Getting In
Unless you are an Aussie or a Kiwi you are going to need a passport with a Visa to visit Oz. Most are free and there are multiple options, but for most a tourist visa will suffice. Apply
online here. In addition, most international passengers (including Australians returning home) must complete an Incoming Passenger Card (IPC) on arrival. This form must be completed in English, but if this is not your first language samples are available in a number of languages
here to assist in completion. Certain items being brought into Australia must be declared on the IPC.
Check here for more details. Make sure you complete this form honestly, not only are there hefty fines for non disclosure but more importantly, the things you bring in could severely impact our fragile eco system. All weapons must be declared and most will be confiscated (including toys and replicas) so save yourself the hassle and leave them at home. Check out
Webjet to compare all the airlines side by side to make sure you are getting the best deal on your flights.
Getting Around
Sydney has an extensive public transport system which comprises
taxis,
trains,
buses,
light rail and
ferries.
Taxi's are expensive but abundant. There are designated taxi ranks throughout the city but you can simply flag one down roadside in most instances. A word of warning, grabbing a cab on the street at 3am is near on impossible due to a mysterious time known as "changeover" where there is never a cab to be found. Just leave a little earlier or later to avoid the hassle.
Uber is new to Sydney and I have never personally used it so I'll leave that one up to you to decide. You can take the
train into the CBD and beyond, including to and from both the Domestic and International Airports. The train system may officially be called Sydney Trains, but as a hangover from when it was known as City Rail, the locals all affectionately (or maybe not so!) refer to it as Shitty Rail. It will serve you just fine as a tourist but ride it long enough in peak hour and you may just begin to understand why! Trains run until around 1am and start again at around 4am, in the blackout period you can use the night rider buses.
Ferries are a wonderful alternative and can serve as a cheap harbour cruise for those on a budget. If you are going to be catching a fair bit of public transport you are going to want to get yourself an
Opal Card. You can order online before you leave home or buy one from a retailer when in Sydney. With an Opal card you will never pay more than $60 a week in fares. Sundays are the day to explore on the cheap because you can take unlimited trips on public transport in Sydney and surrounds (up to and including Nowra and the Blue Mountains) for only $2.50 so make the most of it.
More information here. I'm not a fan of the
buses so avoid them if you can but some areas simply cannot be accessed any other way.
Need to Know
- Sydney is huge. It's bigger in size than the two most populous cities on the planet (Tokyo 37 million and Delhi 22 million) and similar geographically to Los Angeles but with around a fifth of the population (circa 5 million vs 17 million). Sydney sprawls from the harbour in the East, to the Central Coast in the North, Wollongong in the South and the Blue Mountains in the West. I have lived here all my life (44 years) and still haven't seen it all. Be selective about what you want to see.
- Sydney is in the top ten most multicultural cities in the world with around 40% of residents born overseas.
- Aussie's use the metric system e.g, Celsius, Kilometers, Metres, Kilograms, and Litres.
- We use 240 volts. Make sure you have an adapter if you appliances are 110v - 125v unless you want to fry them.
- We drive on the right side of the road. And by that I mean the left. To assist tourists that are not familiar, we have very helpfully written "Look Right" on most CBD streets. It's not that we don't trust you to figure it out yourself, it's just that we would hate to see you skittled by a crazy cabbie!
- We like a "U" e.g. colour, harbour, neighbour, favourite, behaviour etc ...
- We switch our "R's" e.g. centre, litre, metre, etc
- Virtually every word is improved with the addition of an "O" e.g. servo, bottlo, wino, boyo, arvo etc
- Our bacon, bread and chocolate is better than yours. Damn right it's better than yours! (channeling Kelis!) Seriously what do American's do with the top bit of the bacon? And how can they like Hershey's? And what is up with their bread? Do yourself a flavour (not a typo!) and try short cut bacon, Baker's Delight and Cadbury's while your here. You'll never go back.
- Our internet is slower than Latvia and The Czech Reublic. We rank 44th in the world (not happy!) and are still waiting on NBN in most parts ... *sigh*
- Our sun is dangerous. The hole in the ozone layer is not a myth and we live under it. I know you will be tempted to get a tan while you are here but know this: Australia has one of the highest incidences of skin cancer in the world, three times higher than the US and the UK, with one in every two men and three women falling victim. Even those who 'never burn' risk damage if they are not careful, so slip, slop and slap while you are here. If you want to go home with a tan, fake it, don't bake it!
- Our surf is dangerous. About 25,000 surf rescues are completed every year and 90% are rip related. You are no match for mother nature and the power of the ocean, so if you can't swim and don't know how to read the conditions stay out of the water or at the very least swim between the flags and stay in the shallows.
- Our critters are dangerous. Salt water crocodiles, red back spiders, box jelly fish, funnel web spiders, Irakanji, stone fish and inland Taipans. We have them all and they can be lethal. Just don't touch them and you'll be fine.
Currency
In Australia you are going to want to get your hands on the local currency (Australian Dollar) as most retailers will not except anything else. AUD$1 = USD0.77, GBP0.50 & Euro0.70. Australia uses polymer (plastic) notes ($5, $10, $20, $50 & $100) which is really handy when your cash goes through the wash or into the pool. Coins are 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1 & $2. Even though 1c and 2c coins no longer exist, prices may still reflect 99c etc, not to worry, these will just round up or down at the register. Credit cards and EFTPOS are so widely accepted that I rarely ever carry more than $20 cash in my wallet. PayPass (for Visa, Mastercard & Amex) is great for small purchases without the need to enter a PIN.
Tired?
Right off I will say a bed in a good CBD hotel is expensive, around $500pn. If this is within your budget (lucky you!) try the
Shangri-La or the
Four Seasons, which have amazing harbour views. At the other end of the spectrum is a bunk in a backpacker hostel, which will set you back around $25pn, but if like me you've been there and done that (and never will again!) there are options in the middle ground. Try the
Ibis Darling Harbour (approx $150pn) or
AirBnB. Do your research online at
Expedia,
Hotels Combined,
Agoda and the like and if you are keen to gamble on getting a room at short notice try
Last Minute.
Hungry?
Australia has some of the best produce in the world and food options range from a budget burger to a degustation feast and everything in between. Our multicultural nature means you will be spoiled for choice with fantastic Greek, Italian, Lebanese, Indian, Japanese, Turkish, Malaysian, Vietnamese, Thai and Chinese to name just a few. Got money to burn and what a hat or two? Check out
Quay,
Aria,
Rockpool,
Spice Temple or
Tetsuya's. Not so flush? Try
Sailors Thai,
Chinta Ria,
Giovanni's or
George's. Everyone who is anyone has grabbed a pizza (or two!) at
The Ivy Pool Bar on a hot summer's day and you can't leave Oz without trying a fair dinkum Aussie pie at
Harry's. Looking for a real bargain? Check out
All The Deals for some great restaurant voucher deals. Want to check out what the diners think before deciding? Head to
Trip Adviser where 4,211 Sydney restaurants have been reviewed by people just like you.
Thirsty?
Australia has a reputation of being a nation of big drinkers. While we may finish just outside of the world's top ten (all in Eastern Europe), we certainly love a tipple and you will never be too far away from an ice cold beer. For a cocktail with a view try
Blu Bar on 36,
Opera Bar or
O Bar.
Grandma's is a great boutique small bar,
The Establishment caters well for the after work suits and
Zeta is always good for one or two. Pub crawling is best around
The Rocks, try
The Lord Nelson (Sydney's oldest pub),
The Argyle,
The Observer,
The Mercantile and finish up at
The Orient for a drunken dance to a live band at the end of the night :) Clubbing is no longer my style but you can try
Chinese Laundry,
Marquee or
Home and as the sun is rising on the next day from your big night out you can always squeeze in one more in
Kings Cross.
The Lingo
While there is no official language of Australia, English is the most common. Due the the multicultural nature of the locals around 250 languages are spoken here. Unlike the US and the UK accents do not vary every few kilometres but you will probably be able to pick up the difference between Aussies from the city and Aussies from the country. We speak fast and mash our words into each other which can sometimes make it difficult to pick up exactly what we are saying. I have had to repeat myself many, many times to be understood overseas (particularly over the phone) and I even got asked once at customs in the UK what language of interpreter I wanted. Seriously? Maybe it's just me! We don't say "Sheila", "G'day" or "throw another shrimp on the barbie" nearly as often as you would like to think we do, but we do have a very unique way of butchering the Queen's English. Don't worry you'll pick it up in no time :) Check out
this list of Aussie-ism's which is much more comprehensive than I could have ever have put together. Word of warning to those from the US: fanny and rooting mean something very different down under, so it's best to just avoid using them while you are here.
My 10 Must Do's
2. The Beach -
Bondi is probably the most famous but I like
Cronulla in the South. Make a day of it and catch the blue line from Central, Town Hall or Martin Place, hop off at Cronulla and stroll down to the sand for a swim. Grab a casual lunch with a view at
The Hogs Breath, walk it off along the beach path then head back for a cold beer or two from
Northies. If you feeling adventurous take a
surfing lesson or try
scuba diving.
Opah will sort you out for dinner with all you can eat Greek for $40. Still don't wanna leave? Stay a while at
Rydges.
3. The Burbs - Remember I said Sydney was huge? Well it would be a crying shame if you never ventured outside of the CBD. Get out a little! Try Leichhardt, Sydney's Little Italy and a great place for dinner. The best Thai I have ever eaten (including in Thailand!!!) comes from
Boom Boom Thai in Panania but there is little else there. Catch the ferry to Watson's Bay and eat fish and chips from
Doyle's on the deck with a beer or two. Try
white water rafting in Penrith or
canyoning in the Blue Mountains. In summer
Wet n Wild is always a great day out for the young or the young at heart.
5. The Shops - I am a fashion blogger after all lol. Everyone wants to take home a little souvenier when they visit somewhere new, but skip the tat and take home an Aussie designer piece instead. My favourites include
Sass & Bide (Bondi or Paddington),
Collete Dinnigan (David Jones) or
Akira Isogawa (
Strand Arcade). Myer and David Jones have your department store needs covered but if you are expecting Nordstrom, Saks, Neiman Marcus or Bloomingdales you are going to leave dissapointed! Hit up Pitt St Mall and surrounding streets for all the labels including Dior, Jimmy Choo, Chanel, Prada, Tiffany & Louboutin.
Westfield Bondi Junction is my pick of the malls and try your luck bargain hunting at the outlets in
Homebush and
Birkenhead.
Paddinton boutiques always offer something unique and if markets are more your thing try
The Rocks or
Paddy's for a nice way to pass an afternoon.
6. Taste Local Delicacies - Vegemite (spread it thinly!), Kangaroo, Barramundi, Sydney Rock Oysters, Yabbi's, Balmain Bugs, Tim Tam's and Fairy Bread. Try them all!
7. Catch a Game - NRL is our game and is played during winter. Get your tickets
here. Go the Sharks!!! If you're visiting Sydney mid season catch one of the three annual State of Origin games.
8. Visit The Theatre - OK so it's not Broadway, but Sydney gets all the big shows and there is always something on. Check
Ticketek and
Ticketmaster for the latest.
9. Sample Some Aussie Wine - Exported all over the world but it never tastes better (or costs less!) than when you enjoy it at home. If you have the time take a day trip to the
Hunter Valley wineries, if you don't try
Wine Odyssey or
Ananas in the rocks for a great selection.
10. Relax! - Visit a day spa, have a picnic in the park, drop a line in the water, or enjoy a quintessential Australian BBQ. Aussies are renowned for their laid back lifestyle so do like the locals and take some time out to relax and unwind.
Have I convinced you visiting Sydney is a good idea? I hope so! Got any tips of your own about things to do in Sydney? I'd love to hear about them in the comments below. If you decide to swing by I'd love you to look me up while you are here :)
Until Next Time ...
Happy Hunting
SFH
xxx
You May also Like ...
See all Lifestyle posts here.
35
36
37
38
