5 nights in Sydney
 

Family of 3 with child aged 10, fairly active, arriving in Sydney from Melbourne (international travellers) on 10:00 am July 28, 2017. Will be staying 1 night and then renting a car and going to Blue mountain for 2 nights and then back to Sydney for 4 nights before heading to Gold Coast

We are staying at Sydney Boulevard hotel at CBD and now need recommendations and suggestions on how to best use our 5 nights along with best routes to walk to sites.

We would like to do the usual
1. Sydney harbour
2. Opeta house
3. Darling harbour
4. Bondi to cogee walk
5. Taronga zoo
6. Ferry ride to manly and maybe Shelley beach
7. Pitts street for pedestrian shopping mall
8. Best mall shopping
9. Any others which maybe advised here

I guess we can combine the first three. We can start from our hotel, through the Botanic garden and to the Sydney harbour

What time would be best for the Bondi to cogee walk as we are thinking of doing the complete 6km trail

What can be combined with Taroonga zoo or nothing

Waiting for your suggestions to make the most of our trip

Thanks a lot.

If you like museums, try the Australian Museum and the Hyde Park Barracks, both close to your hotel. You could visit either of those on your way to the Botanic Gardens.

There are nice walks along the harbor from either direction of Taronga Zoo, with pretty beaches, etc., if you are interested. Otherwise just hop on the ferry to your next stop. Get an Opal card, which you could just add value as you go; you can use it on ferries, buses, and trains.

Ferry to Milson's Point for a look around. Your son may enjoy an amusement ride or two at Luna Park. From there walk across the Harbour Bridge and you will be in The Rocks, Sydney's oldest neighborhood. There you could visit museums, galleries, shops, or just walk around.

You're going to Queensland, which has bunches of wildlife parks not far from where you'll be, IIRC, and that should make Taronga unnecessary. Taronga is great for the views but the zoo is just a zoo and unless you catch a really good discount somewhere, it is riotously expensive.

Further to the responses you had on TA, I'd just add that I like to do the Coogee to Bondi walk in that order, and then take the 380 bus to Watson's Bay. From there, the ferry back to Circular Quay.

From Darling Harbour, you could have an interesting walk around Barangaroo, Millers Point & Walsh Bay and through The Rocks.

There are Aboriginal walking tours around Barangaroo- google it, I think you probably need to book.

Sydney is very large and spread out. A lot of the places you mentioned above are not really easy to walk to. Just make sure you get an Opal card for your trips. You can buy it when you arrive in Sydney and load money onto it. You tap on at your departure stop and tap off at your arrival so it will calculate the fare for you. Just don't forget to tap off as it will charge you a default fare which is generally more expensive than most fares.

Taronga Zoo is very expensive. I think you can catch a ferry from Taronga Zoo to the Opera House.

In terms of shopping - the best place to shop is around Pitt Street Mall. It connects to Mid City, QVB, Myer and Westfield Shopping Centre, which is attached to David Jones. You can walk to Darling Harbour from here but it's about a 15-20 minute walk.

Hope that helps, enjoy your trip to Sydney!

<< I think you can catch a ferry from Taronga Zoo to the Opera House.>>

Basically. Circular Quay has ferries to Taronga and the Opera House is thisclose to Circular Quay.

I disagree with some of the above posts. Taronga is a sensational zoo, with some of the best views of Sydney harbour that you'll get in a cozy, family friendly setting. Don't go for the wildlife alone, as you'll get to see that elsewhere as well, go for the overall experience. Make sure to see the bird show and the seal show.
The money in my view is worth it, but there is no doubt that it is quite expensive.

Thank you all for your helpful advises.

As we check in at around 12 afternoon, how to start our first 6 hours in Sydney, which area can we complete within the first day where we have about 6 hours

Furthermore, after our Blue mountain trip, we will be back in Sydney on weekend, so what is the best choice for weekend

Our interest remain the same as posted above , except the Museums

Thanks

Just pick out what you want to do . It seems you are overthinking this holiday - doesn't matter what you do and what in order