help with sydney itenary-urgent
 

hi guys,

i have been reading up on all the posts made by everyone regarding the various sights and things to do in sydney. its all very interesting but im still not quite sure what would be good to do on a 5 day trip to sydney that would be good on a budget.im from melbourne btw and will be in sydney tomorrow in the morning.and i'll be staying in a place called wooloomooloo.(not sure if i spelt it right)

firstly, the few famous sights that would be good to see would be the harbour bridge, opera house, chinatown, sydney tower, botanic gardens, the rocks, bondi beach, hunter valley and the blue mountains.

i was reading up on the forum and saw that most people recommended the walk from spit to manly beach, so im wondering how can i fit this into my trip itenary.

with regards to hunter valley, what i have come up with is that its cheapest to rent a car from bayswater for the day and take a drive up to hunter valley. what are the interesting sights to see in hunter valley?i saw some recommendations on going to peppers and the must-see lindemans wine estate(if im not mistaken).

then, for the blue mountains, is it good to rent a car form thrifty in the city?or would it be better to train to katoomba and rent a car from thrifty there?how long would the drive take from katoomba to jenolan caves (because im considering either staying a night in katoomba or a night in hartly).
If i stay in hartly, would it take long to drive back to the city, because im planning to the blue mountains on the last day of my trip and wouldnt want to miss my plane on that day.(im staying a night in the blue mountains at katoomba)
would it be good to take a whole round trip like its indicated on the tourist maps (ie drive to katoomba-lithgow-richmond/ or just katoomba-jenolan caves- m4 back to sydney)
i've identified jenolan caves as a good place to go, but im wondering how long would it take me to drive there from katoomba because it looks quite far on the map.
what other good and worthwhile sights would there be goood to watchout for in the blue mountains?

would it be advisable to buy daytripper tickets if we were to explore sydney by public transport, or is it alright to just walk around (my friend in sydney says that its quicker to walk in the city rather than relying on public transport)

thats all for now,
thanks guys for posting up so much info on how to get around in sydney and what stuff to do there....they are really really helpful

another thing is, what would be good to do in sydney city?
is it better to go exploring outside of the city or just stay in the city because as i've mentioned above, theres only a few things of interest in the city that i've identified as a must do, im not sure what else would be good to visit in sydney city

I think you've identified the best of Sydney city.... you might be wise to give Bondi Beach a miss and combine your visit to a beach with a harbour cruise, which will surely be one of the highlights of your five days. Manly Beach is comparable to Bondi Beach, is in a nicer area, and is reached by a ferry that goes clear from one end of the harbour to the other. Drop Bondi and put in Manly.

Since you're staying in Woolloomoloo, you can hardly miss the Art Gallery as you walk from there into the city, so this might be a useful couple of hours, also.

Re the mountains trip: I wouldn't rent from Thrifty in the city and tackle all that driving, first through the confusing Sydney inner suburbs and then for another forty-five minutes of boring freeway, most of which nowadays is enclosed by noise-barriers. Instead, train it, but not all the way to Katoomba; get off at Valley heights (about 75 minutes from Sydney) and hire a car from Redicar, right at the station. The drive west from Valley heights to Katoomba (half hour) is quite pleasant. Returning the car to Valley heights will also mean that you won't have to worry about the return drive on your day of departure; trains to the city will run hourly all day. By the way, if that departure day is Saturday or Sunday, I don't know if I'd even include the mountains, if I were you.... the return journey by car will be slow, and the train journey may be interrupted by a closedown somewhere along the route, which means you'll have to change to a bus. This happens about one weekend in every three. You can check if your weekend is affected by ringing 131500.

I think the Hunter Valley is not worth the time and effort -- if you have to jettison something, then that might be the one. The wineries are okay, but I daresay you've seen others just as good.

I don't think you'll be doing the Spit Bridge to Manly walk, as good as it is, because the weather forecast for the next few days says rain, and the track is inclined to be muddy in winter, even on a fine day after a rainy period. If you get an absolutely glorious day, however, do try to fit it in, because the end of this trip is a look at Manly beach and the ferry ride already recommended to you.

Katoomba to Jenolan is about ninety minutes.... you travel very fast until the last fifteen kilometres, when the road becomes so steep and winding you slow almost to a crawl. Beware tour buses coming the other way! Best advice: go in EARLY, between 7 and 9 a.m., and then you won't pass a bus. Returning from Jenolan to Valley Heights would be a two-hour drive. Then it's another 75 minutes to the city. The round trip on the return via Windsor and Richmond is quite pleasant, and if you rent from Redicar, you may be able to drop the car back in Richmond and then hop a suburban train to the city (about an hour), as the company has a branch there. You'd need to check the feasibility of that with them.

If you want to stay a bit closer to the caves than Hartley, look up Hampton on google. There's a quaint hotel/motel there which I am always promising myself I will stop at one day, but so far haven't got around to it.

The Daytripper pass costs $AUD15, and is ideal if you plan to spend a day ferry hopping, as ferries are a bit more expensive, point to point, than buses or trains. However, the recommendation you got about seeing Sydney on foot is a good one.... it's a compact city, easy to walk around in, and you wouldn't really need to step on a train or bus. If you do buy a Daytripper, organise yourself so that you are using it on several occasions during the day, as most single journeys on buses and trains can be taken for around three dollars. By the way, the Daytripper operates as far as Emu Plains, at the foor of the Mountains, where there is a Budget rent-a-Car office right near the station.... another possibility as a starting point for your drive in the Mountains.

Hope this is a bit of help.... I guess you are already on your way!

hi alan
thanks for your help
really appreciate it
:)

Gosh

Alex, it is freezing, wet, windy since your date of arrival here in Sydney!

Melbourne weather lol. Please take it back with you!! :)