Outdoorsy Sydney

NATURE, SYDNEY Updated : Oct 29, 2014, 03.34 PM IST

Photo by:  Rene Cunningham, Creative Commons Attribution Licence

If it's sun, sand and beautiful people you're after, you'll find it all in Sydney. But while most visitors flock to world-famous Bondi Beach to stake their summer turf between the bronzed lifeguards, sunburned backpackers and territorial surfers, it's worth exploring the surrounding Eastern Suburbs beaches like Bronte, Tamarama, Clovelly, Coogee and Maroubra, which exude more of a relaxed, local vibe - on weekdays,

The Royal Botanical Gardens and the Centennial parklands are vast swathes of green in the heart of the city and present ideal mid-day refuges. You can even get a surf lesson.
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THINGS TO DO, SYDNEY

Blue Mountains day trip

Just a 90-minute drive from Sydney, the Blue Mountains National Park has provided stressed city folk with the perfect weekend escape for decades. Make for the picturesque country town of Katoomba to enjoy stunning views ...more

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Park

NATURE, SYDNEY

Royal Botanic Gardens

Accessed from the eastern side of the Opera House, the Gardens have been a fixture of Sydney life for 200 years, and are home to some 10,000 different plant species as well as a Herbarium, a Tropical Centre, a research l...more

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BEACHES, SYDNEY

Northern Beaches

Perched on a peninsula 13 kms north of the Harbour Bridge, Manly is the party hub of Sydney's northern beaches. Like Bondi, Manly Beach, which is easily accessible via a scenic ferry trip from Circular Quay, can get pret...more

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BEACHES, SYDNEY

Harbour Beaches

If you're not big on waves and value your privacy, Sydney's harbour beaches are just the ticket. Tucked away on each side of the harbour, some only accessible by foot, these patches of sand are ripe for relaxing.

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BEACHES, SYDNEY

Eastern Beaches

If it's sun, sand and beautiful people you're after, you'll find it all here. But while most visitors flock to world-famous Bondi Beach to stake their summer turf between the bronzed lifeguards, sunburned backpackers and...more

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Park

NATURE, SYDNEY

Centennial Parklands

Encompassing three adjoining parks – Centennial Park, Moore Park and Queens Park in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, this lush 360-hectare oasis is large enough for every visitor to find their own quiet corner to take a cheeky ...more

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THINGS TO DO, SYDNEY

Take a surf lesson

With dozens of world-class surfing beaches on its doorstep, Sydney is the perfect place to take your first surf lesson. It may sound daunting, but lessons are held using foam boards to prevent injury, and by law, all ins...more

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THINGS TO DO, SYDNEY

Ride the City-to-Manly Ferry

Ask any respecting Sydneysider for their must-do in Sydney, and chances are it'll be this excursion. Leaving roughly every half hour from Circular Quay, the Manly ferry chugs past some of Sydney's most interesting sites ...more

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THINGS TO DO, SYDNEY

Coastal walks

Sydney boasts dozens of lovely walking tracks around the harbour and along the surrounding beaches. The 2.5km Bondi to Bronte walk (which plays host to the popular Sculpture by the Sea exhibition from Oct-Nov) is a favou...more

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