A city arranged around its harbour, where the commuter ferries are the best sightseeing going and the bus to the end of the line leaves you on a coast walk.
Free things to do
Free
Bondi to Coogee clifftop walk
Six beaches and one path, with the Icebergs pool at the start if you're brave.
Free
Opera House steps & Circular Quay
Walking around it costs nothing, and the postcard shot is from the Botanic Gardens headland.
Free
Art Gallery of NSW
Free, and now two buildings joined by a land bridge over a buried wartime oil tank.
Where to stay
from $34
Secret Garden Backpackers Sydney
Dorm bed · per night
from $40
Mad Monkey Potts Point
Dorm bed · per night
from $135
Mad Monkey on Broadway
Private room · per night · Aircon in every room ❄ + free gym access Minutes from Central Station, walking distance to Newtown & Chinatown.