A guide to spending 36 hours in Australia’s most iconic city. From the opera house to whale watching and beach bathing there is a lot to pack in on a weekend trip or long haul flight layover.
Whale watching in Sydney
If you’re visiting in season (July to October) then whale watching is a must. After arriving in Sydney, I dropped my bags off at the hotel and headed to Circular Quay to join the Ocean Extreme 2 hour tour. This tour is a bit shorter than other whale watching tours which is great if you are short on time. 2024 has been an amazing whale watching season in Sydney and on our trip we saw pods up to 5 in size at a time including young calfs. We saw tails and a magnificent breach. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity and would highly recommend. As the tour leaves Sydney Harbour you’ll also get great panoramic views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
Sydney to Manly ferry
If you’re not visiting in Whale Season then I would spend those few hours getting the Sydney to Manly Ferry, walk around Manly beaches then hop back on the ferry to Sydney. This offers the same amazing views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge and Manly itself has a very cute and quaint high street and stunning beach. Like with the bus or train the ferry can be paid for using your contactless debit or credit card. This is another reason Sydney is great to see in a short space of time as there is no messing around getting transport hopper cards like other Australian cities.
Coogee to Bondi Walk
Get over that jet lag by walking the 6km scenic route of Coogee to Bondi. This takes 90 minutes to 2 hours and gives you beautiful views of the beaches such as Bronte and Clovelly. You’ll also see the iconic Bondi Icebergs Pools.
Sydney Rocks
While both Bondi and Coogee offer great restaurants and bars if you’re based more in CBD then Sydney Rocks is a great spot for dinner and drinks before you leave the city. We went to El Camino Cantina and enjoyed their mega sized margaritas and delicious tacos.
As you can see there is so much you can do in Sydney in a short space of time and is the best place to be for a weekend away or lay over on a long haul flight to make the most of your trip.