Sydney Questions

[Bill S]

I've been reading some guides about Sydney and have a couple of questions: What is the CBD? What is the best way to get from one end to the other?

Thanks!

[room010]

CBD = Central Business District

[Spanish eyes]

I've been reading some guides about Sydney and have a couple of questions: What is the CBD? What is the best way to get from one end to the other?

 

Thanks!

 

Hi Bill S

 

The CBD means the central business district. The centre of our city is maily for business, with shops, restaurants, offices etc with not too many apartments. People live mainly in the surrounding suburbs.

We have a train, ferry & bus sytem for getting around. Depending on your starting point & destination you have several options. If your cruising into Sydney & thinking of sightseeing we also have a hoho (hop on hop off) bus. If your just looking for cheap tranport through the cbd we have a free bus. If you get into the website http://www.sydneybuses.info/ & click on free cbd shuttle in left margin it will give you info on this service. Keep in mind that we do have quite a lot of traffic in the cbd & it may take longer by road than if you take the train. For train, bus & ferry info get into http://www.131500.com.au website. Hope you have a great time in our city. If you're sailing into Sydney harbour its a beautiful sight. Enjoy.:)

[cheeky_minx]

I've been reading some guides about Sydney and have a couple of questions: What is the CBD? What is the best way to get from one end to the other?

 

Thanks!

 

 

Dear Bill

In Sydney there is a free shuttle bus that goes about the CBD, here is the link with a map of its route - http://www.sydneybuses.info/free-cbd-shuttle.htm

 

covers most of the CBD however getting across Sydney, for example to Darling Harbour would be a ferry from Circular Quay - ferries are popular mode of transport in Sydney.

 

They also have Sydney explorer (tourist buses) - one for centre Sydney Explorer and a Bondi Explorer - these you buy tickets for - here is the link

http://www.sydneybuses.info/tourist-services/sydney-explorer.htm

 

I personally, walk most of the city and then use the ferries.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Jane

[Bill S]

Wow, you all are great! The explanations and links are a great help!

We are flying into Sydney and staying near Circular Quay for 6 days before sailing on the Volendam. We want to see as much of Sydney as we can, and there sure is a lot to see! We will purchase the transit passes and plan on enjoying the trains, busses and ferries, pretty much as independent tourist visitors.

Are we excited? You bet! :)

[mochuck]

If you are planning on catching a ferry from Circular Quay to Darling Harbour please plan carefully. They only run about once an hour. I catch the ferry to and from work from Circular Quay up the Parramatta River - a number of them stop at Darling Harbour but only for pick up of commuters.

 

It is not a long walk to Darling Harbour if you know the way (about 15 mins), even if you don't know the way and walk the long way around the water edge its still only about 30 mins walk and a nice way to just take in some sights.

 

Circular Quay - Darling Harbour timetable

[Bill S]

Mochuck: thank you for the additional information. Seeing the schedule helps our planning. Being from the desert SW of the US, we are really looking forward to riding the ferries!

[shieldsboy]

The ferry ride from Circular Quay to Darling Harbour (or vice versa) is really special.

 

We live in Sydney but I always try to do it whenever we are in the city centre.

 

It takes approx 20 minutes and you will pass the Opera House and go under the Harbour Bridge where you will be able to wave to the bridge climbers.

 

Our Scottish daughter-in-law, when she visited here, was surprised to find that the Bridge and Opera House were so close together - this means you get a variety of very beautiful views on the trip.

 

And the trip at night is particularly spectacular.

 

It is very easy to get back to your starting point either by catching a return ferry, or by train after a short walk, or by taxi.

 

In the day time the ferries are state run - with some very good viewing areas on board, and in the evening private ferries take over. You can pick the private ferries up also at Circular Quay just around the corner (towards the Ocean Terminal) from where the day time ferries depart.

 

Enjoy your stay in our beautiful city.

 

Don

[room010]

Take a ferry to Manly too. It goes almost the whole length of the main harbour and there's a great beach once you get there. The views of the city on the return trip are fantastic.

[R&RFan]

FYI: taxis are relatively inexpensive and are used to doing short stints (especially in the CBD) if you don't feel like walking to/back from your destination. There are heaps of taxis ranks, but it's pretty easy to flag one almost anywhere.

 

Pay attention to the light above the windscreen (windshield): if it's lit then the taxi is available. Taxis here take credit cards (and don't really expect tips - I tend to round up a couple $ depending on the fare but I'm from the US originally and old habits are hard to break).

 

Check out a train to the Blue Mountains (a day trip). If you have six days, it's worth devoting one day to this excursion.

 

Finally Sydneysiders are some of the friendliest people around. Most will be happy to send you in the right direction if you're a bit lost.

 

Finally if you like good food Sydney is a delight. Stay mostly away from the tourist restaurants at Darling Harbour or around Circular Quay (and that's pronounced KEY, btw) and try places in Surrey Hills, Newtown (bit funky), Darlinghurst and the like. Great Thai and Indian food all around if you like either or both.

 

Most smaller restaurants (especially Thai and Indian) are BYO or allow it for a reasonable corkage fee. If you like wine, then it's a great opportunity to check out some superior Aussie reds or NZ whites at dent rates.

 

In the end, I'm not saying don't do the restaurants in the tourist areas, just don't do them exclusively.

 

Final note: do the Harbour Bridge climb if you're even slightly fit. It's a hoot with great views.

 

Enjoy your stay - you'll hate to leave.

[alise007]

Take a ferry to Manly too. It goes almost the whole length of the main harbour and there's a great beach once you get there. The views of the city on the return trip are fantastic.

 

I agree it was a great trip! Had a wonderful ferry ride, enjoyed lunch and wandered around, took a fast boat ride (some crazy inflatable boat) and then ferry back to Circular Quay! We spent a week of our honeymoon in Sydney and had NO issues getting around. Prob used all of the aforementioned modes of transport! A great way to see the highlights of the city --we did a bus tour and then went back to explore the places we were most interested in!

 

Bridge Climb at Dusk was AMAZING!!!

[sptree]

Is the Bridge Climb at Dusk definitely worth the extra $ or is the day tour a good 1st time one?

[Globaliser]

Is the Bridge Climb at Dusk definitely worth the extra $ or is the day tour a good 1st time one?

I think that a standard day climb is better for a first-timer. While there's a certain romance about a dusk climb, you would normally see more and see better during the day.

[sptree]

Thanks for the info. We will schedule a day climb.

[Bill S]

Thanks for all the great tips!

We are planning to to purchase transit passes and use the ferries and some scenic bus routes, plus trains when appropriate. We'll also do the Sydney Explorer.

I've investigated going to the Blue Mountains and discovered the Link Pass which looks like a decent way to get up there (and back) and then see the highlights using the hoho bus. The City Transit web site is great--easy to use and figure out a schedule!

 

Manly Beach is definitely on our beach as is a ferry ride to Bondi Beach. Any comments about Harry's Cafe de Wheels?

I'd love to do the Bridge climb but it is just a bit too pricey-guess I'll just watch and have a vicarious experience. One thing is sure, we won't lack for anything to do in Sydney!

Leaving tomorrow!!:)

[Globaliser]

One thing is sure, we won't lack for anything to do in Sydney!

Don't forget that the current edition of the CC guide of things to do in Sydney can be found here.

[kenish]

A good alternative to the Bridge Climb is the Pylon. You can go to the observation deck near the top of the stone pylon at the SE corner of the bridge. It's a lot of stairs to climb and I don't recall an elevator. There are exhibits at intermediate levels that show the history and construction of the bridge. The view at the top is almost as good as Bridge Climb. We did both; admision to the Pylon is about $10.

[Bill S]

We're back from a great cruise to NZ and an all-too-brief, but highly memorable stay in Sydney. I want to thank everyone who offered tips and suggestions--you helped make our stay easier on the wallet and you saved us some time, too. Even though we saw and did a lot, six days was not enough. We hope to return to finish seeing all that Sydney has to offer to visitors.

[Tom Tom]

Hi I'm a newbe to CC. I need a recommendation to a limo service from Circular Quey to the international airport. My wife is in a wheelchair and we have two large suit cases. Any suggestions?

 

Tom

[mochuck]

You can book disabled taxis - Lime is a special taxi service for the disabled

[karmacruiser]

We're back from a great cruise to NZ and an all-too-brief, but highly memorable stay in Sydney. I want to thank everyone who offered tips and suggestions--you helped make our stay easier on the wallet and you saved us some time, too. Even though we saw and did a lot, six days was not enough. We hope to return to finish seeing all that Sydney has to offer to visitors.

 

Do you mind if I ask where you stayed? We are doing this cruise next January and have already been studying the maps and hotel locations. Did you find it as easy to get around as it appears?

[squirrels]

Thank you all for your threads. I've already learned alot about Sydney. We're arriving in Sydney on Dec. 17, 2010 for a Diamond Princess cruise leaving Sydney on Dec 22.

 

Can anyone help me? We're looking for good inexpensive lodging, close to the city attractions, so that we may walk to many. Does anyone have advise? Coming from Canada, we're planning on staying in New Zealand also at the end of our cruise too. Any assistance would be appreciated. I've already looked at our normal hotels.com and other discount north american sites.

 

Thanks again!

[kenish]

We stayed at Travelodge Wynyard. It's next to the namesake train station which gives good access to the rail network and the train to/from the airport. It's a 15 minute walk to Circ Quay, The Rocks, and Darling Harbour. Last July we paid AUD $125/night. The rooms are modern, clean, and functional. They get good reviews over on Tripadvisor.com

 

Travelodge has an Aussie website, you will probably get a better rate booking there. Also they have specials on Tuesday (Aussie time). Two good search/booking sites are wotif.com.au and lastminute.com.au (hope it's OK to put these links in the post). Generally speaking I always found better prices booking through Aussie websites versus the North American sites (even with the same company).

[Bill S]

We stayed at the Sydney Harbor Marriott--got it by using Priceline. Highly recommend this hotel, if you can. It is two blocks from Circular Quay, which is a main "hub" for ferries, busses, trains and taxis. The opera house is within walking distance as are the botannical gardens. We even walked over the Sydney Bridge, after taking a bus over to the north end. Sydney is just great!

[madforcruising]

Hello,

as there´s a lot of good information about Sydney in this therad already, I´d like to try and ask all the experts here.

I´m cruising out of Sydney in October and I will have to return home by air on the day of debarkation. As the flight is late evening a day room would be great. Does anybody has any tips regarding getting a good day rate at a hotel somewhere in the downtown area (not at the airport).

Thank you.