From its honeyed cliffs to its hidden coves, vibrant eat streets and world-class attractions, Sydney is a magic place for young families.
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Illustration by Mike Rossi @micro.grafik
1. Catch the ferry to Manly
If you want to ogle at Sydney Opera House from the water, but don’t want to spend a fortune, then we recommend catching the Manly Ferry to and from Circular Quay (Cost: Adult: $15.30; Child: $7.65). Manly is one of the most popular spots in Australia for fish and chips: order a family-sized serve to go from Fishmongers Manly to enjoy with your toes in the sand on Manly Beach. Wander for 15 minutes along the coastal walk to Shelly Beach to spot the miniature sculptures dotted along the path and have a paddle at Fairy Bower Pool.
Catch a ferry to Manly. (Image: Destination NSW)
2. Roar and Snore at Taronga Zoo
Find out why wombats do cube-shaped poo, discover what nocturnal creatures get up to after dark, and try to guess the name of the animal bellowing outside your window during a sleepover at Taronga Zoo. Stay in safari-style tents with harbour views at Roar and Snore just a half hour ferry ride from Sydney’s CBD. Roar and Snore costs $1068 per family of four and include meals and two-day entry to the zoo, including early morning exclusive access.
Roar and Snore at Taronga Zoo. (Image: Taronga Zoo)
3. Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge
Kids eight years and up can join their parents on a Sydney Harbour BridgeClimb to enjoy 360-degree views from the top of the iconic ‘Coathanger’. Those daring enough to don the blue jumpsuit will take about three hours to climb four ladders and a total of 1332 steps to get to the summit, which is located on the bridge’s upper arch on the Opera House side. Take a twilight tour to catch the last rays of golden sunlight skim across the harbour, which is 134 metres below (Cost: Adult: $198; Child: $126).
Climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge. (Image: Destination NSW)
4. Dinosaurs at Australian Museum
The word ‘dinosaur’ means ‘terrible lizards’ in Greek. Travel back in time to discover more about these terrible lizards that roamed the Earth some 65 million years in the Dinosaurs exhibit at the Australian Museum. The museum recently underwent a $57.5 million renovation, enriching the interactive experiences for young ones and inspiring budding palaeontologists in the Prehistoric Playground. Want to spend a night at the museum? You can explore the incredible collections after dark on Thursdays. General admission to the museum is free.
Dinosaurs at Australian Museum. (Image: James Morgan)
5. Q Station Ghost Tour
Sydney’s former Quarantine Station, built in the 1830s, is said to be one of Australia’s most haunted sites. While Q Station ceased to operate as a quarantine facility in 1984, evidence from some of the 16,000 sick immigrants who passed through its doors remains in inscriptions on gravestones and monuments. The heritage-listed Q Station, which sprawls over the hillside at North Head, offers paranormal tours conducted by guides who have a lot of spooky ghost stories to tell. And you can sleep over from $219 a night.
Q Station Ghost Tour. (Image: Sue Stubbs)
6. Discover Indigenous heritage in the city
Enjoy a 90-minute walkabout with a Southern X guide on The Rocks Aboriginal Dreaming Tour (Illi Langi), where you will hear about our First Peoples’ saltwater heritage and connection to Sydney’s waterways and foreshores (Cost: Adult: $59; Child: $33). Shared Knowledge guides also steer visitors around the Royal Botanic Garden to gain a deeper understanding of Aboriginal heritage and collect a bounty of foods for a Bush Food Morning Tea at Victoria Lodge (Cost: $49 per person). An Aboriginal Cultural Tour of Barangaroo, along Wulugul Walk, Sydney’s newest headland reserve, also outlines the significance of various Sydney sites to the Eora Nation (Cost: Adult: $36.30; Child: $16.50).
Discover Indigenous heritage in the city. (Image: James Tran/Bush Food Experience)
7. Visit one of the city’s zoos
Fill a day at Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park in Doonside with interactive animal experiences such as feeding kangaroos and strolling through the lorikeet aviary (Cost: Adult: $35; Child: $22). Meet Davey the resident quokka at Wild Life Sydney Zoo in Darling Harbour, who is happiest when crunching on his fave food: sweet potatoes. A two-attraction pass includes entry to the adjacent SEA Life Sydney Aquarium where you can get face-to-flipper with penguins, meet giant sea turtles and peer into tanks filled with sharks (Cost: Adult: $57; Child: $40). And Sydney Zoo in Bungarribee has tigers, chimpanzees and elephants (Cost: Adult: from $40; Child from $20).
Visit one of the city’s zoos. (Image: Destination NSW)
8. Be a pirate on Sydney harbour
Parrots and eye patches are part of the dress code onboard an immersive cruise on a historic 1850s-style ship with Sydney Harbour Tall Ships, which sails from Campbell’s Cove Jetty into Sydney Harbour. Help Captain Pineapple and his crew hoist the sails aboard the Pirate Cruise ($54 per person; $162 for a family pass), which sails for about 1.5 hours around the harbour.
Be a pirate on Sydney harbour. (Image: Destination NSW)
9. See the lights of Vivid
Ready, steady, glow. Sydney is set to sparkle in winter 2021 with the return of Vivid Sydney. No matter when you visit this celebrated festival of light, music and ideas you should plot a course around the various corners of the city – from Darling Harbour to The Rocks – which are painted in luminescent hues. Each year Vivid gets that little bit more amazing, with spectacular light installations and large-scale 3D projections; don’t miss the 100-metre floating Light Walk on Cockle Bay, a festival first. Plus there’s contemporary music performances, public talks and workshops.
See the lights of Vivid. (Image: Destination NSW)
10. Get hands-on at the Powerhouse Museum
The Powerhouse Museum is great for hands-on experiences with exhibitions that span design, technology, science and more. Fantastical Worlds is a great example of the museum’s contemporary curations, with objects chosen for the exhibition designed to instil a sense of wonder. Digital technology is a discipline celebrated in The Lab, an immersive multimedia space where you can expand your minds and learn how the technical and human aspects of science and humanity intersect. The museum is free to visit.
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