Oceania (Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific) - coogee or downtown sydney

visiting sydney in december with family(3 young kids and wife) and wondering whether to stay downtown sydney or at coogee for the beach?
any thoughts-is it a long way to get to the sights from coogee??
is coogee worth staying at??

thanks

visiting sydney in december with family(3 young kids and wife) and wondering whether to stay downtown sydney or at coogee for the beach?
any thoughts-is it a long way to get to the sights from coogee??
is coogee worth staying at??

thanks

Coogee is a nice beachside suburb. It's main attraction is the beach and it's extremely popular with young British backpackers (that should tell you something about the nightlife you can expect there). By public transport, and depending on time of day, it will take ~40-60 mins to get into the CBD. If it's your first time in Sydney and you are wanting to see the major sights, then it's probably advisable to stay in the CBD.

Personally, I would opt to stay in the CBD and make the trip to the beach when/if you want to. There are plenty of great beaches easily reachable by train/ferry/bus from the CBD.

Coogee is a nice beachside suburb. It's main attraction is the beach and it's extremely popular with young British backpackers (that should tell you something about the nightlife you can expect there). By public transport, and depending on time of day, it will take ~40-60 mins to get into the CBD. If it's your first time in Sydney and you are wanting to see the major sights, then it's probably advisable to stay in the CBD.

Personally, I would opt to stay in the CBD and make the trip to the beach when/if you want to. There are plenty of great beaches easily reachable by train/ferry/bus from the CBD.

thanks-what beaches do you suggest which are closer?

also what do you advise for kids inand around syd?

thanks

If you've got younger kids then I'd suggest the Harbour beaches rather than coast beaches. The beaches won't be significantly closer but basing yourself in the CBD will make other things more easily reachable than if you were in Coogee.

Personal favourites of mine are Nielsen Park (which has an excellent picnic area) and Camp Cove. Camp Cove is reachable by ferry to Watsons Bay from Circular Quay and then a 5-10 minute walk. Nielsen Park by ferry to Rose Bay and then 10 minute bus ride. Closer in is Redleaf which is easily reachable in probably ~20-25 minutes, although my least favourite of the Eastern harbour beaches (maybe because I remember, reluctantly, learning to swim there when I was 5!).

If your kids are a bit older then there's the usual suspects; Coogee, Bondi, Bronte, Manly.

Manly is worth a trip, the ferry ride gives you a good tour of the Harbour and there is a coastal beach and a harbour beach there.

As for other things to do, how old are the kids?

If you've got younger kids then I'd suggest the Harbour beaches rather than coast beaches. The beaches won't be significantly closer but basing yourself in the CBD will make other things more easily reachable than if you were in Coogee.

Personal favourites of mine are Nielsen Park (which has an excellent picnic area) and Camp Cove. Camp Cove is reachable by ferry to Watsons Bay from Circular Quay and then a 5-10 minute walk. Nielsen Park by ferry to Rose Bay and then 10 minute bus ride. Closer in is Redleaf which is easily reachable in probably ~20-25 minutes, although my least favourite of the Eastern harbour beaches (maybe because I remember, reluctantly, learning to swim there when I was 5!).

If your kids are a bit older then there's the usual suspects; Coogee, Bondi, Bronte, Manly.

Manly is worth a trip, the ferry ride gives you a good tour of the Harbour and there is a coastal beach and a harbour beach there.

As for other things to do, how old are the kids?

thanks-if not coogee we were thinking of staying at The Rocks..
kids are 9,7,3

thanks-if not coogee we were thinking of staying at The Rocks..
kids are 9,7,3

Lots to do around The Rocks, that would be the best choice by far imho.

I would stay in the Rocks. Great for the opera house/bridge and close to the trains and ferries. Depends what hotels you are thinking of staying at . I stayed at the Holiday Inn in the rocks last weekend and its in a great spot but is a bit tired on the inside (if you were thinking of staying there).

I'd like to disagree with everyone :-) I love the beach and always recommend my friends to stay near the beach. Some sydney beaches (e.g. Bondi or Manly) are very easy to reach the city from and are generally much nicer places to stay. There's something special about a walk on the beach when you wake up in the morning.

The CBD is probably only worth 1-2 days in any event - you'll see everything in that time. Any other tours / etc are just as easy to do from one of the beaches (though probably not Manly as the easy way into town is the ferry - driving there is a nightmare !). The kids will love being by the beach.

You are probably more likely to find suitable accommodation near one of the beaches too. Look at www.stayz.com.au for private homes available for holiday lettings.

I'd like to disagree with everyone :-) I love the beach and always recommend my friends to stay near the beach. Some sydney beaches (e.g. Bondi or Manly) are very easy to reach the city from and are generally much nicer places to stay. There's something special about a walk on the beach when you wake up in the morning.

The CBD is probably only worth 1-2 days in any event - you'll see everything in that time. Any other tours / etc are just as easy to do from one of the beaches (though probably not Manly as the easy way into town is the ferry - driving there is a nightmare !). The kids will love being by the beach.

You are probably more likely to find suitable accommodation near one of the beaches too. Look at www.stayz.com.au for private homes available for holiday lettings.

thanks-if i stayed at coogee , was thinking of staying at the crowne plaza..
you mentioned tours being easy to do from beach as well-presumably thats if you have a car?
we want to visit blue mountains(if any one has any other tour suggestions please advise!) but thought it would be difficult from the beaches without a car??

The Crowne Plaza will certainly have some tour buses that pickup there (and a concierge to arrange it if not regularly scheduled). The downside of staying at Coogee -- which is a very nice suburb and beach -- is that most of the kid attractions such as the Aquarium, zoo, Powerhouse museum are close to CBD and an hour from Coogee (which has no train service, and the buses take winding scenic routes through residential back streets -- fun once, and then maybe a bit boring). Another option would be to stay at an apartment at Bondi Junction (which has no beach but a big shopping mall, 15 min to CBD and kid friendly play space). Personally I would use stayz.com.au as recommended earlier and not stay at a hotel (presumably you are using points to have picked the Crowne Plaza, as it isn't a good choice otherwise, struck me as being more of a "conference at the beach" kind of hotel (never stayed there, but from walking past it).

The Crowne Plaza will certainly have some tour buses that pickup there (and a concierge to arrange it if not regularly scheduled). The downside of staying at Coogee -- which is a very nice suburb and beach -- is that most of the kid attractions such as the Aquarium, zoo, Powerhouse museum are close to CBD and an hour from Coogee (which has no train service, and the buses take winding scenic routes through residential back streets -- fun once, and then maybe a bit boring). Another option would be to stay at an apartment at Bondi Junction (which has no beach but a big shopping mall, 15 min to CBD and kid friendly play space). Personally I would use stayz.com.au as recommended earlier and not stay at a hotel (presumably you are using points to have picked the Crowne Plaza, as it isn't a good choice otherwise, struck me as being more of a "conference at the beach" kind of hotel (never stayed there, but from walking past it).

I stayed there once several years ago. Quite nice, but guess what...I was attending a conference. That's exactly what the Crowne Plaza is.

thanks-if i stayed at coogee , was thinking of staying at the crowne plaza..
you mentioned tours being easy to do from beach as well-presumably thats if you have a car?
we want to visit blue mountains(if any one has any other tour suggestions please advise!) but thought it would be difficult from the beaches without a car??

You could hire a car for the day. If you're not too concerned about driving on the wrong side of the road.

I agree with number_6 though, you will be well away from most things (aside from the beach) for kids.

Bondi Junction isn't such a bad idea, it's only 10-15 minutes to the CBD by train and 15-20 minutes to Bondi beach (and similar distance to the other beaches I mentioned before).

You could hire a car for the day. If you're not too concerned about driving on the wrong side of the road.



I think we'd all be concerned if he drove on the wrong side of the road. Best he stay to the left if he drives here.

thanks to all for the tips and concern about my driving(live in japan and am british so prob ok:))
yes was going to use pc points so coogee beach or the hol inn on the Rocks or Potters point...
coogee beach does seem a bit far out as you say...
we will be there over new yrs and are int in the NYE fireworks,but worried that it will be far too much for small kids with crowds and late at night-is that the case?
i thought maybe the coogee firworks might be better for them.,..

any tips on trips outside the city>

There's a great thread here on NYE with kids:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/australia-new-zealand-south-pacific/1310731-sydney-nye-kids-recommendations.html

It is all about the kids. If you go for one of the say island options they could have a snooze between the 9pm and midnight fireworks. It really is something they'll never forget.

Perhaps if you are doing NYE, you could stay in the rocks that night.

I'm a bit biased about the beach (I live in Bondi and am also a volunteer surf lifesaver there), but IME kids will much prefer that than being in the city.

If you want to go to the blue mountains the cheaper choice would probably be to hire a car for a day for 5 people (the tours will be way more expensive). Driving in Sydney is way easier than driving in Japan or the UK - just make sure you get a satnav.

The Crowne Plaza Coogee is a conference hotel, no doubt about it. Any accommodation over NYE in Sydney is going to be horrendously expensive, so be warned !

thanks to all for the tips and concern about my driving(live in japan and am british so prob ok:))
yes was going to use pc points so coogee beach or the hol inn on the Rocks or Potters point...
coogee beach does seem a bit far out as you say...
we will be there over new yrs and are int in the NYE fireworks,but worried that it will be far too much for small kids with crowds and late at night-is that the case?
i thought maybe the coogee firworks might be better for them.,..

any tips on trips outside the city>

IMO, you should go for the big fireworks. The kids will love it and it's a truly memorable experience. It will be a late night and I definately wouldn't suggest going into town on NYE if you are staying in Coogee as you will have a long trip home.

thanks-i just worry bout having so spend a whole day marking out a spot which i dont really want to do ,and getting the kids back afterwards when its so busy... i looked on the link that was posted but that seemed to show the same problems-any ideas??
many thanks again btw

was actually looking now and can see hardly any hotels in the cbd for nye av now.do they come av later?

was actually looking now and can see hardly any hotels in the CBD for NYE av now. Do they come av later?The popular hotels get booked out early (like Jan). Just keep looking

was actually looking now and can see hardly any hotels in the cbd for nye av now.do they come av later?

Are you looking for the single night or for the whole stay? Many (most?) CBD hotels will not take booking for only NYE, you will have to book 3 or 4 nights.

thanks-i just worry bout having so spend a whole day marking out a spot which i dont really want to do ,and getting the kids back afterwards when its so busy... i looked on the link that was posted but that seemed to show the same problems-any ideas??
many thanks again btw

was actually looking now and can see hardly any hotels in the cbd for nye av now.do they come av later?

If your living in Coogee you can always go to Watsons Bay to see the fireworks. Head to the area during the arvo and have a nice dinner and then you can watch the fireworks from there.

If your living in Coogee you can always go to Watsons Bay to see the fireworks. Head to the area during the arvo and have a nice dinner and then you can watch the fireworks from there.

sorry but how would i get there and more importantly back??

Getting to Watsons Bay would be an absolute nightmare from Coogee.

If you wanted to go that way, I'd go to Dudley page Reserve instead:

http://familyfunsydney.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/new-years-eve-dudley-page-reserve.html

It has a point blank view of the bridge and harbour. You could also drive there as there's plenty of street parking in Dover Heights (if you had a car). Other than that, it's a bus to Bondi Junction and then a Bus to Coogee.

Getting to Watsons Bay would be an absolute nightmare from Coogee.

If you wanted to go that way, I'd go to Dudley page Reserve instead:

http://familyfunsydney.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/new-years-eve-dudley-page-reserve.html

It has a point blank view of the bridge and harbour. You could also drive there as there's plenty of street parking in Dover Heights (if you had a car). Other than that, it's a bus to Bondi Junction and then a Bus to Coogee.

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