Darling Harbour

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth formally opened the avant-garde Darling Harbour in 1988 as a part of Australia’s bicentennial celebrations. Adjacent to the city centre, it’s a large recreational and pedestrian only arena built around a waterway that’s connected to the main Sydney Harbour. As the city’s “buzz” place, the precinct is filled with attractions for all ages. This includes several museums, an aquarium, a zoo, entertainment venues, convention centres, trendy shopping outlets, and hordes of restaurants, bars, and cafes. One of Sydney’s best Indian Restaurant, Zaffran, is located here. For 26 million visitors annually, it’s almost mandatory to check out the amazing IMAX Theatre which has the biggest cinema screen in the world, said to be more than eight stories high. The other two favourites are the Australian Maritime Museum which houses one of the largest fleets of any museum in the world, and the Powerhouse Museum where collections showcase scientific and technological innovations. From first light to glittery nights, there’s always something going on here – whether it is street theatres, music and dance, or mini circus and acrobatics. During the Chinese New Year, the venue gets alive with dragons dancing in tune with the beating of the drums while colours fly in the air during Holi. Most Saturdays there are spectacular fireworks on display in the evening