Facts at a Glance
History
When to Go
Orientation
Attractions
Off the Beaten Track
Activities
Events
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Recommended Reading
Lonely Planet Guides
Travellers' Reports on Australia
On-line Info
Population: 3.7 million
Country: Australia
Time Zone: GMT/UTC plus 10 hours
Telephone Area Code: 02
Although mystery surrounds many aspects of Australian prehistory, it seems certain that the first humans came here across the sea from South-East Asia around 50,000 years ago. Around what is now Sydney, there were approximately 3000 of these people, known as Aborigines, using three main languages. Aborigines were traditionally tribal people living in extended family groups and using the environment sustainably. It is believed that Aboriginal people were the first to make polished, edge-ground, stone tools, to cremate their dead and to engrave and paint representations of themselves and animals. Although their society was technologically simple, it was culturally sophisticated, using complex ceremonies which integrated religion, history, law, art and codes of behaviour.
The arrival of the British First Fleet in the 18th century put an end to all that. The Aboriginal people's egalitarian social structure hampered their attempts at resistance to the new settlers, and the British refused to recognise their legal rights to the land. Sydney's Aboriginal residents were either driven away by force, murdered by the settlers or killed by unfamiliar diseases. The fleet, which landed at Botany Bay in January 1788 on the recommendation of Captain Cook, who had visited in 1770, carried 759 convicts from Britain's overcrowded jails as well as an assortment of military personnel under the command of Captain Arthur Phillip. The settlers eventually established themselves at Sydney Cove, north of the bay, and this is where the city of Sydney grew up.
Over the next few years the second and third fleets showed up, despite the fact that the new settlement was on the brink of starvation for most of its first 15 years. In the last decade of the 18th century there was a huge influx of military settlers, the 'Rum Corps', into the settlement - rum became Sydney's main currency and the military, rather than the governors, ran the joint. In 1813 the Blue Mountains, which had previously hemmed in the town, were broached by explorers, and Sydney was linked with the western plains of NSW. When gold was discovered in Victoria and to Sydney's west in the 1850s, settlers poured out of the town in search of wealth and Sydney's importance diminished dramatically.
Australia's states federated on 1 January 1901 - New South Wales became a state of Australia, and Sydney became NSW's capital. Australia went to war in support of Britain in 1914, and the economy boomed until the late 20s, when the Great Depression hit - in 1931 around a third of Sydney's workforce was unemployed. But in 1932 wool prices rose, the city's building industry took off and Sydney once more became the most special city in Australia. The Harbour Bridge was also opened in 1932. There was quite a kerfuffle at the opening of the bridge, when a sword-wielding chappie by the name of de Groot stole the limelight from NSW premier Jack Lang by slashing the opening ribbon before the premier could give it the official chop.
Sydney suffered little during WW2, although several Japanese midget subs were captured in the harbour. After the war, European immigrants flooded into the city, and Sydney spread rapidly westwards, gaining a bunch of pizza places in the process. It also picked up one of its most famous landmarks - in 1957 architect Jørn Utzon won a competition to design the Sydney Opera House. In 1966, before the completion of the Opera House, Utzon resigned in frustration at compromises to his plan. Another architectural team took over, and the Opera House was opened in 1973.
During the Vietnam war, Sydney became a major R&R stopover for US GIs, and the city started tasting of Coke and burgers, while King's Cross developed a fine line in sleazy entertainment for the visiting lads (a speciality it maintains to this day). Throughout the 70s, NSW went against the national trend and voted Labor, and longstanding premier Neville Wran oversaw much of Sydney's building boom. The Bicentennial celebrations in 1988 and the massive Darling Harbour redevelopment projected boosted the city's morale, and today the economy is doing reasonably well, though unemployment remains high. After winning the bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games, Sydney is pouring huge quantities of money into prettying itself up - it looks increasingly likely that the Games may turn out to be a minor economic disaster for the city.
The best times to visit are the shoulder seasons of spring and autumn, especially around March-April or October-November. Sydney is blessed with a temperate climate and averages summer temperatures of around 25°C (77°F). It can get up to 40°C (104°F) on a hot day and high humidity can make it oppressive, but torrential downpours often break the heat between October and March. Winters are cool rather than cold. Beach lovers unperturbed by the hazards of lizard-skin and melanomas should come between December and February.
The centre of Sydney is on the south shore of the harbour, about 7km (4mi) inland from the harbour heads. The CBD has become a mini Manhattan of skyscrapers vying for dominance and harbour views, but its relentlessness is softened by shady Hyde Park and the Domain parkland to the east, Darling Harbour to the west and the main harbour to the north. The Sydney Harbour Bridge and the harbour tunnel link the city centre with the satellite CBD of North Sydney and the suburbs of the North Shore. The city's airport, Kingsford Smith (otherwise known as Mascot), is about 10km (6mi) south of the city centre. Central Station, Sydney's main train station, is in the south of the city centre, and the main bus terminal is just outside it.
The city has a population of 3.7 million and is growing fast. The inner city areas of Woolloomooloo, East Sydney, Darlinghurst, Surry Hills, Paddington, Newtown, Glebe and Balmain are an interesting mix of bohemian, gentrified, gay and traditional working class suburbs. There are three distinct socio-geographic areas outside the inner suburbs: the wealthy eastern suburbs stretching from Kings Cross to South Head; the middle class family-oriented North Shore; and the less wealthy and much disparaged western suburbs, stretching inland for over 50km (31mi) to the foothills of the Blue Mountains.
The harbour is the focal point of the city, and its beaches, coves, bays and waterside parks offer welcome release from the rigours of urban life. Criss-crossed by ferries and carpeted by yachts on weekends, it is both the city playground and a major port. The string of ocean beaches on the north and south shores offer dramatic cliff scenery, great waves and a close-up of Aussie beach culture at its best.
Kings Cross is the city's budget accommodation centre and has a well developed travellers' grapevine. The less stressful alternatives are Glebe, Bondi Beach and Manly. The international hotels are concentrated in the city and the Rocks. There are heaps of good restaurants in Darlinghurst, Kings Cross, Paddington and Glebe, and a few around Circular Quay. For cafés, try Oxford and Victoria Sts in Darlinghurst, Stanley St in East Sydney, King St in Newtown or Norton St in Leichhardt. Sydney's theatres are scattered around the edge of the CBD, the Opera House is on the edge of Circular Quay, the mainstream cinema complexes are on the ugly neon strip of George St. The best nightlife is centred on Oxford St and Kings Cross. Louts in the city centre on Friday and Saturday night can make it a less than enjoyable experience. The Rocks can be fun, but the area is overtly aimed at tourists. The city has a large and vocal gay community centred on Oxford St.
 Coogee Surf Life Saving Club - babewatch possie (17K)
Sydney Harbour
The harbour is the defining characteristic of the city. Its multiple sandstone headlands, dramatic cliffs,
rocky islands and stunning bays and beaches, make it one of the most beautiful stretches of water in the world. Officially called Port Jackson, the harbour stretches some 20km inland to join the mouth of the Parramatta River. The most scenic area is on the ocean side of the bridge. The Sydney Harbour National Park protects the scattered pockets of bushland around the harbour and offers good walking tracks. The best way to experience the harbour is to go sailing, but if you're lacking nautical skills there are plenty of ways to enjoy it. Try catching the Manly ferry, swimming at Nielsen Park, walking from Manly to Spit Bridge, having a drink at Watsons Bay, dining with a view at Rose Bay, Balmoral or Circular Quay, or cruising to the heads on the Bounty.
Sydney Harbour Bridge from the Rocks (18K)
The Rocks is the oldest, quaintest part of Sydney. Today it is unrecognisable from the squalid,
overcrowded and plague-ridden place it used to be. Reinvented by visionaries in the building
industry and the trade union movement in the 1970s, the Rocks is now a sanitised, historical tourist precinct, full of cobbled streets, colonial buildings and stuffed Koala bears. If you ignore the kitsch, a stroll around the Rocks can be delightful. Attractions include the weekend market, the Earth Exchange geological and mining museum, and numerous craft shops and art galleries. But it's the old buildings, alleyways and historic facades that attract most visitors. Try exploring the less developed areas in the contiguous suburb of Millers Point, which has not sacrificed its community life to the tourist dollar. Check out the Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel and The Hero of Waterloo, two of Sydney's oldest pubs.
Warehouses, The Rocks (23K)
Circular Quay is built around Sydney Cove and is considered by many to be the focal point of the city. The first European settlement in Australia grew around the Tank Stream which now runs underground into the harbour here. For many years this was the shipping centre of Sydney, but it's now both a commuting hub and a recreational space, combining ferry quays, a railway station and the Overseas Passenger Terminal with harbour walkways, restaurants, buskers, parks, the Museum of Contemporary Art and, of course, the Sydney Opera House.
Sydney's skyline from Circular Quay (17K)
Contemporary ...um...wall, Museum of Contemporary Art
(17K)
Australia's most recognisable icon is dramatically situated on the eastern headland of Circular Quay. It's famous sail-like, shell-like roofs were inspired by palm fronds, according to architect Jørn Utzon, but may remind you of turtles engaging in sexual congress. The Opera House is so unique that it has been photographed a zillion times, appears on an army of cheap t-shirts, every other Sydney postcard and decorates the frames of Dame Edna's dramatic glasses. It was built between 1959 and 1973, but plagued with construction delays and political difficulties which culminated in the resignation of Utzon in 1966. Although some visitors are disappointed by the interior, designed by a consortium of Australians after Utzon quit, it's a truly memorable place to see a performance or to sit at one of its outdoor cafes with a bottle of white wine and watch harbour life go by. The Opera House hosts theatre, classical music, ballet and film, as well as the seasonal opera performances. There is free music on the prow of the Opera House on weekends and a craft market on the forecourt on Sunday.
Sydney's greatest concentration of early public buildings grace Macquarie St, many of them commissioned by Governor Macquarie and designed by the convict architect Francis Greenway. The most impressive are the elegant, two-storey, verandahed Parliament House, Sydney Hospital, the Mint Building, the exquisite Hyde Park Barracks, St James Church and the voluminous State Library. The Barracks and the Mint are now museums, the library hosts exhibitions and there are tours of both the hospital and Parliament House. Macquarie St is the eastern boundary of the CBD and borders the Domain and the Royal Botanic Gardens. It
runs from Hyde Park to Circular Quay.
The Domain is a large grassy area east of Macquarie St which was set aside by Governor Phillip for public recreation. Today it is used by city workers for lunchtime sports and as a place to escape the bustle of the city. On Sunday afternoons, it's the gathering place for impassioned soapbox speakers, who do their best to entertain or enrage their listeners. It is also the venue for free events held during the festival of Sydney in January and the popular Carols by Candlelight at Christmas. The Art Gallery of NSW is in the north eastern corner of the Domain. It has excellent permanent exhibitions of Australian, European, Japanese and tribal art, and has some inspired temporary exhibits.
The Royal Botanic Gardens encompass Farm Cove, the first bay east of Circular Quay, and include the site of the colony's first vegetable patch. They contain a magnificent collection of South Pacific plant life, tropical displays in the Arc and Pyramid glasshouses, and a beautiful, old-fashioned formal rose garden. The spectacularly located gardens are a favoured spot for family picnics and wedding photographs.
This huge waterfront tourist and leisure park comprises walkways, gardens, museums, an aquarium,
convention centre, casino, eateries and shops. It was once a thriving dockland area, but it declined to the level of an urban eyesore before being reinvented as Darling Harbour in the 1980s by a combination of vision, planning, politicking, forbearance and huge amounts of cash. The emphasis is on casual fun and enjoyment of the kind appreciated by families with small children and coach tourists. The highlights are the Sydney Aquarium, the Australian National Maritime Museum, the water sculpture, the Chinese Garden, the massive IMAX cinema, and the nearby Powerhouse Museum, Sydney's most spectacular museum.
Bondi Beach is the grand dame of Sydney's beaches with a magnificent sweep of sand and a never-ending series of majestic rollers crashing into the shallow. The suburb of Bondi Beach is an eclectic mix of ice cream parlours, designer cafes, greasy fish & chips joints, kosher shops and surf fashion stores. The seafront promenade and pavilion have been given a welcome facelift; car parking and fixing the offshore sewage outlets remain the only problems.
Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park covers 150 sq km of sandstone bushland at the mouth of the
Hawkesbury River, 24km north of Sydney. The park has over 100km of shoreline, plenty of forest and
wildlife, a number of walking tracks and some magnificent Aboriginal rock art. Elevated parts of the park offer superb views across Pittwater towards the northernmost suburbs of Sydney.
The Royal National Park, 35km south of city, is the oldest gazetted national park in the world. The sea of low scrub which covered the sandstone plateau in the north of the park was devastated by the 1994 bushfires, but the forested river valleys and the beaches were unscathed. The park is dissected by the Hacking River and there are riverside picnic and boat hiring facilities at Audley. There's a spectacular 26km coastal track stretching the length of the park, which is accessible from Bundeena. It passes the lovely lagoon beach at Wattamolla, and the popular surfing spot at Garie Beach. The best views are from the southern boundary of the park overlooking Bulli from the edge of the Illawarra escarpment.
The harbour offers sailing, canoeing, and windsurfing opportunities. Spit
Bridge and Balmoral are the best places to hire equipment. Good surf beaches include Bondi and Tamarama on the south shore and Narrabeen, North Avalon and Palm Beach on the north shore. Manly is the centre of Sydney's diving scene. The harbour beaches at Camp Cove, Neilsen Park, Balmoral and Chinaman's Beach offer picturesque swimming, but no waves. If you want to go bodysurfing, head for Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte on the south shore, and just about any of the beaches lining the 30km stretch of coast from Manly to Palm Beach on the north shore.
There are plenty of coastal bushwalks in the Royal National, Ku-Ring-Gai Chase and Sydney
Harbour national parks. The 10km Manly Scenic Walkway follows the harbour from the north shore
beachside suburb to Spit Bridge on Middle Harbour. Another spectacular but much shorter walk is along the cliffs from Bronte to Bondi Beach. You can hire horses to ride in Centennial Park, the large park between Paddington and Bondi. The park vies with Bondi and Manly promenades as the favourite jogging and rollerblading spot.
The huge Festival of Sydney takes up most of January. It's the umbrella for a number of events from open air concerts in the Domain, to street theatre and fireworks. The Great Ferry Boat Race and the more serious Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race are also in January. The outlandish Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is in February/March and should not be missed. The more traditional 12-day Royal Easter Show brings the country to the city. The Sydney Film Festival takes place in June, and the 14km City to Surf Run in August. The Rugby League Grand Final is in September and the Manly Jazz Festival is held in October. The city's Christmas orphans traditionally gather on Bondi Beach on Christmas Day, drinking up a storm and keeping the life-savers and police busier than they would like to be on a public holiday. After a short nap, they do it all over again on New Year's Eve. Those scared of the water usually do their end-of-the-year hellraising in The Rocks or Kings Cross.
Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras (21K)
Most visitors to Sydney arrive at Kingsford Smith airport. Airfares to Australia are expensive - it's a long way from anywhere and flights are often heavily booked. On the upside, you can get to Australia from just about anywhere. Both of Australia's domestic airlines offer discount flight passes which can be used once you're in the country - if you've only got a short time here, it's worth flying, because Australia's a mighty big place.
All the major bus lines run services into and out of Sydney. Most lines offer discounts for students, and Greyhound has a good bus pass deal. There are also a number of specialised bus tours running out of Sydney. Interstate and regional trains run from Central Station, and will take you to all the other state capitals, as well as cities and towns throughout NSW. Major roads from Sydney go north to Newcastle, west to the Blue Mountains, south to Melbourne and Canberra and down the south coast to Wollongong.
A special bus, the Airport Express, runs regularly from the airport to various stops in the city, Kings Cross and Bondi. Ordinary buses also go by the airport, but they're less frequent. The airport runs a more expensive limousine bus service, which will take you right to your hotel or hostel, and pick you up from the same on your way out. A taxi from the airport to Circular Quay will cost about US$15; to Central Station it will be about US$10.
Sydney has a good train network, including an underground city centre loop. It's the fastest way of getting around but not exactly the most scenic. There are some gaps in the train network, notably the coast on the south shore and all of the north shore east of the Harbour Bridge. The bus network is extensive, but can be slow. There are plenty of fare deals and several hop-on, hop-off buses specifically designed for visitors who hate walking or for those who have no sense of direction. The most pleasant way to get around is by ferry. A trip on the Manly Ferry is the best way to experience the harbour if you can't charm someone into taking you sailing. The Monorail is an elevated toy train that shuttles uselessly between the city and Darling Harbour. Sydneysiders either love its sub-Bladerunner futurism or thinks it's a godawful eyesore, depending on their aesthetic bent. Taxis are plentiful and car and bike hire are widely available.
- Jan Morris' Sydney is a travel literature classic centred on the Emerald City.
- Sydney 1842-1992 by Shirley Fitzgerald is a good history grounder. If convicts are your particular bent, try Robert Hughes' mighty tome, The Fatal Shore. For a look at things from the Aboriginal perspective, The Other Side of the Frontier by Henry Reynolds is a disturbing read.
- Sydney from Below by Finbar McCarthy takes a warm, hopeful look at the plight of the city's homeless.
- If you're heading out for a stroll, take Burnum Burnum's Wildthings Around Sydney by Geoff Sainty, which is packed with colour photos and descriptions of stuff in Sydney's bushland.
- The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper publishes two excellent guides to Sydney's eating scene: Cheap Eats lists hundreds of places where you can get two courses for under US$15, while the Good Food Guide reviews Sydney's fancier eateries.
 Travellers' Reports
 On-line Info
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Facts at a Glance
History
When to Go
Orientation
Attractions
Off the Beaten Track
Activities
Events
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Recommended Reading
Lonely Planet Guides
