As a university student, I regularly find myself being bombarded by homework assignments, course readings, essays, online quizzes, club meetings, group presentations… you get the idea. Being a student is a full-time job, and one that leaves many of us with little to no free time. Between all the things that we have to juggle to make sure everything stays afloat and we don’t fail any classes, we may sometimes feel a bit suffocated by responsibility. And when those rare periods of free time do finally come along, we might be left completely stumped as to what we should actually be doing with them. Sometimes we just want to catch up on sleep, and that is A-O.K. But if you’re on study abroad, you’re probably there because you wanted to explore a new part of the world, and even sleeping can feel wasteful.
So what then should we do with our free time? Well, if you’re ever bored in Sydney, this is the guide for you! Below I’ve compiled a list of 6 fun things to do and places to explore that I’ve discovered in my time here.
1 – Do the Tourist Thing
If you tell someone that you’re going to Sydney, odds are they know about exactly two things in the city – the Opera House, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. While these aren’t the only cool things that you can see here, they are pretty darn cool and definitely worth a visit. I was surprised to find that the Opera House looks much different in person, and you really can’t appreciate how detailed and massive it is until you’re standing right next to it. The bridge gave me a similar feeling, and the great thing is that the two landmarks are practically adjacent to each other! If you’re feeling particularly adventurous, you can even climb the Harbor Bridge – it can be quite expensive (Around $120), but everyone I know who’s done it says it’s absolutely worth it. And it’s probably the best way to get a view of the city.
If you’re okay with the second best view, you can make your way up to the top of the Westfield tower, about a twenty minute walk away from the bridge. The tower is the tallest building in Sydney, and a shopping mall to boot. So if you’re looking to get some souvenirs for friends and family – or a little something for yourself – this is the place to do it. If you’re not so keen on shopping, but youv’e worked up an appetite from bridge-climbing all day, you can take the lift up to the top floor, where there’s a rotating restaurant with a panoramic view of the city. Yep, that’s right – the top of the tower rotates so that everyone gets to see everything.
As ‘touristy’ as all these activities are, they’re popular for a reason, and if you left Sydney without seeing them, you’d be leaving disappointed.
2 – Enjoy Sydney’s Public Parks
The first thing in Sydney that truly blew me away (aside from the backwards-flushing toilets) was the absolutely insane amount of parks that are present in the city. As of 2019, there are more than 400 public parks in Sydney! Four hundred! There’s so much open, green space in Sydney that you can hardly exit one without spotting another just a few blocks down the road. If you’re attending the University of Sydney like me, you’ll be directly adjacent to Victoria Park – a modestly sized area with a playground, a pond, and a public pool. In close proximity are Hyde Park, Wentworth Park, Camperdown Park, and Prince Alfred Park – all wonderful, lively places to kick around a soccer ball or just sit down and read for a while. Go about 2 miles east and you’ll find Centennial Park – the largest in Sydney, encompassing about 900 acres; for comparison, Central Park in NYC is about 840 acres, and Boston Common is just 50. In short, Sydney has got us beat by quite a large margin, and you’d be silly not to enjoy it while you’re here.
3 – Hit the Beach
Something that I failed to mention when I talked about doing “the tourist thing” is that a huge portion of Sydney’s fame comes from its legendary beaches. Whether you’re an avid surfer or just the kind of person who likes to soak up some sunbeams, Sydney has got you covered. On the east side, there’s Bondi beach (pronounced like bond-eye, if you don’t want Aussies to make fun of you), a huge expanse of perfect sand sat between some gorgeous natural cliffs. Although it’s a bit of a trek from the University of Sydney, Bondi is going to be your best bet for surfing, tanning, body-boarding, or whatever you might want to do. If you decide that it’s too crowded, or you’d rather go for a walk, you can take the two-hour hike down to Coogee beach, which follows the cliffs that make up Sydney’s east shore. It’s a phenomenal hike, where you’ll be surrounded by colorful flowers and epic rock formations, as you journey through dozens of smaller beaches and swanky residential areas.
If Bondi isn’t your thing, you can head up north to Manly – it’s a bit far off, but you can take the ferry across the harbor from Circular Quay for about $10. Manly Beach is great if you’re looking for a more relaxed experience among a much smaller crowd. And if you’d still like to surf, good news! It’s Australia – you can do that pretty much anywhere. If you’re going with friends, make sure to bring a cooler and some good food, because you can walk just a bit further, past the Manly crowds to Shelly Beach, which has six free barbecue spots, and a great north-facing view.
4 – See the Nightlife
If you came to Sydney because you wanted to party, well… you probably should’ve gone to Melbourne instead. But it’s too late for that now, so if you’re willing to deal with Sydney’s “lockout laws” (where you can’t enter any club or bar after 1:30AM), you can still have a pretty great time here. Aussies love to drink, and they have some great stuff here, but if that’s not really your scene, don’t worry – they love to dance too. If you’re looking to get down to some live music, believe it or not, the Opera House is not the only venue in Sydney. Pubs and hotels on King St. in Newtown regularly host bands and DJs, and if you walk down the road for long enough on any Thursday, Friday, or Saturday night you’re almost guaranteed to find something that’ll delight your ears. If clubs are more your style, don’t fret! As long as you get there before 1:30AM, there are dozens of clubs around Town Hall and Darling Harbor where you can dance the night away. Finally, if you just want to have a calm night out with some friends and maybe do some trivia, there are hundreds of cozy bars all over the place. My personal favorite is the Lansdowne Hotel Pub – my friends and I go to their quiz nights every Wednesday at 7:30, and although we’re not very good (yet), it’s always heaps of fun.
5 – Take a Hike!
I’ve been living pretty much exclusively in cities for the past few years since I started college, but having grown up in a rural area, I have to acknowledge how important it is to step away from all the hubbub every once in a while. One thing that I didn’t know when I got here was how many great places there are to go hiking just outside the city. The first place that you’ll hear about is probably the Blue Mountains – a vast mountain range a few hours west of Sydney. If you have access to a car, you can get out there in just about an hour, but if you don’t, there’s no need to worry! You can take public transportation – mind you, it’ll take about two and a half hours from Sydney Central. While this isn’t the most convenient method of transportation, you can certainly make it worth your while. If you’re attending the University of Sydney, though, and you know that you’re going to want to go on some “bushwalks” while you’re here, make sure to join the USyd Bushwalking Society – a club that takes its members to different hiking hotspots every weekend, all for a meager one-time membership fee of $5. While I haven’t personally been available to go on any of their adventures, my roommate goes bushwalking with them every weekend, and he says the hikes just “keep getting better.”
6 – Just Walk
Finally, if you really don’t know what you want to do, my personal recommendation is that you just sort of… walk around. This is always my favorite thing to do in a new city, and I think it’s probably the best way to get familiar with a place. Whether you’re out jogging, or walking with friends, or even playing Pokemon Go (do people still play that game?), it’ll help you know your way around very quickly. I’ve barely been in Sydney for a month but I try to walk for at least an hour every day, and I’ve uncovered some awesome spots that would’ve otherwise remained hidden. Do this often enough, and you’ll be able to navigate just as well as any local. Sydney is especially great for this, because like I said earlier, it’s absolutely chock-full of parks and beaches, ripe for exploration.
