SYDNEY

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INTRO
THINGS TO DO
TOP FESTIVALS
TOP MUSEUMS
FOOD & DRINKS

INTRODUCTION TO SYDNEY

Sydney, the postcard of the Australian dream. Boasting a majestic harbour, irresistible beaches and the very apex of Australian trendy style, Sydney should be high up on the list of destinations for your Australian odyssey. From sky-high buildings and lush parks (making the city more of an actual jungle than a concrete one), to world-renowned beach-bronzing spots and unparalleled nightlife, Sydney tours are eternally cool and endlessly fun.

With so much to do, see and of course taste, you’ll want to jump right in with the sightseeing - and the possibilities are endless. You could spend your days getting an alternative view of the harbour on a ferry, grab a flat white in Surry Hills or maybe even refuel with a classic Sydney brunch at Bills in Darlinghurst. Craving a little more physical action? We like the way you think. Get your surf on and hit the waves at Bondi Beach, hike across Jamison Valley or even get to grips with the great Aussie outdoors with a day trip to the glorious Blue Mountains. All that exploring will likely work up an appetite, which gives you an excuse (not that you need one) to go big on a traditional Australian BBQ dinner, prepared lovingly with your own two hands. Mmmm.

Sydney is a city that doesn’t do things by halves; it’s exciting, brash and distinctly bold - part of the reason why many of Australia’s creative types flock here for a slice of its glory. It’s no secret that Sydney knows how to put on a show, and it’s gained worldwide status for its commitment to ensuring its good vibes all the way, no matter the occasion. A new year’s eve in Sydney will have you live your best life on a boozy harbour cruise, complete with drinks and canapes as you sing your collective ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ at the surrounding fireworks. Venturing to Sydney in September will see you catch the much hyped Sydney Fringe Festival, which showcases some of the city’s best performers. No matter what time of year, you’ll always find mind-blowing entertainment on your Sydney tour package.

FAST FACTS

Language: English
Currency: Australian Dollar
Electricity: 230V
Visas: Click here to see if you need a visa to enter Australia.
Dialling Code: +61
Time Zone: GMT +10:00

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Take a day trip to the stunning Blue Mountains

If you’re an outdoorsy type (or just a sucker for dramatic scenery) a trip to the breathtaking Blue Mountains will give your camera the natural beauty its been craving. This unbelievable landscape encompasses steep cliffs, rugged forest and dazzling views over deep valleys. As the sun rises and sets over the mountains, the valley is basked in a golden glow that will have you pinching yourself to make sure you’re not dreaming. A stark contrast from skyscrapers and busy streets of Sydney, but a visit that will afford you both outrageous scenery and moments of quiet reflection.
Hike along the ridge overlooking Jamison Valley

Planted amid the breathtaking beauty of the Blue Mountains is the stunning landscape of the sprawling Jamison Valley. Covered in bush and brimming with wildlife, the Jamison Valley has been home to the Aboriginal Gundungurra people for 50,000 years. You might not be a fan of voluntary walking (we get it) but trust us - the beauty of Jamison Valley can only be truly appreciated on two feet. Get your hiking boots on, we’ll embark on the walk of a lifetime, giving you epic panoramas and an opportunity to soak up the valleys scenic beauty from above, because some views are simply worth hiking for.
Cook your own traditional Aussie BBQ dinner

Here in Oz, BBQing is a way of life. To get well and truly immersed in the Aussie way, you won’t just indulge in an Australian BBQ, oh no. You’ll be preparing one from scratch! Get your chef hat on, learning to BBQ is an important life-skill and the perfect souvenir to wow your friends back home. Slap on the sunscreen, don your thongs and sport your best sunnies, you’ll toss shrimp, vegetables and snags on the barbie, all washed down with an ice cold tinny. This delicious meat feast will be all the more enjoyable in the company of your new Contiki family.
Visit Darling Harbour, Mrs Macquarie’s Chair lookout and The Rocks

Part of Sydney’s charm boils down to its vibrant harbour, the perfect spot for a leisurely sunset cruise. With activities, museums and aquariums a-plenty, it’s unlikely you’ll run out of things to do - even if all you fancy doing is taking a stroll on the harbour with an ice cream under the warm Sydney sun, or getting close to nature in Darling Harbour’s Chinese garden of friendship. For the ideal quirky photo op with your travel besties, mosey over to Mrs Macquarie’s Chair lookout, a large rock formation shaped like a chair that gives you epic views of the harbour.
Cruise across Sydney Harbour on a ferry from Manly

You're probably familiar with the iconic Sydney harbour from its two main attractions: the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. Starting from the shelly, tree-fringed coastal delight of Manly beach, we’ll jump on a ferry bound for the vivacious energy that pours out of Sydney harbour, the gateway to this fabulous city. Giving us a chance to bob on the waves and see the city from a different perspective, we’ll disembark at the harbour ready for you to fill your camera memory with bucket-list snaps before diving right in to Sydney city life.
Take a sightseeing tour including one of the best beaches in the world – Bondi Beach
Okay, so you’ve arrived in Sydney. Time to get the low-down on the iconic sights, hidden gems and hottest hip hangouts in the city where the lines between land and sea are blurred. From your first encounter with the golden, celebrity-clad sands of Bondi Beach, to your reaction when you learn that New South Wales was originally a convict colony, today will be a day of firsts. You’ll delve deep into the fascinating history behind the city’s most prolific structures, as well as learning more about the Gadigal aboriginal people who once called the land home. A wiser traveller is a better traveller.
Experience new year Sydney style with a harbour cruise complete with canapes, dinner and drinks
Is it any real wonder the party-goers flock from far and wide to ring in the new year in this unique city? Not to us. While the Northern Hemisphere wraps up warm and prepares themselves for a snowy end to the year, Sydney dials up the heat for a non-stop flurry of activity. We hope you’re geared up for a sleepless night as we’ll don our glad-rags and kick off the festivities with a cruise around the harbour, watching the night sky light up in technicolour with fireworks. Munching on canapés and making good use of our included champagne, this is how to guarantee you’ll have an amazing year.
Have a classic Sydney brunch at Bills in Darlinghurst
You may think you’ve brunched correctly, but let Sydney show you exactly how it’s done. Here in Oz, brunch isn’t simply a Saturday treat or hangover cure, it’s a ritual, and an integral part of the Aussie life. To kick off the day we’ll make our way over to the trendy area of Darlinghurst, one of the city’s best brunch spots. Far surpassing the classic flat white and avo-toast combo, Bills restaurant will fill us ricotta pancakes, buckwheat bowls and spiced bloody mary’s (what is a brunch without alcohol?) ensuring we’re nice and fed, fuelled for a day jam-packed with exploring.
Hit up the surf at Bondi or Manly
Surf’s up! Australia is the world’s surf capital and lucky for you, Sydney is home to two of the nation’s best surf beaches. No matter whether you’re a novice who’s happy to watch from the sidelines or an expert itching to get stuck in, both Bondi and Manly will give you epic waves and a community of super-chill surfers. On Bondi, the lively atmosphere will get you egged on to brave the sizeable waves, with a host of cafe’s to refuel between sessions. Manly will provide a more relaxed backdrop to your beach bum odyssey, but still a gorgeous place to be.
Hang out in the city’s trendy areas like New Town or Surry Hills
Hip and trendy are two words that go hand in hand when it comes to Sydney's neighbourhoods. For a taste of the real Sydney, we’ll enjoy a stint in the suburb of Newtown. Diverse, bohemian and multicultural, Newtown is characterised by its awesome street-eats, thriving music and theatre scene and a flurry of vintage stores. After visiting a craft brewery and copping a few hipster-esque printed shirts, off we pop to the infinitely chic streets of Surry Hills, where we’ll wander past warehouses and dip into modern art galleries - all with a flat white in hand, of course.

Things To Do in Sydney

Taste of Sydney
The ultimate foodie’s playground, the Taste of Sydney Festival is the gateway to Sydney’s culinary scene. Pop-ups, small plates, market stalls and feasts; if it’s edible, you’ll find it here. Top tip: bring multiple bags and a notebook - some food combinations are so genius you’ll need to write them down.
Days Like This
Only few years old, Days Like This is boutique festival showcasing a flurry of carefully curated electronic artists in Victoria Park. Premium food stalls and a set number of tickets means this festival favours quality over quantity. If you fancy a little exclusivity, this is the festival for you.
Electric Gardens
Techno heads, unite! We may be pretty far from Berlin, but that doesn’t mean you won’t find a good tech-fest out here. Exhibit A: Electric Gardens, Australia’s biggest techno festival. Don your glitter, pick out your glad-rags and get pumped for the best house and techno Australia has to offer.
St Jerome's Laneway Festival
For the freshest sounds, the sweetest electronic beats and a musical reflection of millennial culture in its current state, head to St Jerome’s Laneway Festival. The festival encourages emotional expression, and who doesn’t love that? Keeping it current at all times, known to grace its stage are the likes of Anderson Paak, Wolf Alice and Loyle Carner.
Sydney Fringe Festival
Sitting at the forefront of Sydney’s creative scene, the much-anticipated Sydney Fringe Festival is the largest alternative visual and performing arts event in NSW. Pretty impressive, but more importantly the festival is heaps of fun and will expose you to new talent, getting you laughing, thinking and expanding your mind in equal measures.

Top 5 Festivals in Sydney

Sydney has plenty of festivals throughout the year, most of which go down during the sunny summer months. Here's our rundown of the city's top 5.

The Australian Museum
Want to discover more about Australia’s aboriginal culture, natural history and monumental achievements? Head to the Australian Museum, which captures the macrocosm of Aussie culture and the history of the surrounding regions. With everything from cultural performances to Australian photography, you’ll find it all here. Did we mention the kick-ass cafe at the end?
Museum of Sydney

This is the centre of culture in New South Wales; the place to come if you want to know more about Sydney, but don’t know where to start. Here, you can see the permanent display of the ‘first fleet ships’ and learn more about the colonies that make up New South Wales as we know it today.
Nicholson Museum
This is the oldest university museum in Australia and hosts the largest collection of antiquities in the Southern Hemisphere. Today, the museum has over 30,000 artefacts and archaeological things. And the best part? Admission is free, so you can wise up on Australia’s history without breaking (or even touching) the bank.
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia

If you’ve ever fancied yourself as a bit of an art buff (and let’s face it, who hasn’t) this is your chance to brush up on your analytical skills as you peruse the halls and comment on the artistry. With an impressive collection of international art, this is the epitome of Australia’s thriving art scene.
Sydney Observatory

Have you ever been intrigued by astronomy, but never really knew how to satisfy your curiosity? Sydney Observatory will make you fall in love with the world beyond our own. Marvel at the solar system and immerse yourself in the universe at the planetarium, the closest you’ll get to visiting the stars with your feet firmly on the ground.

Top 5 Museums in Sydney

Australia is so vast, so complex and so all-encompassing that it can be difficult to wrap your head around. Simply take your pick from this array of fun and informative museums, and you’ll leave as a certified expert on Australian culture. From aboriginal artefacts to installations from emerging artists, hot off the press, these museums have it all.

Portuguese tart
Sydney’s European communities have brought with them the intricate technique that comes along with European sweet treats, namely the internationally adored Portuguese tart. It’s the traditionally Portuguese ‘Sweet Belem’ cafe that distributes these delicious tarts to the people of Sydney. Be warned, queues can go out of the shop, the tarts are THAT good…

_{Best eaten at}
_{Sweet Belem, 35B New Canterbury Rd, Petersham}
The Mary’s Burger
Australians know their burgers, and Mary’s is the best place to get them. You’ll munch on your impossibly tender Mary’s’ beef burger surrounded by rustic Rock ’n Rock memorabilia, with a swill of some local craft beer the cherry on top. Just be wary, you’ll probably end up waddling out of there…

_{Best eaten at}
_{Mary’s, 6 Mary St, Newtown}
Chicken and chips
An apt example of classic Australian Food, this classic combo can do no wrong, especially if it’s enjoyed at Frango’s in Petersham. Think wood-fire grilled chicken, locally famed fries and a wide range of delicious (and gluten-free) sauces. Yep, this is pretty far from the oven-meal you had in your head…

_{Best eaten at}
_{Frango, 89 New Canterbury Rd, Petersham}
Date Tart
This Australian countryside classic is a national dessert favourite, comprised of sumptuously sweet dates in a buttery pie exterior and traditionally served with cream. No better backdrop to your first date tart experience than the sleek interiors of Rockpool, an ornate art-deco style bar & grill in the heart of the city.

_{Best eaten at}
_{Rockpool, 11 Bridge St}
Pork Banh Mi
Channelling the city’s Asian heritage, bahn mi’s are a Vietnamese speciality where crusty french bread is filled with succulent pork, fresh carrot and cucumber, fish sauce and coriander. These delightful sandwiches can be found at Marrickville Pork Roll, a popular over the counter nook in the trendy district of Marrickville.

_{Best eaten at}
_{Marrickville Pork Roll, 236A Illawarra Rd, Marrickville}

Food in Sydney

You could spend a lifetime in Sydney and never run out of new things to try. Sydney is constantly innovating, bringing us new food combos we could never have imagined would work (but now we’re hooked). A true melange of flavours that will make you see colours, and aromas that will make you hear music, welcome to the foodie paradise of the South Pacific.

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