices, etc. (Check – where to buy an Opal Card). The card itself is free, but you need to top-up the Opal card before you can use it. Top-ups are only available in the in multiples of $10. The maximum amount deducted from your card in any day would be limited to AU $15. You will never pay more than AU $60 in a week. Do check the official opal card webpage for the updated fare rules.
The Sydney Central station
The Central station is a place where you get trains to the other parts of the city, or to elsewhere in Australia. It’s a huge station and often crowded, so make sure that you know your platform number correctly. The friendly station staff would love to help you if you need any assistance – just ask them.
There are eateries located around the station. The station itself is located in a beautiful colonial building. You can use the Opal card to ride a train from the Central station.
Sydney International Airport to Sydney city centre
As far as Sydney is concerned, the word city centre means the areas nearby “the Central station”. There are two easy ways to reach the Central station from the Sydney International Airport-
- By Metro train – you can use the Metro train from the Sydney International Airport directly to reach the Central Station. However, the total fare deducted from your Opal card would be around AU $16. This fare includes an Airport tax of $12. If you have a bit more time, you can save this airport tax by using the bus.
- By Bus, and then by metro train – You can take a bus from the airport to reach the Mascot station, and then take the metro train to the Central Station. The local bus number 400 from the Sydney airport will take you to the Mascot station, which is just one station away from the Sydney airport. The bus fare would be around $4. Take the 400 bus route towards Bondi Junction. The Central Station is just 2 stations away from the Mascot Station.
Buying a prepaid/post-paid Mobile SIM card at Sydney airport
You can easily buy a SIM card at the Sydney airport. When you come out of the arrival lounge, you will see quite a few shops (Optus and Vodafone) located adjacent to each other. I bought Vodafone a SIM card – 3GB, 4G Speed for AU $40. The data were valid for one month. It’s very easy to buy – just keep your passport ready.
Sydney weather
I loved the Sydney weather. The temperature was around 12’C in May- I didn’t even use the sweaters. A shirt was overall fine in the daylight. In fact, the weather in May is simply awesome for wonderful for Sydney holidays.
Colonial buildings
Sydney has a good mix of old colonial buildings and new skyscrapers. You will definitely see a lot of beautiful buildings spread across this beautiful city.
Eating out
As I wrote in the Australian review, eating out is quite expensive in Sydney as well. However, you can easily find a variety of food in Sydney as long as you are open to try food from different countries.
International Tourists
Sydney is full of nomads. In fact, there are lots of Koreans in Sydney. The area around the Opera House is crowded with tourists taking photos.
Attending theatres and shows
Sydney also gives you a good opportunity to attend live performances. For example, you can attend ballets at the Opera House, the prices varies between $90 to $130 (find – the Opera House Event List, and corresponding ticket prices). If you want to attend events for free, that’s also possible. You will see a few local groups doing street dance, with good music – and its free to stop by.
Museums
There are a good number of museums in the city. The entry fee varies, but expect to pay an entry fee approximately AU $20-25 per person.
What time is it Sydney?
Sydney time zone follows GMT+10 (Australian Eastern Time Zone). To find current Sydney time, you can follow this link.
Famous Tourist places for Sydney holidays
I will talk more about the tourist places in my next article. Here I will just name them for a quick reference.
- Royal Botanic Gardens
- The Sydney Opera House
- The Sydney Harbour Bridge
- The Rocks
- Town Hall
- Queen Victoria Building
- Darling Harbour
- Capitol Theatre
- Archibald Fountain
- Sydney Tower
- St Mary’s Cathedral
- Hyde Park Barracks Museum
- Supreme Court of New South Wales
- Parliament of New South Wales
Alright, that’s it for this post on Sydney holidays, and I will stop here. Do check my Sydney Travel Review – Part 2 as well.
You can also check out my posts about Australia, or the other countries, or the complete navigation list. You can also find more about me.
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Happy exploring Australia!
Last updated: Monday, October 30, 2017