We will be there for a week this summer. Supposed to be a great destination, but google isn't turning up much to do. No wineries for us (I assume that's a thing down there, but we don't drink). Thanks.

Bridgeclimb
rugby match
zoo, or kangaroo/koala habitat/sanctuary
blue mountains
opera house tour

If you're under 40, Manly Wharf bar on a Sunday arvo is the place to be.

For a great Friday night with some locals aged between 45-85, I recommend The Beach Club in Collaroy.

If you're a homosexual, I strongly recommend Darlinghurst.

If you like to gamble, Crown Casino in Pyrmont.

All ages can be tourists in Bondi but it is winter now. There are some good bars and restaurants in Bondi Junction.

If you're from the Middle East, check out Parramatta.
If you're Filipino, Blacktown is the go.
Vietnamese - Cabramatta
Chilean - Bossley Park
Russian - Strathfield
Croatian - Dalmatian Club in Terry Hills
Chinese - Chatswood
If you want to get your ass kicked by Tongans and Maoris - Dee Why main bus stop is the place to go. Ironically, right next to the Police Station (cop shop in Australian parlance).

If you want to hang out with hardcore alcoholics, catch the L90 bus late night from Wynyard.

Or, you might just stick to something safe like Taronga Zoo.

Part of my Sydney tour always includes a ferry ride from Circular Quay to Manly during daylight and then back to the CBD at night.

Chilean tourist area is not what I expected. Is that because a short flight over the s pole? Didn't think Chile was big enough to have a spot for their tourists.

HollywoodBQ said:

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If you're under 40, Manly Wharf bar on a Sunday arvo is the place to be.

For a great Friday night with some locals aged between 45-85, I recommend The Beach Club in Collaroy.

If you're a homosexual, I strongly recommend Darlinghurst.

If you like to gamble, Crown Casino in Pyrmont.

All ages can be tourists in Bondi but it is winter now. There are some good bars and restaurants in Bondi Junction.

If you're from the Middle East, check out Parramatta.
If you're Filipino, Blacktown is the go.
Vietnamese - Cabramatta
Chilean - Bossley Park
Russian - Strathfield
Croatian - Dalmatian Club in Terry Hills
Chinese - Chatswood
If you want to get your ass kicked by Tongans and Maoris - Dee Why main bus stop is the place to go. Ironically, right next to the Police Station (cop shop in Australian parlance).

If you want to hang out with hardcore alcoholics, catch the L90 bus late night from Wynyard.

Or, you might just stick to something safe like Taronga Zoo.

Part of my Sydney tour always includes a ferry ride from Circular Quay to Manly during daylight and then back to the CBD at night.

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Hollywood knows Sydney like the back of his hand.

Enjoyed meeting you in Manly. If you get down to Galveston for work, look me up.
I just bought a house and I'm never moving again. Even if I get laid off.

This video is a little dated at this point but still a good place to start. After the remodel, the Brooky Hotel isn't what it used to be though.

We climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge for a once in a lifetime experience.

ETA: the zoo was pretty spectacular too. We got a behind the scenes tour which got us up close to many animals.

A day out at Leura and Blue Mountains Park is well worth it.

I live in Sydney now and Hollywood was a big help!

I usually tell people the following:

• Taronga Zoo is worth it, absolutely incredible assortment of wildlife and the Sydney Opera House happens to be in the background, a view unlike any other
• I enjoyed the Sydney Opera House tour and recommend it to people who come and visit
• Surry Hills (near Central Station) is a fantastic foodie area with some world-class restaurants (Michelin doesn't rate restaurants in Sydney yet but Firedoor is at least 2-Star worthy, if not 3-Star)
• It's an easy train ride to the Blue Mountains and the Three Sisters area around Katoomba is beautiful
• I live in Manly and the Manly ferry is wonderful. Not the cheapest thing in the world but takes about 20 minutes and Manly has a very different vibe than Sydney's CBD. Agree with taking the ferry to Manly in the daytime and back to CBD at night. Get a cinnamon scroll from Rollers and a cookie from Butter Boy while you're in Manly!
• Bondi Beach is VERY touristy and full of backpackers. Manly Beach is touristy but more locals are there, a little more upscale, and is a much better beach in my opinion
• The eastern coast of Australia is known as the Humpback Highway, some absolutely fantastic whale-watching tours leave from various parts of Sydney. Somewhere around 40k humpbacks are currently on their way up to the Great Barrier Reef to give birth in warmer waters and fatten up their calfs before heading back to Antarctica in September/October to feed
• If you do not want to pay the exaggerated prices for the Bridge Climb, you can just walk across the ground level of the Harbour Bridge for free
• It's easy getting from the airport to your hotel, but see if you can get an early arrival at your hotel because your flight will likely land early in the morning

Circular Quay is kind of the Grand Central Station of Sydney and is pronounced like "Circular Key", just so you're aware.

Feel free to reach out when you're in town, I always love meeting Aggies when they pop through!

Thanks for the kind words.

I hope you're enjoying every minute of it as much as I did.

One clarifying distinction on the ferries between Manly and Circular Quay.

The regular ferry takes 30 minutes. The Fast Ferry takes 15 and costs twice as much. If you're a highly skilled binge drinker, it is possible to finish 2 X James Boags Premium Beers on the Fast Ferry.

Sometimes I do miss those days.

Ah mate you missed the news, the fast ferry is now part of the Opal network and costs the same as the public service! For the public ferries they're gradually moving away from the big freshwater class ferries for smaller ones that do the journey only a few minutes slower than the fast ferry.

I did miss that.
I used to enjoy that 30 minute ferry ride to get my laptop on the WiFi and get some work done

Of course these days with phones on 5G, probably nobody is breaking out their laptop anymore.

Serious question though, I wonder how the smaller ferries handle it when there are rough conditions between the heads.

The fast ferry guys just yeet right through it, like splashes going up and over the bridge while passengers come out of their seats. The faster public ferry is cautious but they do ok. The worst experience I've had going through the heads was on the big slow one actually.

Thanks guys. I'll see how many of these can work in a week.

HollywoodBQ said:

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If you're under 40, Manly Wharf bar on a Sunday arvo is the place to be.

For a great Friday night with some locals aged between 45-85, I recommend The Beach Club in Collaroy.

If you're a homosexual, I strongly recommend Darlinghurst.

If you like to gamble, Crown Casino in Pyrmont.

All ages can be tourists in Bondi but it is winter now. There are some good bars and restaurants in Bondi Junction.

If you're from the Middle East, check out Parramatta.
If you're Filipino, Blacktown is the go.
Vietnamese - Cabramatta
Chilean - Bossley Park
Russian - Strathfield
Croatian - Dalmatian Club in Terry Hills
Chinese - Chatswood
If you want to get your ass kicked by Tongans and Maoris - Dee Why main bus stop is the place to go. Ironically, right next to the Police Station (cop shop in Australian parlance).

If you want to hang out with hardcore alcoholics, catch the L90 bus late night from Wynyard.

Or, you might just stick to something safe like Taronga Zoo.

Part of my Sydney tour always includes a ferry ride from Circular Quay to Manly during daylight and then back to the CBD at night.

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This mostly covers it well. Circular Quay, Darling Harbor, Opera House in the city center. Otherwise Bondi Beach and Manly island are also must visits

If you want to see some seedy after dark entertainment, then Kings Cross is your destination