Moving away from Sydney CBD area to North Sydney, where you can easily spend the entire day there. Start your day with Jacaranda viewing in the early morning before McDougall Street gets too crowded with tourists, followed by a hearty breakfast in Celsius Coffee Co before doing some sightseeing around Luna Park. For those who like to swim with a stunning view of Harbour Bridge, you can head to the North Olympic Pool. Depending on the time, you can either have your lunch around the area or pack your lunch and make your way to Taronga Zoo. If you have more time to spare, you can even go Balmoral Beach by hopping on a public bus from Taronga Zoo! If you stay late in North Sydney, there are multiple recommended dinner options available! Oh gosh, such a fulfilling day, isn't it? If you don't like rushing through your day, these can be split over 2 days.
Let's read on for more detailed reviews on each attraction! :)
Attractions
Jacaranda viewing at McDougall Street
In late October and early-mid November every year, Sydney will welcome the purple sea of blooming Jacaranda. While it is just a simple residential street on normal days, McDougall Street turns into major tourist attraction once a year, being one of the best places to view Jacaranda in Sydney. While standing at the middle of the road gives you the best shot, please beware of the coming vehicles. After all, safety first.
The easiest way to get there is to take a train to Milson's point and walk to the street (~10-min). We reached there around 8am in the morning and it wasn't as crowded as we expected. We literally had the entire place to ourselves before tourists started flocking in half an hour later. We could be just lucky because it's not peak season yet.
Random photo taken with the blooming flowers.
The famous purple tunnel. While the purple flowers looked less dense than those photos uploaded in Instagram (probably edited?), the view was still breathtaking.
Outfits with contrasting colours will do the trick.
Living a purple dream...
Typical tourist shot. The quirky face is strangely attractive?
Don't forget about a good shot in front of the colourful Ferris Wheels!
View from Luna Park. I am sure the view would be amazing if the sky is clear from haze.
Located right next to Luna Park, this place features a Olympic-standard outdoor pool, sauna, spa, gym and an indoor pool. Just pay a small fee and you can swim with a spectacular view of Sydney Harbour Bridge. As a tropical girl, the weather in Sydney back then was still too cooling for me to step in the water (wasn't aware that it's a heated pool)!
Photo from Sydney.com.
If you are just visiting the zoo without the rest of the attractions in North Sydney, the most convenient way to reach there is by ferry, which is usually included as part of the tour package from multiple providers. We took buses instead wherein you would be required to change once and the journey took about 45-min. Some tips for a great visit to Taronga Zoo include:
- Get your tickets beforehand. You can either purchase online (extra 20% off), from ticket booth at Wharf 4 in Circular Quay (for those who take ferry) or purchase package from private providers (usually includes zoo entrance ticket and ferry ride).
- The entrance ticket includes a round trip of cable car ride. For people who come by ferry, it's wiser to take the cable car up to hill to begin your journey, particularly if you don't feel like spending too much energy walking up the slopes. Here comes the tricky part. You have to get your entrance ticket first before you can use the cable car service but you have to make your way to the main entry that is located at the top of the hill. Warning for those who travel by ferry and do not purchase the tickets in advance. On the other hand, if you take bus, you will end up at the main entry.
- Pack your own lunch. The food options are limited and overpriced. More importantly, the food doesn't taste good, according to online reviews.
- The spectacular view of Sydney Harbour from the cable car is not to be missed!
One main highlight for a lot of visitors is koala encounter, where you can spend some time with the the famous Australian icon. Bear in mind that you are not allowed to touch these little creatures but the session comes with a complimentary souvenir photo. Each session costs AUD29.95 for up to 4 people. As there were only 2 of us, we found the session not cost-effective and decided not to sign up for it. I would like to recommend another free-of-charge activity instead - daily seal show! They were really cute (big) babies.
Overall, I had a great experience here. If you haven't visited any other zoos in Aussie, this is probably a good one to start with, particularly for those who wish to see Australian wildlife such as kangaroos, birds, koalas etc.
I was there to see Australian wildlife! Kangaroos and wallabies are so adorable!
Introducing you the second biggest bird species in the world - Emu.
Food
Address: Commuter Wharf, Holbrook Ave, Kirribilli NSW 2061, Australia.
Opening hours: Weekdays: 7.30am to 2pm; Weekends: 8am to 3pm
A hidden cafe that attracts batches of visitors with its beautiful view and mouth-watering food! I have to say that unless you come by ferry, you have to walk quite a bit to reach the cafe. Avoid peak lunch hours as there are few tables available and the cafe doesn't accept booking.
When you browse through Instagram, you will see how photogenic the cafe is. For us, being unlucky, it was a gloomy (hazy) morning and the view was not as great. Nonetheless, the trip was not wasted because the signature Celsius Waffle here is to die for, in contrast to many Instagrammable cafes which emphasize ambiance more than the food. :)
Celsius waffle with berries, maple syrup, toasted nut, edible flowers and heavenly good peanut butter cream. Such a pretty plating that deserves more photos.
The cloudy morning certainly
Lastly, we are approaching the end of Sydney series. I hope you have been enjoying reading!
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