Family of four visiting Sydney, arriving 7.30PM, leave 9.30PM the following day mid April - what are the must do's in that short time, also recommendation of hotel which would work best, ie near airport, or particular area in town? Just really looking for somewhere to sleep, not looking for 5* luxury.
Any info gratefully received.
Elle
Take a harbour cruise, you will see the bridge and Opera house from the boat. Have a walk round the rocks area . I'm not a big fan of Bondi Beach but Manly beach is worth a visit. I would stay in town maybe the Darling Harbour area, there are a couple of 3* IBis hotels nearby.
Thanks for the reply. Our girls are 23 and 17.
Your daughters may probably want to go to Bondi Beach as I found it much more of a young persons scene, it's easy to get to, you can take the bus though it may take up a bit too much of your limited time. Same can be said for the bridge climb which is also quite expensive. You could walk across the bridge and get some good views. I believe there is now a Hop on/Hop off bus in Sydney though I have no idea how good it is. Another option is to go up the Sydney Tower which will give you lots of beautiful views.
Thanks for your replies.
I'm not going to mention the fact that you really need more days in Sydney (drat, I just did!!!) because you probably are already aware but can't accommodate it. We had 5 nights, but could have spent two weeks alone in the city. There is so much to do. If you manage to get two full days I would probably include:-
Circular Quay (Harbour Bridge and Opera House)
Darling Harbour
Either Manly or Bondi Beach
The Rocks
Pretty much the same as Judith suggested. I would seriously consider the Harbour Bridge climb. Sure it's expensive, but if your budget can stretch to it, you won't regret it. It's was a major highlight of our RTW trip. Factor in a beach for sure (Manly was nicer, but Bondi is probably the world's most famous) and definitely get out on a ferry around the harbour day and night. There is only one thing more beautiful than Sydney in the daytime, Sydney by night.
As for a hotel recommendation, well we were originally booked into a hostel but agreed that in a city like Sydney it would be good to stay somewhere a bit nicer. We found a great deal at the Metro Hotel on Pitt Street, which is about 10mins walk from Darling Harbour and 20-25 to Circular Quay. There are plenty of options for transportation though, with a subway station just around the corner. I think we paid £50 per night. It's not overly luxurious (a good 3* in my opinion) but it might be worth a look.
http://www.metrohotels.com.au/sydneyhotels/pitt
If you would prefer to base yourself at the airport as you are only there for a few days the Ibis Sydney Airport was a good option. The train station (Mascot, I think) was only 5mins walk away and it was a straight 25min journey to Circular Quay. They also offer a shuttle service to and from the airport.
http://www.accorhotels.com.au/Ibis-SydneyAirport/default_en.aspx
I wouldn't normally recommend an airport hotel but as a base for 2 days it might suit you especially with the train station being so close. I would still personally stay in the city though.
Best of luck. Sydney is a fantastic city. What are the rest of your plans????
We are actually flying from Glasgow to New Zealand to our sons wedding, and have a three night stopover in Dubai on the way. Think we have got that more or less sorted now, accommodation and what to do once there!
When I booked with Emirates I was told by the travel agent that we would be charged £100 per person for making any changes before departure, but subject to availability we should be able to change our flight days with no cost after departure. So here's hoping, I dont really know why we didnt book two nights in the first place. We arrive around 7.30pm so will have time to see Sydney by night and hopefully find a nice place to eat with good views.
I expect I will have lots of questions about hotels once I get round to checking them out. At least now I have an idea where to look. I did find a fab interactive map of Dubai but havent been able to find one on Sydney yet.
There are limitless options for hotels in Sydney so I don't think you will have a problem. We walked to Circular Quay down Pitt Street from the Metro Hotel and we passed loads of hotels. Some are obviously better than others. I would decide on a budget and then go on Expedia, put in your dates and see what comes up. You don't have to book with Expedia, but it is superb for checking a large number of properties in one go.
We have seen the Novotel Sydney Manly Pacific hotel, on the beach... is this a good base, or would we spend more time travelling back and forward to Darling Harbour, bridge, etc - what would the distances be, cant really gauge this? I think perhaps the fact we have short stay, possibly two nights now, that staying in the city area might be better? The girls really want to visit Manly whilst there.
There are countless hotel options in the city itself so I doubt you will have a problem.
I can't help with the UGG boots unfortunately.
Definitely the rocks area for views of the bridge and the opera house. If you want them both together in the one picture go to the botanical gardens next to the opera house. Beautiful view! Also Darling Harbour is gorge by night. It deffo the place to be to eat and drink. The best thing you could do in that amount of time is do the hop on hop off city bus tour. It takes 1 and a half hours to do the loop so you can get pics of all the main tourist attractions and decide where to get off and back on again as you see fit. As for the Ugg boots, they not that much cheaper in Australia do a google search for them and you'll be surprised!
Dinner at Harry's Cafe de Wheels, local institution...lovely pie and pea floaters.
Darling Harbour recommended for food if you're going to be dining late (A lot of places stop serving food quite early compared to UK) and the Fish Market for breakfast.
Enjoy! It's a great plafce.
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