The Top Things to Do in Sydney 2020

Located in the suburb of Vaucluse in eastern Sydney, Nielson Park is a popular attraction in the larger Sydney Harbour National Park. Its tree-lined shores are perfect for spending an afternoon soaking up sun and dipping toes into the surf or picnicking with friends. The netted swimming pool and food kiosk add to this beach’s appeal, but travelers should note that Nielson Park is popular among the family set, which means the sandy shores are rarely quiet and always filled with energetic kids.

The oldest building in Sydney, Parliament House is home to the political reigning body of New South Wales. Both the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council gather inside what once served as Sydney Hospital to make important decisions about the state’s operations. While ghosts are rumored to roam the building’s halls, visitors most often come to learn about its rich history and gain a better understanding of Sydney’s modern political operations.

Opened in 1826, Sydney’s State Library of New South Wales is the oldest library in Australia and a repository for a huge and diverse collection of books. The iconic building is also home to over 1 million photos, maps and manuscripts. Architecturally grand from the outside, inside is modern, bright and attractive, and the Mitchell Library looks straight out of a movie with its book-lined walls. The library also has five historic galleries in the Mitchell Wing which host both permanent and temporary free exhibitions — from collections of 18th-century Australian natural history illustrations to the diaries of Australian men and women writing in WWI. Next to Parliament House and the Royal Botanic Gardens on Macquarie Street, the State Library of New South Wales also has its own book club. And on a regular basis there are also talks on literary, historical, and contemporary issues. Film screenings and workshops are often held at the library too.

Camp Cove is a small golden beach popular with swimmers and families. As the turquoise bay is for the most part protected from surf and winds, it is often completely calm. Often less crowded than other nearby Sydney beaches, it is considered a bit of hidden gem by locals. Indigenous rock carvings made by Aboriginals of whales and fish can still be viewed on the rocks lining the beach. Officers of the First Fleet frequently visited Camp Cove as well. Just sitting on the beach allows for a great vantage point of the surrounding sea and Sydney skyline. Boats docked just off shore dot the coastline. Furthermore, the calm conditions provide an opportunity to easily view the natural wildlife. Fishing, kayaking, snorkeling, and scuba diving from the shore is common.

Double Bay is the meeting point of Sydney’s prominence–an exclusive shopping district with a European flair full of designer boutiques, jewelers, waterfront properties and world-class restaurants surrounded by Sydney Harbour itself. Here, you will find open parks, stately mansions, tree-lined boulevards and plenty of spots to relax. Within the beautiful surroundings of Guilfoyle Park, Double Bay also hosts Sydney’s most popular organic food market, which is open every Thursday. If you are in the mood for a little bit of glitzy dining, be sure to check out Bay Street with its plethora of fancy bars, including the ever famous Mrs. Sippy. Of course, you can’t leave Double Bay without spending a couple hours soaking in the sun at the idyllic Redleaf Beach and enjoying a swim in Redleaf Pool. Though people see Double Bay primarily as a shopping and café district, it is also home to the Double Bay Street Festival, which regularly draws well over 60,000 people.

Avalon Beach may have served as the backdrop for an episode of ‘Baywatch,’ but it’s the impressive waves, orange coral sands and 25-meter salt water rock pool that make this a hot spot among Sydney’s beach bums and surfers. Both longboarders and surfers share the gnarly waves, but there’s also plenty around here for land lovers as well. The Bangalley Headland Walk winds through a stretch of protected bushland known as the Careel Headland Reserve, and local rugby clubs host regular high-energy matches that are full of real Aussie spirit. There’s even a nearby nine-hole golf course for travelers looking to improve their line drive.

The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) is Sydney's primary venue for Cricket and Australia Rules Football. It also serves as the home stadium of the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Australian Football League’s Sydney Swans.The SCG originally opened in 1886 and holds just over 47,000 spectators. It is famous for the two historic stands that are still standing today: the members and the ladies stands. Beneath the ladies’ stands you’ll find the SCG Museum, which is dedicated to collecting, documenting, preserving and displaying the sporting and social activities that have occurred at the SCG since the mid-1800s. Tours of the SCG run Monday to Friday at 11am and 2pm, and Saturdays at 11am. The museum is closed all public holidays and major match days.

Vaucluse has always been a neighborhood for the wealthy. Wonderful yet outrageously expensive villas, lovingly restored from the colonial era, stand together and increase in cost as the beauty of the view and location increases too. To gain insight into the life of Sydney's former high society, visit the Vaucluse House, a villa surrounded by a landscaped garden and wooded grounds. It was built in 1803 in the Gothic Revival style, with small turrets and battlements that make it look more like a castle than a house. The Vaucluse House once belonged to ex-convict Sir Thomas Henry Browne Hayes, who got shipped off to Australia for abducting a banker’s daughter and built this estate. It also once served as the residence of writer, explorer and politician William Charles Wentworth, who is known as the first person to climb the Blue Mountains and who restored this former cottage to the mansion it is today.

The continental city of Sydney offers travelers options that go beyond the strictly Aussie. The Chinese Garden of Friendship, modeled after the private gardens of the Ming Dynasty, is just one of the multicultural experiences this jewel by the sea has to offer. Opened in 1988 and designed by Sydney’s sister city of Guangzhou, the garden is a nod to the Chinese culture and heritage that already exists in and around Darling Harbour. The lush gardens, tranquil ponds and scenic waterfalls pay homage to the friendship between Sydney and Guangzhou. Travelers can wander between ornamental pavilions and babbling brooks before settling lakeside to enjoy peaceful reflection. Hot tea and traditional dim sum are also served at the garden’s teahouse.

Those in search of stars can head to the shores of Palm Beach, a Sydney celebrity hot spot, or they can make their way to the Sydney Observatory, where astronomers and locals have been charting the skies of the southern hemisphere since 1858. Self-guided walking tours through the observatory explore astronomy, meteorology, timekeeping and archaeology, and visitors can also travel through the observatory’s rich past by checking out the impressive array of informative exhibits. The facility’s world-class planetarium is a popular spot to visit, but the opportunity to view the night sky through a telescope is a one-of-a-kind treat. The oldest working telescope in Australia opens up the skies for guests, who can catch a glimpse of double stars, the moon and even planets.

Life in Sydney isn’t all about the beach and surfing, but about culture as well. Located inside the walls of a majestic building from 1788, the former residence of Gov. Arthur Phillip, the Museum of Sydney informs visitors about the history of New South Wales’ capital in an entertaining way. The collection displays archaeological finds, utensils from the everyday life of the Aborigines and the first settlers, as well as documents and pictures about the development of Sydney to Australia’s largest city. Multimedia presentations and computer animations bring the history of the former penal colony to life, and although the museum mostly informs guests about the city’s history, it also takes a critical look at the clash of cultures that happened between the Aborigines and European immigrants.

The Australian ski resorts of Perisher and Thredbo are within Kosciusko National Park in the New South Wales Snowy Mountains. Both resorts offer world-class skiing facilities and accommodations, along with several hundred kilometers of groomed trails suitable for beginners, advanced skiers and cross country skiing adventures. Perisher is the largest ski resort in the southern hemisphere, amalgamating four villages and their surrounding ski fields. Accessible by road and Australia’s only underground rack railway, Skitube, the resort caters well to intermediate skiers but also has plenty of tracks suitable for beginners and advanced skiers. Thredbo has the longest ski runs in Australia, including the famous ‘Funnelweb,’ which is over 3km long, and some of the country’s steepest trails. Several terrain parks cater to everyone from beginners to the more advanced. The Australian snow season runs from mid June until early October.

This rocky 13-hectare island in the heart of Port Jackson is as rich in history as it is in sandstone. Once home to an explosives store and later a convict stockade, Goat Island has housed the Sydney Water Police and even served as a film set. What originally served as a destination for some of the nation’s biggest criminals (who were forced to labor in the massive quarries), is now part of Sydney Harbour National Park. Popular walking tours guide travelers around this much-storied island, with stops at the Queens powder magazine (where ammunition was once stored) and at the old convict quarry and sleeping quarters. Learn about life on Goat Island, the punishments endured by prisoners and their attempts to escape.

To say the James Craig has had a lengthy history would be a bit of an understatement. Its restoration process took 40 years, and before that it spent 40 years washed up on a Tasmanian beach. Despite that 80-year period, however, when the ship was incapacitated, the James Craig still spent 56 years of sailing out on the seas, rounding Cape Horn 23 times and serving her country in World War I when stationed up in New Guinea. Today, after all that hard work restoring the ship and saving it from the sand, she’s the Southern Hemisphere’s only 19th century tall ship that’s fully operational, regularly taking passengers for cruises out on Sydney Harbor and beyond. In total, the ship has 21 different sails and over 140 lines, and for an added fee you can scale the mast and experience swaying nearly 35 feet above the heaving decks. While enjoying a cruise on the James Craig, take in views of Sydney sights as you make your way out to the Heads, and feel the wind rushing through your hair.

Botany Bay is a central port of Sydney, significant both in historic and modern times. In 1770, it was the landing spot of Captain James Cook when he first stepped onto Australia after having explored New Zealand extensively. The bay was named for the botanical species found by a naturalist on board his ship. French explorers turned up in 1788, days after the First Fleet had arrived in Australia. The heritage-listed spot is now home to a monument marking the meeting of European and Aboriginal cultures here. Today Botany Bay serves as the site of both Sydney’s major cargo port, Port Botany, as well as two runways of the Sydney airport. To the north and south, Botany Bay National Park sits on La Perouse and Kurnell headlands. This area offers hiking, scuba diving, snorkeling, walking tracks, picnic areas, and scenic lookouts out over the bay.

A pedestrian area of downtown Sydney, the Pitt Street Mall offers some of the most exciting shopping in the city. In the area of just one block lies several flagship stores and more than 500 retail spaces, housed in some of the most expensive commercial real estate in Australia. Specialty stores to suit all tastes can be found in the seven shopping centers, including The Strand Arcade, Westfield Sydney, Myer, and David Jones. Many of the centers were refurbished as recently as 2011. Shops vary from couture and classic fashion, to budget chain stores, electronics, and the latest in athletic wear. A visit here will certainly include some of the best shopping in Sydney, along with the bustling activity of this urban center. A footbridge runs across the mall, providing ample opportunities to take in the sights of people passing by. Restaurants and cafes provide replenishment from all the action.

Allianz Stadium, previously known as the Sydney Football Stadium, is situated right next to the Sydney Cricket Ground and hosts Rugby League, Rugby Union and football (soccer) matches, as well as some of Australia’s biggest concerts. The stadium, which is Sydney’s premiere rectangular field venue, first opened in 1988 and has a capacity of 45,500. The Sydney Roosters, NSW Waratahs and Sydney FC are the stadium’s major tenants, but the Wallabies and the Socceroos also occasionally play here. Events held at the Sydney Football Stadium include the National Rugby League (NRL) semi-finals and one preliminary final, as well as all New South Wales Rugby League and Australian Rugby League Grand Finals. Other big events include the Football World Cup Qualifiers and the NRL Grand Finals, as well as International Rugby Union fixtures.

Hungry travelers looking to experience Sydney’s impressive shorefront need look no further than Cockle Bay Wharf. This culinary destination offers visitors easy access to plenty of restaurants with a wide-range of options, from fresh seafood and Italian fare to traditional Australian cuisine. And while there’s plenty to sink your teeth into during the mealtime hours, it’s the late-night scene that draws spirited travelers to the shores of this famous bay. Nightclubs, cocktail bars and speakeasies offer visitors the chance to dance the night away while sipping strong drinks and listening to contemporary tunes in one of Sydney’s most iconic destinations.

Extending out of Sydney Harbour’s north shore, Bradleys Head overlooks many of the sights of Sydney, and visitors flock here for views of the Sydney Opera House, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and Fort Denison. Many will come and linger with a picnic or a fishing spot, or take off on one of the many hiking trails. The popular Bradleys Head to Chowder Bay walk grants even better views of the bay, with the option to continue a longer walk onto the Split Bridge track., The mast of the HMAS Sydney, a ship of the Royal Australian Navy that fought naval battles in World War I, is mounted on the headland as a memorial. Cannons left over from past defenses still stand, and the Athol Hall that once served soldiers their meals now operates as a modern cafe. Bradleys Head is part of the Sydney Harbour National Park, and offers a new perspective of the city.

Crowned by the country’s highest mountain, Mt Kosciuszko, for which the park is named, Mount Kosciuszko National Park spans nearly 2,700 square miles (6,900 square km) in the southeastern corner of New South Wales, 220 miles (354 km) southwest of Sydney. The park contains Australia's most extensive alpine region, characterized by its Snow Gum forests, glacial lakes, meadows and rivers. This incredible natural beauty is a major draw for bushwalkers, kayakers and mountain-bike enthusiasts from around the region. Camping, fishing, rafting, caving and kayaking are also popular activities during the warmer months, while in winter it's all about the snow — a great time to visit the ski resorts of Thredbo, Selwyn snowfields, Perisher and Charlotte Pass.