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Want to take a quick trip down to Sydney and don’t know what to visit? Here is a rough trip plan for you. Visit Sydney’s most popular sights, sandy beaches, great restaurants and you’ll still have time for shopping.
Day 1
Sydney Harbour
You can’t think about Sydney and not imagine waters of Sydney Harbour. There is no better way to spend a sunny day than on the water, surrounded by ferries, kayaks and luxury yachts. Catch an iconic Sydney ferry and experience famous landmarks like Opera House or Sydney Harbour Bridge. You can also visit some of the islands in the harbour that carry cultural and historical significance for Sydney residents. If you’re an animal lover, watch out for wildlife and especially whales on their migration from May to November. If you visit during the winter, check out the Vivid Sydney festival and if you want to celebrate New Year in Sydney, make sure not to miss world-known firework spectacle from the harbour.
Surry Hills
In the evening visit Surry Hills for a nice night out. Surry Hills are home to some of the Sydney’s most renowned restaurants, wine bars and food stores. Dine in one of the gourmet dining spots in Crown Street or see a show at Belvoir Street Theatre. Surry Hills are the centre of culture and art, so make sure to take a look at local art in interesting galleries, studios and theatres that create a unique and alluring atmosphere. For the coffee lovers there are many great coffee spots that serve some of the best cups of joe in Sydney. If shopping is more your thing, there are vintage stores and secondhand shops with a wide variety of peculiar and quirky goods at Surry Hills Markets. If you happen to be in Sydney in September, celebrate local foods, arts and music at Surry Hills Festival. Surry Hills are a great site to visit after a long day, so you can unwind, have a drink or two and soak up the original Sydney atmosphere.
Day 2
Northern beaches
One of the most popular destinations in Sydney are Northern Beaches. They are the pearl of Sydney’s coastline, and are especially interesting for surfers. If you can afford to spoil yourself I recommend staying at one of the luxurious Contemporary Hotels locations on Manly Beach such as Manly Seaside. Manly Beach is the best-known of the Northern Beaches and it has a vibrant beach culture and ambience. It’s close to the city and there are many charming ferries that can take you to Manly Wharf at any time of the day. Here you can soak up the Australian sun, enjoy good food and exotic cocktails, or rent a bike and explore the coast.
Day 3
Shopping
Sydney’s shopping variety will satisfy even the biggest shopaholics in the world. Sydney really has it all. If you want to spend some money at the end of the trip, there are stores with big designer brands like Armani, Chanel, Gucci, or Louis Vuitton or you can take a chance with one of the unique local designers. Queen Victoria Building in the city centre contains three stores filled with fashion boutiques, jewelry shops, and souvenir stores. You can also relax there and have some tea in The Tea Room. There is something for everyone in Sydney, and you will probably go home with bags full of things for yourself and your family and friends.
If you haven’t visited Sydney yet, make sure to put it on the top of your bucket list. There is just one more piece of advice: Remember to bring a good camera, because there will be plenty of amazing photos to take and memories to record.
*Guest Post*
Roxana is a travel enthusiast from Sydney and she loves to write about her adventures. She is all about the healthy lifestyle, loves to run with her husband and dogs and has fun cooking exotic meals for her family. Being a typical Aussie, she often hits the waves and loves beaches and sunshine! You can find her articles on HighStyleLife.
You may remember Roxana from her previous post about Australia’s Most Amazing Wonder of Nature, European Must See Islands, and How To Have The Best Food Experience Abroad (if not, go check it out!).
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If you would like to be a guest contributor to Mags On The Move, head over to the “Contact Me” page and drop me a line.
Wow! Sydney sounds like it has it all! 🙂 Australia is definitely on my travel bucket list, so hopefully I make it to Sydney soon as well.
Some awesome tips here. I should be heading over to Aussie some time later this year so will be sure to follow these tips.
I love the idea of wandering around the Surry Hills neighborhood going from one coffee shop to another. I could spend an entire itinerary doing that.
Visiting Australia is at the top of my travel wish list. I already knew that Melbourne has a great coffee scene, and it’s good to see that Sydney has good coffee too. I can’t wait to check it out in person!
Wow, three days doesn’t seem enough. Thanks for the scoop about Surry Hill. I love the feeling of getting to know neighborhoods in cities I visit.
When I visited Sydney 2 years ago, I really fell in love with the modern yet relaxed place. Thanks for rekindle my passion again!
Having been to Sydney a few times 3 days would be all you need. Sydney tends to get a bit thin after you move away from the harbour area. Great if you like beaches which tourists do but if you’re Australian like me a good beach is a dime a dozen as they would say.
This brings back such wonderful memories of Sydney. Went there with the family years ago for Christmas and New Years. Would love to return to Sydney one day
Have read many posts about Sydney but never got the chance to get there as it is difficult to travel with an Indian passport. Maybe one day I might get a chance to visit.
Sydney is our favourite city in Australia, such a beautiful city! Catching the ferry to the beautiful Manly is also our favourite thing to do. We are planning on checking out Vivid this June as this festival has been on our bucket list for a while now and we just haven’t gotten a chance to do it yet. Will need to spend the night in Surrey Hills too and check out some of those restaurant. Thanks for the tip.
Australia does sound like an awesome destination! I would want to travel there someday too. Thanks for sharing this!
Great job Roxana on the 3 days in Sydney. It looks like such a fabulous city to see -incredibly photogenic and playful. 😉
Australia is a distant and amazing place i really want to go soon. Sydney seems like a excellent way to start the trip 🙂
I’ve always wanted to visit Sydney, but to be honest, I’ve never known much about it except for the iconic harbour. Thanks Roxana for the great info, especially about Surry Hill. I can’t wait to check out those coffee shops!
Great itinerary – the Northern Beaches are our favorite spot in Sydney – we’re 3 hours away in Canberra so we try and plan a couple of weekend trips each year 🙂
Great itinerary! I love Sydney Harbour, and you can get some lovely photos of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge from the Botanical Gardens. Manly Beach is great – both for the beaches and people watching. We often go further north to Palm Beach, where Aussie soap Home and Away is filmed. And I love going to Sydney for shopping. Queen Victoria Building is beautiful and for a bargain, you can’t go past Haymarket!
Sydney has been on my radar for a while now. But I could never set priorities for things to do there because there are so many options! Thanks for the tips, they mean a lot coming from a local. I’ll bookmark this post for when I plan my trip.
Such a good trip here! It is wonderful post and pictures are really great to see u. Thank you so much for sharing it. Keep doing!
I love this three-day itinerary because it has a nice mixture of activities including going to the Northern Beaches to relax and then heading out to do some shopping and have a sip of tea.
Australia has been on my to go to list for ever. I just waiting for my extra week of vacation so I can handle the long flight from Toronto. Lol. Sydney harbour is awesome. I’ve always loved the opera house. North bear has also sounds awesome. Great post.
amazing post…i have visited sydney only once and memories are still fresh in my mind i had visited Manly Beach.Famous Manly is everything Australian,with excellent accommodation, restaurants and cafes …your 3 day trip actually amazed me..i will definitely plan to go there again
Looking forward to my first few days in Australia’s capital … thanks for the ideas!