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Best experiences:

Climb Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Abstract of a section of bridge with very small people climbing up it

A unique and unforgettable adventure offering breathtaking views of Sydney Harbour and fascinating historical insights; the city’s ultimate must-do. One of the world’s great bucket list experiences.

Adult price: £110

Min age 8

Best for ages 8+

Duration: 2- 3 hours

Sydney Opera House

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Sydney opera house from across the harbour on a sunny day.

Magnetic, enchanting and still remarkably modern, this iconic Opera House is a must-see. Walk around the outside or book in for a guided tour or performance.

Best for ages 13+

Sydney Opera House to Royal Botanic Garden walk

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Sydney Opera House to Royal Botanic Garden walk

One of the world’s great scenic walks – a one- to two-hour, wildlife-filled stroll that takes in Sydney’s harbour, the Opera House, Mrs Macquarie’s Chair and the Royal Botanic Garden.

Best for ages 4+

Duration: 1-2 hours

Sydney Mardi Gras Parade

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A topless man, wearing vibrant blue wings, holding his hands up.

An extraordinary and unique cultural spectacular – Sydney’s world-famous Mardi Gras parade sees 65,000 glammed-up marchers, 160 outrageous floats and tens of thousands lining the streets.

Duration: 2-3 hours

When: 1st Sat of March

Frequency: annually

The Rocks

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A photo of old brown buildings in front of a city skyline on a sunny day.

The Rocks – the birthplace of European settlement in Australia – is atmospheric, quaint, vibrant and packed with great things to taste, see, buy and explore.

Best for ages 8+

Bondi Beach

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A photo of the full beach on a sunny day.

One of the world’s most famous beaches, with spectacular surfing and a vibrant restaurant and shopping scene.

Sailing & Boating on Sydney Harbour

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Sailing & Boating on Sydney Harbour

Sublime harbour seascapes, tranquillity and invigorating sea air await boaters on the world’s most beautiful harbour. A paradise for sailing and motor-boating.

Adult price: £40

Best for ages 13+

Duration: -

Taronga Zoo

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
The head of a giraffe in front of the harbour and city skyline.

A world-class zoo overlooking the city and harbour – the ideal place to see your first kangaroo, koala or platypus.

Adult price: £25

Best for ages 4+

Art Gallery of New South Wales

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A grand building with 6 columns and colourful flags in between. People walking in the foreground.

Venerable art gallery showcasing fine Australian, Aboriginal and Asian art in a scenic waterside setting, with over 30,000 works on show.

Best for ages 13+

Helicopter flights over Sydney

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Man in helicopter looking out over Sydney Harbour

One of the world’s greatest helicopter flights over a dazzling coastal city, featuring a breathtakingly beautiful harbour, an iconic bridge, and an incomparable opera house.

Adult price: £115

Best for ages 10+

Duration: 20 minutes

Bondi to Coogee Walk

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A rocky coastline with a beach, and houses.

Sydney’s best clifftop walk: a superb 6m trail along the headlands and beaches of this picturesque coastline, with plenty of swimming and eating options en route.

Best for ages 6+

Duration: 2-3 hours

Sydney Museum of Contemporary Art

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

The exterior of a modern building on a sunny day.

Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) provides an exciting and fun introduction to the works of established and emerging artists from across Australia and the world.

Best for ages 13+

Kayaking on Sydney Harbour

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
6 People kayaking in front of Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House on the side. Taken by someone in a kayak.

See some of Sydney’s most famous landmarks – including the Opera House – from the water, with a kayak tour around the world’s most beautiful natural harbour.

Adult price: £70

Best for ages 4+

Duration: 2 hours

Australian National Maritime Museum

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Australian National Maritime Museum

Anyone interested in Australian history should head to this fascinating museum that showcases and explores Australia’s naval war history, Aboriginal history and its white settler history. Don’t miss the fully-restored, 19th-century tall ship the James Craig.

Adult price: £12

Best for ages 8+

Duration: -

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Surf lessons on Bondi Beach

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
A group of people having a surf lesson walking with surf boards along the beach.

Famous for its epic waves and thundering surf, Bondi Beach is one of the best places in the world to take your first tentative ride on a surfboard.

Adult price: £40

Min age 7

Best for ages 7+

Duration: 1 hour

Justice and Police Museum

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Four cardboard cut outs on display in the justice museum sydney

This small museum, set in two former police courts and a former police station, was the original legal hub at the time of the settlers. Today it preserves the history of crime and punishment in the city, with exhibits on famous criminals, collections of weapons and restored prison cells.

Adult price: £7

Best for ages 6+

Duration: -

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Australian Museum

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Bucket List Experience
Exterior of the museum on a sunny day.

The Australian Museum, fresh from a two-year refit, is a dynamic, interactive and multi-faceted learning space for people of all ages and interests.

Best for ages 4+

Vivid Sydney

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Sydney Opera House with designs lit up on the build roof. Taken at night

Vivid Sydney brings some of the world’s most creative minds and the latest digital light technology together to create astonishing installations that transform the city skyline and night sky.

Best for ages 4+

Duration: 3 weeks

When: May- June

Frequency: annually

Sydney Festival

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Performer on stage at the Sydney Festival

The major showpiece of performing arts in Sydney – a 3-week January feast of music, theatre and dance.

Best for ages 13+

Duration: 3 weeks

When: First 3 weeks of Jan

Frequency: annually

Luna Park

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Luna Park

This beloved, heritage-listed amusement, famous for its iconic entrance gate, opened in 1935. Today, it’s a blend of the modern and old-fashioned, including one of the last remaining wooden wild mouse rollercoasters in the world.

Adult price: £25

Best for ages 4+

Duration: -

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Tramsheds Sydney

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Tramsheds Sydney

A delightful piece of urban renewal, this unique industrial-style precinct, housed in a converted historic tram shed, is a slice of foodie heaven. Food stalls and trendy restaurants to satisfy any appetite.

Best for ages 10+

Duration: -

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Manly Beach

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

A long, busy beach on a sunny day.

A good all-round beach, famed for its reliable surf break, and best accessed by a scenic 20-minute ferry ride from the city.

Seaplane to Palm Beach

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Seaplane to Palm Beach

Whether you are soaring over the Opera House or landing outside an exclusive waterfront restaurant, the best way to do it is aboard one of Sydney’s classic seaplanes.

Adult price: £125

Min age 8

Best for ages 13+

Duration: 30+ minutes

Sydney Fish Market

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

A sign reading Sydney Fish Market. The entrance to the market on a sunny day.

Colourful fish, bobbing fishing trawlers and a frenetic atmosphere make this lively market a Sydney institution.

Best for ages 13+

Boy Charlton Pool

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

An outdoor pool on the edge of the harbour in front of Sydney's skyline.

Sydney is famed for its ocean and harbourside pools and this stunning harbourside pool is a stand-out. The Botanic Gardens are on one side, harbour views on the other. Great swim and sunbathing; there’s a fine cafe on site too.

Adult price: £12

Best for ages 4+

Duration: -

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Blue Mountains [hiking, canyoning, & mountain biking]

Blue Mountains National Park, New South Wales, Australia

A jagged, rocky mountain covered in greenery.

The Blue Mountains is an astonishing slice of wilderness, just 50km from Sydney, offering all kinds of outdoor adventure – from hiking to canyoning, mountain biking and rock climbing.

Best for ages 10+

Duration: -

Manly Scenic Walkway

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

A walkway in a picturesque rocky setting.

The 10km path winds around the harbour from Manly beach to the Spit Bridge in Middle Harbour, through a national park of native bushland. The walk takes around four hours, with magnificent views and plenty of good swimming spots.

Best for ages 8+

Duration: Up to 4 hours

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Fort Denison

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Fort Denison

Built during the Crimean War, this little historic gem sits in the middle of Sydney harbour. It’s now a museum, with fascinating exhibits like a canon gun powder store and a tidal gauge room. Daily ferries go from Circular Quay.

Adult price: £5

Best for ages 6+

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Wylie’s Baths

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Wylie’s Baths

This beautifully-restored Edwardian bathing facility, a short walk from Coogee Beach, offers a stunning ocean swimming pool, historic wooden changing sheds, a small café and wrap-around ocean views. Open daily.

Adult price: £3

Best for ages 4+

Duration: -

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SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium

Every city has an aquarium these days, but this is a good one, and great for kids with specimens from the Great Barrier Reef.

Adult price: £32

Best for ages 4+

Duration: -

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Sculpture by the Sea

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Statues of people looking out in different directions by the sea on a sunny day.

For almost 3 weeks every October/November, this internationally lauded (and free) outdoor exhibition sees 100 or so sculptures arranged around the (stunning) coastal footpath between Bondi and Tamarama beaches.

Best for ages 4+

Duration: 2-3 weeks

When: October/ November

Frequency: annually

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