jessi

We will be travelling in July and Sydney is our final stop. We would hire a car in Adelaide and drive all the way to Sydney. At first we planned to travel around Sydney by using public transport but we have been told that it's better to continue touring Sydney on self-driving. I would like to hear your comment on it. Besides, my friend suggests me to hire 'Station Wagon' because it would be free to park at the parking lot. Is that really the case?

WMR

To paraphrase Archie Bunker, I've got one word for you: do-not-rent-a-car-in-Syndey! Public transport is available to take you anywhere you want to go, and much more convenient than driving/parking. Adelaide is a different story - we were glad to have a car there to get to sites away from immediate downtown area, and to get to and around the Barossa.

pat

Got back from Sydney last week, and the public transportation was no problem. We used the bus, and ferries and got to all the places we wanted to see without problems. Besides, the traffic in Sydney is heavy. I wouldn`t want to drive there. We used an explorer pass when we were there last year, as it covered the explorer and bondi buses and ferries. This time we found out that you needed to purchase an explorer pass for a 3 day period. Since we were only there for one day, we found we could get a one day pass on the regular city buses. It also covered the ferries and cost $13 australian, so it was a good deal for us. I can`t recall if it covered the train or not. We took the ferry over to Doyle`s on Watson`s Bay and had the freshest fish I have ever had. (I live in the desert) The advice came from this forum to go to lunch there. We came back via bus. Forget the car.

lcuy

I agree with WMR and Pat. In addition, the taxis are very reasonable in Sydney, so we used them in the late evening when it was cold.

Alan

I have never heard of this business about station wagons being free at any parking lot... don't count on it. The only advantage of a station wagon is that you can park it in loading zones outside shops for s few minutes, while you can proove you are actually loading. But that's not much of an advantage, as most of the shops you would want to visit would be surounded by "no standing" signs. A agree totally with the previous posters.... a car would be a liability in Sydney. Public transport is the way to go... for all it's imperfections, it takes all the stress away from you, and you will meet lots of friendly people. You won't see many smiling faces behind the wheels of cars, especially if you are not sure where you are going or what the rules are!

Kerry

I live in the suburbs of Sydney and usually take public transport and/or taxis when I need to visit the city. Parking in the streets is almost impossible,parking stations are very expensive and there is no such thing as "free parking for station wagons". All major tourist attractions are easily accessible by trains, buses or ferries. A car would only be useful if you wished to venture some distance from Sydney eg. The Hunter Valley. If you intend to stay in Sydney ditch the car and use public transport.

LizF

I second all the previous posters - do not get a car in Sydney and also for what its worth - do not drive from Adelaide to Sydney either.......boring!!!!<BR>Public transport in Sydney is one of the best systems you could get anywhere and the price is so low for the convenience. There is no such thing as free parking for station wagons, obviously a peculiar joke. IF you need a car for some trip out of Sydney then you can get one for the day or two but don't get one in advance. <BR>