Must-see attractions in New South Wales

  • Top Choice
    Bondi Beach

    Definitively Sydney, Bondi is one of the world’s great beaches. It’s the closest ocean beach to the city centre (8km away), has consistently good (though…

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    Sydney Harbour Bridge

    Sydneysiders love their giant 'coathanger', which opened in 1932. The best way to experience this majestic structure is on foot. Stairs and lifts ascend…

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    Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park

    A spectacular mix of sandstone, Australian bushland and tranquil water vistas, this 14,928-hectare park forms Sydney’s northern boundary. It’s located 20…

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    Watsons Bay

    Lovely Watsons Bay, east of the city centre and north of Bondi, was once a small fishing village, as evidenced by the heritage cottages that pepper the…

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    Taronga Zoo Sydney

    A 12-minute ferry ride from Circular Quay, this forested harbour hillside is full of kangaroos, koalas and similarly hirsute Australians, plus numerous…

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    Three Sisters

    The Blue Mountains' essential sight is a rocky trio called the Three Sisters. Just an hour outside of Sydney, they stand at over 2953ft (900m) and a…

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    Sydney Opera House

    Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, this magnificent building is Australia's most famous landmark. Visually referencing a yacht's sails, it's a…

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    North Head

    About 3km south of central Manly, spectacular North Head offers dramatic cliffs, lookouts, secluded beaches, pretty paths through the native scrub, and…

  • Top Choice
    Montague Island (Barranguba)

    Wildlife thrives on this small, pest-free island, 9km offshore from Narooma, where fur seals frolic and 90 bird species wheel overhead. Little penguins…

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    Taronga Western Plains Zoo

    This is Dubbo's star attraction, not to mention one of the best zoos in regional Australia. You can walk the 6km circuit, ride a hire bike ($17 to $24 for…

  • Top Choice
    Jenolan Caves

    Far from other Blue Mountains attractions, the limestone Jenolan Caves is one of the most extensive, accessible and complex systems in the world – a vast…

  • Top Choice
    West Head

    This central section of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a spectacular wilderness, with awe-inspiring vistas over Pittwater and Broken Bay, hidden beach…

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    Art Gallery of NSW

    With its neoclassical Greek frontage and modern rear, this much-loved institution plays a prominent and gregarious role in Sydney society. Blockbuster…

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    Sydney Sea Life Aquarium

    As well as regular tanks, this impressive complex has large pools that you can walk through – safely enclosed in Perspex tunnels – as an intimidating…

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    Australian National Maritime Museum

    Beneath a soaring roof, the Maritime Museum sails through Australia’s inextricable relationship with the sea. Exhibitions range from Indigenous canoes to…

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    Royal National Park

    The 15,091-hectare Royal National Park was established in 1879, making it the oldest national park in the world after Yellowstone in the USA. Stretching…

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    Royal Botanic Garden

    Southeast of the Opera House, this garden was established in 1816 and features plant life from around the world. Within the gardens are hothouses with…

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    Cockatoo Island

    Studded with photogenic industrial relics, convict architecture and art installations, fascinating Cockatoo Island (Wareamah) opened to the public in 2007…

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    Centennial Park

    Scratched out of the sand in 1888 in grand Victorian style, Sydney’s biggest park is a rambling 189-hectare expanse full of horse riders, joggers,…

  • Top Choice
    Worimi Conservation Lands

    Located at Stockton Bight, these are the longest moving sand dunes in the southern hemisphere, stretching more than 35km. Thanks to the generosity of the…