What’s there to see around Sydney CBD? Well … a lot!
How to get there? Easy, go to Circular Quay, take a ferry or a bus and enjoy your day!
Let’s take a ferry to start with. Perhaps a bit difficult, because there are a few options here. You can just cross the harbour to the Luna Park (see Part I), or to Taronga Zoo. The Zoo is also the starting point of a very nice walk that takes you to Bradleys Head. From the Amphitheatre the views over the city and the harbour are just awesome! And another good point: almost no tourists … Be sure to take enough water though, it can be very hot on the walking path (or go to the zoo and ask the very friendly staff for a refill of your bottle 😉 ).
If you have sea legs, you must definitely take the ferry to a very nice place called Manly. We absolutely love it! From the ferry it is just a short stroll across the center (with shops and places to eat) to the beach. You can sit there all day watching the surfers or in the right season even whales. But an even better idea is to walk. We’ve walked the Cabbage Tree Walk – starting at Marine Parade (takes you to Shelly Beach, where we saw a little dolphin this year, the odds he didn’t survive the separation of his mum are high but we don’t know what happened to him (or her) ) and the Scenic Walk that takes you to Sydney Harbour National Park. Or at least a big part of the Park, which comprises North Head. The views over the harbour and Sydney CBD are, again, spectacular. And North Head is interesting from a historical point of view as well. It was an important military base during World War II, and there is a big cemetery dating from the end of the 19th Century. And not to forget: the flora and fauna are beautiful. One can get hungry after walking some kilometers, a good restaurant to fuel up is Fish Mongers (best fish and chips in Sydney!) in Manly ‘CBD’.
But you can also take a bus to discover some interesting places. Bus 333 takes you in about half an hour to one of the most famous beaches of the world: Bondi. Although to many (including us) not 
considered as the most beautiful beach (this beach is not a reference to the rest of Australian beaches to say the least), it is a must-see. Don’t be surprised to discover a camera crew on the beach … for some years there is a series called Bondi Rescue, real life television 😉 Since we aren’t really the people to sit (or bake if you want) at the beach the whole day, we walked. This time we took the Bondi – Bronte walkway (there are more walks to do). Bronte is another beach about 3 km from Bondi, the walk takes you along Tamarama Beach and offers some spectacular views over this stretch of coast line. The most intriguing view was definitely the Waverley Cemetery, at the edge of a cliff, looking over the ocean … And still on our to do-list: Sculpture by the Sea, an annual arts festival with sculptures along these beaches.
You might think we’ve seen pretty much everything there is to see in Sydney. But in a city you’ve never seen it all … even when you live there.
Still on our to do-list:
- Vivid Sydney – the light and music spectacle (annually around the end of May – begin of June – CBD);
- Sculpture by the Sea – art festival (annually around the end of October – beginning of November – Bondi and Cottleshoe);
- Luna Park;
- Spit Bridge – walk (Manly);
- Northern beaches;
- Royal National Park (south of Sydney)
- … and so much more!
Some interesting articles:
the full flickr album here
Sydney filmed with a drone:
EYE SPY : Sydney City from CAVORT on Vimeo.