We ended our six week visit to Australia in the beautiful city of Sydney. Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and is located on Australia’s southeastern coast. We had two weeks to spend here so we split up our stay in two different locations of Sydney.
The first week we stayed in Rozelle, a small suburb just about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) west of the central business district (CBD). We had a small apartment with magnificent views of the city. We usually try and book apartments with washer and dryer (which this stated it had) but we quickly realized when we arrived that the apartment had a washer and dryer on site – not in the apartment. And, it was only ONE washer and ONE dryer for the entire floor of this apartment complex. And then we realized we didn’t have enough coins to run it so that was a little frustrating. But did I mention the views?
Out apartment was walkable to the suburb of Balmain. Balmain is an affluent neighborhood with a trendy restaurant scene. Victorian buildings on Darling Street are occupied by cafes pubs, along with some high end boutique stores. And my favorite part was the beautiful flower shops that can be found on every block.
Driving in Sydney
Let me take a minute to discuss driving in Sydney. We had a car for the first week only since the second week we would be in the CBD. There was a lot of construction and a lot of one way streets and while we are pretty seasoned travelers, the traffic in Sydney was exhausting. And parking was very limited and expensive. But who am I kidding, everything in Sydney is expensive. But as far as the car rental goes, I was actually thankful the day we returned it! Instead of getting a car rental in Sydney, you can use public transportation or just download the Grab App (which is similar to Uber), you will thank me later.
The Beaches in Sydney
An interesting fact about Sydney is that there are around 100 different beaches that line the Harbour and coastline of this urbanized city. And along with those beaches you will find some beautiful coastal beach walks. We spent one morning doing the Bondi to Bronte Beach Walk. This walk had some amazing views and was easily accessible.
Quick disclaimer on this video: I was corrected on the pronunciation after this video was published – It is Bond”eye” and Bron”tee”
As you can see these beaches are tucked in all along the coastline.
The Rocks
The second week was spent in the historic Rocks precinct. This area is the oldest neighborhood in Sydney. We stayed at the Harbour Rocks Hotel which is a beautiful 5 star hotel. It had all the amenities of a luxury hotel while maintaining the original structure and glory of the historic past of Sydney.
There is so much history in this area. You definitely want to take time to visit the museums. And they are free to enter so that makes them even better!
Sydney Opera House
The highlight for me was to see the Sydney Opera House. We had afternoon tickets to see guitarist Tommy Emmanuel. We were not familiar with his work prior to booking this show (which we booked months before arriving) but we were lucky we picked his show because he is a phenomenal guitarist.
After the show we had dinner at Portside which is located on the Western Broadwalk of the Sydney Opera House. I was a little disappointed if you want my honest opinion. All the seating was outdoors, and it was a chilly night. They provide blankets for you but not really what I was expecting when we made the reservations. But to be fair that is how most of the dining is throughout the Rocks area. Seating is setup outside on the sidewalks, some are covered and some are not. Which makes sense if you consider the age of the buildings in this area. There is very limited room inside for large dining areas.
The Circular Quay
The Rocks area is also where you will find the Circular Quay. The Circular Quay is a Harbour and passenger shipping port in the heart of Sydney. You can take ferry boats to just about anywhere in Sidney so we took the opportunity to head over to Watsons Bay. We got to explore some of the area while there before having a lunch at the famous Doyles on the Beach Restaurant. The views from the ferry are really amazing. And the nice part about using the ferry is that you don’t have to purchase tickets ahead of time. They have it setup where you simply tap your credit card when you get on and then again when you get off and the system will track your rides and then simply charge you at the end of the day. This made it super easy and really convenient!
Hunter Valley Wine Tour
We did a group wine tour of Hunter Valley while in Sydney. Hunter Valley is about a two hour drive from Sidney so this was a full day tour. I was a little disappointed in this particular tour because the entire tour wasn’t focused on wine. Two of the stops were not even at wineries. One was a brewery and the other a gin and vodka distillery. While we like our beer and spirits, I was hoping to really get better tastings and education on the wines of the Hunter Valley. The highlight was Iron Gate Winery, they did a great job giving us a tour of the production facility and explaining their process. Oh and the other thing is that we toured Hunter Valley after their harvest season. So the vines were all bare so not the prettiest time to visit.
VIVID Sydney
We happen to be visiting for the kick off of the VIVID Sydney Festival. The opening night was magical. The fireworks show and the Opera House was used as a canvas to beautiful light art. We felt reallly lucky to have accidentally scheduled our visit during this event!
My favorite part of Sydney was staying in the Rocks area. While this area may be kind of pricey, it puts you at the heart of everything in Sydney. It is also the transportation hub and allows you easy access to any part of the city you want. You have the ferry, the tram or the train that can get you where you want to go. So I would suggest splurging at least for a night or two in the Rocks area if you are ever visiting the Sydney. You will be glad you did!
The Modern Nomads 
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