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What to do in Sydney - A 4 day itinerary for first-time visitors
Located on Australia’s popular East Coast, Sydney is one of the most visited cities in Australia and it’s not hard to see why. From its famous landmarks like the iconic Opera house and Sydney Harbour bridge to the gorgeous sandy beaches of Bondi and Manly, Sydney attracts tourists from all over the world.
With so much to see and do in Sydney it can be overwhelming, especially if you are visiting for the first time and only have a few days. So if you’re asking yourself questions like, ‘How long do I need in Sydney?’, ‘What is there to do in Sydney’ and ‘Where are the best places to visit in and around Sydney?’, don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. In this short handy guide, I’ll share the best things to see and do in Sydney (even if you only have a few days!), neatly packaged into a handy 4 day itinerary that you can follow.
Looking for another great Australian city to visit? Check out all the best things to see and do in Melbourne, Victoria
Table of Contents
How many days do you need in Sydney, Australia?
There are so many great things to see and do in Sydney, it is a big city and there’s something for everyone. However, I would say that 3-5 days is a good amount of time to spend in Sydney as a first-timer. This will allow you to see the “highlights” without feeling like you are zooming around in a rush. Of course, if you are tight on time you could spend just 2 days here by just staying in Sydney’s CBD (Central Business District), and taking the Hop on, Hop off bus to travel around the main sights in the city. Personally, I feel that you would be missing out on some of the great things Sydney has to offer with just two days. We stayed for 4 days (5 nights) and felt that it was a good amount of time.
Sydney is also a great place to start your east coast road trip. Make sure that you visit the popular backpacking town of Byron Bay and stop by the Koala hospital in Port Macquarie!
What are the best things to see and do in Sydney, Australia?
In this post I am sharing my full itinerary for how we spent 4 days in Sydney, which will cover all my top things to see and do in Sydney within those 4 days, including how we spent each day in the different areas of Sydney. If you would prefer to see a list with just the top places to visit, so that you can incorporate it into your own itinerary, I have written a separate blog covering 15 great things to see and do in Sydney which will give you a run down of the best places to visit.
How to spend 4 days in Sydney - a full itinerary
Day 1 - Wander around Darling Quarter and Darling Harbour - two of the best areas to visit in Sydney's CBD
The iconic landmarks of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge have made Circular Quay one of the most visited spots in Sydney, however I much preferred the area around Darling Quarter and the Harbour there. For me, Darling Harbour had a much nicer atmosphere than Circular Quay and it was far less industrial (as it is not the main ferry/cruise port). There are bars and restaurants all around the edge of the harbour, and you’ll also find the Australian National Maritime museum and Sea life aquarium here too.
Just set back from the harbour is Tumbalong Park, which is a great spot to sit on the grass, cool your feet in the water feature and watch the world go by. After spending some time at the park and harbour, make sure you visit Darling Square, in the heart of Darling Quarter. There are some great shops in this area and it has a really nice vibe to it.
We spent the afternoon just wandering around Darling Quarter and Darling Harbour and enjoying the sun in the park with an ice cream. In the evening, we headed to the Harbourside shopping complex, which has a decent sized foot court, perfect for grabbing something to eat if you’re on a budget! After picking up some food, we took it outside to sit on the water’s edge overlooking the harbour. Who needs fancy restaurants anyway?!
You could easily spend a full, leisurely day around Darling Quarter and Darling Harbour, visiting all the shops and enjoying a long lunch, but if you prefer things at a faster pace, or you’re short on time, then it’s a great place to spend the morning or late afternoon and you could easily combine sightseeing here with a visit to Circular Quay. Whatever you choose, just make sure to visit! In my opinion Darling Quarter and Darling Harbour are two of the best places to visit in Sydney.
Day 2 - Visiting Sydney’s most iconic landmarks - the Opera House and Harbour Bridge
By now, you’re probably itching to visit Sydney’s most famous sights – the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House! Located in Circular Quay, these iconic landmarks are what Sydney is most famous for, so make sure to soak up the atmosphere and spend the day exploring this area of the city.
When I visit a new place, I love devising my own walking tour. Personally I feel that strolling around on foot is the best way to see all the sights, it also just happens to be one of the best things to do in Sydney (or any city) for free! The walking tour I created took us to some of Sydney’s most popular must-see spots including the Sydney Botanical Gardens, Circular Quay – stopping at the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, then onto Barangaroo Reserve, the Sydney Observatory and finally to the area of The Rocks. Here’s the full details of the route we took:
Sydney DIY walking tour
Arriving at Circular Quay, we walked past the Opera House and headed straight to the botanical gardens, enjoying a picnic on the beautiful lawns, with a view across the harbour. We then continued walking around the gardens, to the other side until we reached Mrs Macquarie’s chair – a viewing point which offers fabulous views across the bay of both the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. This is one of the best places to snap a photo of the Sydney Opera House.
Leaving Mrs Macquarie’s Chair viewpoint, we re-traced our steps back through the botanical gardens to the Opera House. After wandering around the outside of the Opera House and taking some photos, we followed the harbour round to the other side, to Hickson Road reserve – a small green area just underneath the Harbour Bridge. The Opera House and Harbour Bridge are the most popular sights in Sydney, so, as you can imagine, it does get busy around this area but these are both absolute must-see spots when you are in Sydney!
This is a great opportunity to try one of the many activities around Sydney Harbour. Take on the Sydney Harbour bridge climb, kayak under the bridge or opt for something much more relaxed with a cruise.
Continuing the DIY walking tour from Hickson Road Reserve, follow the road underneath the bridge and walk along Walsh Bay Promenade to Barangaroo Reserve. This is a really lovely walk along the water’s edge and there’s several cafes along the way if you fancy a drink or get peckish.
From Barangaroo Reserve, follow Argyle Street and walk up to the Sydney Observatory for great views of the Harbour Bridge and across the water towards Luna park (an old fashioned theme park) in North Sydney. The Observatory Hill Park has one of the best viewpoints over Sydney Harbour and is especially beautiful at sunset.
To finish the day, head back down towards Circular Quay to explore the fashionable area of The Rocks. The Rocks is one of the best areas to explore in Sydney, especially if you’ve only got a couple of days in the city. This area is full of small lanes with cafes, restaurants, independent shops and boutiques. At the weekend, there is also a craft market here.
Sydney Harbour at night
In the evening, the Opera House and Harbour bridge are illuminated and look really beautiful, especially as the lights reflect off the water. When we visited, there was a light art installation at the Opera House, where patterns where projected onto the Opera House sails. So we watched this for a bit, before having a drink in the bar in front of the Opera House, looking across to the Harbour Bridge.
This was a pretty full-on day, with lots of walking, but we got to see A LOT! If you don’t want to walk as far as we did, then I would say skip the section between the Harbour Bridge and Barangaroo reserve and just head straight to The Rocks instead.
Day 3 - A day trip to Manly - one of Sydney’s most popular suburbs and surfing spots
On your third day in Sydney, head out of the city and take the public ferry from Circular Quay across to Manly, a beach-side suburb in North Sydney. There are two ferry’s that take you across to Manly, a 30 minute ferry and a slightly more expensive but 10 minute shorter ‘fast ferry’.
The ferry trip itself is one of the best activities you can do in Sydney because you’ll get gorgeous harbour views from the boat and some amazing photo opportunities!
Australia’s East Coast has many great surfing spots, including the nearby town of Newcastle. But Manly is one of Sydney’s best surf spots. It is famous for holding the world’s first surfing competition, back in 1964. Annual surf competitions are still held in Manly and surfers flock to this beach every year, making the now iconic Manly beach one of Australia’s most famous beaches.
One of the best things to do in Manly – apart from visiting the beach – is to walk the scenic coastal path from Manly wharf to North head.
This is a lovely coastal walk, which passes several small beaches along the way, including Collins beach with its secluded cove and waterfall. From North Head, the path takes you back towards Manly beach through Patrick’s estate – a prestigious international business college houses in an English castle-like building.
Back in the centre of Manly – take your time to stroll round the surf shops and enjoy lunch in one of the many cafes. There’s a really nice laid-back atmosphere to Manly, and in my opinion, it is one of the best places to visit in Sydney.
Day 4 - Visiting Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach
You can’t visit Sydney without spending the day at its most iconic beach – Bondi beach! Bondi beach is one of Australia’s most famous beaches thanks to its pristine white sand, plentiful restaurants, bars and proximity to Sydney’s CBD (which is just a short bus ride away).
One of the best things to do at Bondi beach (and in Sydney!), is the Bondi-Coogee coastal walk. The 6km walk follows the coastline from Bondi to Coogee and usually takes around 2-3 hours, but it depends how often you stop at the various swimming spots and suburbs along the way!
The coastal walk is beautiful and it is definitely up there as one of the best things to do in Sydney, rivalling the Port Macquarie coastal path.
After your walk, spend the afternoon lazing on Bondi beach, or take a dip in one of Australia’s oldest swimming pools – the iconic Bondi Iceberg, located at the southern end of the beach.
Summary
This wraps up my 4 day itinerary of Sydney – As first-timers to Sydney, we wanted to cover the main spots in and around the city without feeling rushed and I think 4 days was perfect for that. Of course, you could easily spend more time here by taking it even slower than we did, or by visiting even more of the attractions in and around Sydney.
If you want to get out in nature and do some hiking, then the Blue Mountains are only a 2 hour train ride from the city and are one of the most popular day trips from Sydney. Personally, I would recommend having several days to explore the area. The Blue Mountains are so beautiful and we really enjoyed the few days we spent there hiking. However, if you’re short on time, or want the convenience of someone else to plan your trip, there are lots of tours to the Blue Mountains from Sydney to choose from.
What is a good area to stay in Sydney, Australia?
I’ve been to Sydney twice. The first time, we stayed in the Great Southern hotel, which was just a few minutes walk from the central bus and train station, at the end of George Street. George Street is the main street running through this part of the city, linking the central station to Circular Quay, where the Opera House and Harbour bridge are located. There is a tram which runs frequently running the full length of George Street which is really handy!
The second time we visited Sydney, we stayed at the Darlo Bar in Darlinghurst. This was another great budget option, in a central location.
Sydney is a big city, but basing ourselves in these areas, we found it really easy to get to all the main sights and also hop easily on a bus, tram and boat to go further afield. I would say the closer to the centre, the better, especially if you only have a couple of days here as you don’t want to spend long travelling in and out each day.
Is Sydney expensive?
As with any destination, there are luxury options and budget options. We were visiting Sydney as part of our Australian East Coast road trip and were backpacking, though I would say we had a moderate budget for a backpacking trip – setting ourselves a limit of £70 per person (including accommodation and transport). With that we were able to stay in a 3 star hotel and had enough left to cover food and drink and anything else we wanted to do.
When researching accommodation, I found that many of the hostels were actually more expensive than hotels for a private room, so my advice would be if there’s two or three of you travelling and you want a private room, definitely check out hotel prices before booking a hostel under the assumption that it would be the cheapest option.
Most of the activities we did in Sydney were essentially free – there’s so many places you can walk in Sydney and see something different that you don’t actually need a big budget. We also saved money on food and drink by having picnics or getting takeaways and eating them alongside the harbour or in one of the parks on a couple of evenings or for lunch. The main thing we paid extra for was the tram, the ferry to Manly and the bus to Bondi beach, but again, these were all relatively low cost items.
For tips for travelling on a budget and to download my free budget template, check out my post on how to budget for full time travel, here.
