eng3

I understand, I grew up in chicago and have never been to any of the tourist attractions. Thanks for the type about the south pylon, I was looking for a cheaper quicker option.

As for food, I was planning to use Yelp or something similar (if there's a local reviews site) to pick out where I want to eat. I don't really like seafood although I'll eat things like fish and chips. I'm sure I'll figure that out. Not sure about kangaroo, don't usually like gamey meat. Speaking of that, going to AUS I feel like I need to see an actual kangaroo so maybe I'll goto zoo or something.

I've also been looking into taking a ferry somewhere but it seems like there's lots of destinations. I've also read about going to the Blue Mountains but that seems to mainly be hiking.

I've been focusing on Sydney right now, but I havent found much in Melbourne yet.

Perhaps one question you can answer quickly. What is the weather like in Sydney and Melbourne that time of year? Dec 4-9

mandolino

Urban Spoon seems bigger than Yelp in Australia. Eatability is a local one but some foodie sites seem to prize novelty over consistency.

Weather in December will be warm to hot but changeable - occasional rain storms and in Melbourne can drop by 10C in half an hour.

The long spells of hot dry weather don't usually start til January.

jpatokal

Take the ferry to Manly and back. Starts from Circular Quay, goes next to Harbour Bridge, around the Opera House, past the Heads and lands on the south side of Manly. Stroll down the Corso and you're in surf city.

Zach1213

Melbourne has become just about my favorite city in the world after countless trips. It's a great place to eat and drink. But let's start with actual sightseeing. To be honest, the best bet for a first thing to do is to jsut walk around the CBD. Get a feeling of the city, walk the alleys. But other things to do in MEL include:

-Botanic Garden and Shrine of Remembrance. Also, if you are a runner, there is an approximately 2.5 mile path (called the Tan Track) around the Botanic Garden.
-Queen Victoria Market, very near CBD
-University of Melbourne - great campus to walk around, very near CBD
-St Kilda - nice area to walk around, and head to the waterfront as well
-National Gallery of Victoria - I believe it's still free, except for special exhibits, very near CBD
-Melbourne Cricket Ground - great place to see if you love sports. If it's going on, check out an AFL or cricket match. AFL in particular is something I try to do any time I am in MEL during the season. You can also, I believe, just do tours of MCG

Food wise depends on what you like, but there's tons of good Asian, Italian, Greek, Middle Eastern and other food

Drink wise - for beer I like (nay, love) The Alehouse Project. For whisky, check out Whisky and Alement. For wine, you can pretty much pick anywhere with the good Victoria wines.

eng3

Thanks for the recommendations. I think I've got enough choices to fill my time in Sydney. Melbourne is a little lite. I don't mind a walk in the park but I'd like to have alternatives i the weather is bad

For Sydney, I've got the following on my to-see list:
Opera House
Bridge
Powerhouse museum
maritime museum
Anzac war memorial
Ferry to somewhere (ie. Manly, Ft Denison, Cockatoo)
Maybe:
Wildlife Zoo
Botanic Gardens
Sydney Tower
Hyde Park Barracks Museum

Melbourne:
Botanic or Fitzroy Gardens
Victoria Market
Old Melbourne Gaol
Shrine of Remembrance
Walk around River
Maybe:
National Gallery
Eureka Skydeck
Moorabbin Air Museum
Great Ocean road (day trip)

Still working out the particulars and the schedule

Zach1213

Great Ocean Road is a good day trip. So is a wine tour if you're interested - great vineyards within a couple hours of MEL.

Immigration Museum is surprisingly interesting.

I'm not a huge fan of the aquarium personally (SeaLife) but people seem to love it. It's right in the heart of the city which is nice.

Honestly, in my opinion having visited both frequently but lived in neither - Sydney is a place to visit, Melbourne is a place to live. MEL isn't the place to go for sightseeing, it's the place to go to eat, drink and be merry, with some sightseeing splashed in here or there. It's a good city for culture, for arts. Not saying Sydney doesn't have that by any means. But what I love about Melbourne is just going to the different ethnic neighborhoods, enjoying the cafes (and I'm not even a huge coffee drinker, but the cafe culture in MEL is fantastic)...that kinda stuff.

Finally, Fitzroy Gardens is quite small, whereas the Botanic is large and impressive. They're not really comparable. Check out the Botanic if you must choose between the two - it's lovely.

bearkatt

to me, the greatest thing about Sydney is the harbor and the beaches. it is a spectacularly beautiful place. the beach walk from coogee beach over to bondi is exceptional. also manly and watsons bay are can't miss. doyles there at watsons bay is a famous place for fish and chips.

bensyd

The ferry to Watsons Bay is pretty nice and when you get there there's a large restaurant/pub right on the water with amazing views back to Sydney. It's best to get there around sunset and watch the sun set over the city.^

eng3

Thanks everyone,
I'll take another look at the the immigration museum. I've heard the same thing about Sydney vs Melbourne. More sightseeing vs more "culture". I like to eat/drink/be merry as much as anyone else but that doesnt fill the day. I figured if I fall short on things to do, I can always do the day trip. Just seems like I'm using up a large chunk of time sitting on a bus.

As for the gardens, I'll checkout one of them, either syd or mel, I just put them on my list as options.

Yep, Doyles/Watson's Bay was on my ferry list so I'm pretty sure I'll go there and/or Manly. Not sure about the other islands.

bensyd

Melbourne has done a fantastic job of marketing itself that way. Calling itself the cultural/dining/"European" capital feels very gimmicky and doesn't really hold up to any sort of scrutiny.

jpatokal

Agreed. Also, Sydney has tons of "ethnic" neighbourhoods, they're just mostly pretty far-flung and well and truly off the tourist radar. Eg. in the inner west you've got the Italian cluster around Leichhardt/Haberfield/Five Dock, Koreans in Strathfield, Chinese in Ashfield, Lebanese in Punchbowl, Indian in Harris Park, etc. (Source: Used to live in MEL, now in SYD. About the only thing I miss is the rental prices...)

Back to the OP's itinerary, unless you've got science-inclined school kids in tow, I'd drop the Powerhouse Museum, there's very little if anything "Australian" or Sydney about it.

I like Cockatoo Island, but unless you've got a thing for steampunky derelict warehouses that have somehow gotten themselves on the UNESCO World Heritage list, it's probably not worth the effort. Even though there is a pretty great piratical pizza-and-cocktails bar there.

eng3

I like aviation (obviously) also I work in the military (naval) industry so any museums in that area or modern technology interests me. If that museum is geared more towards kids then I'll prob drop it from my list.

Based on recommendations and reading online, I planned to take the ferry to watson bay and manly. cockatoo is next on the list if I have time. I'm considering doing all the ferry trips my first day when I arrive. (Flight lands around 8:30am but still have to drop bags at the hotel. Ofcourse all this stuff may move around due to weather.

mandolino

Other people called it that long before the tourism people latched on.
Melbourne's not "European". It's very Australian.

bearkatt

http://www.transportnsw.info/en/tick...ulti-day.page? you might consider this. a roundtrip ferry to manly alone is around $16.

eng3

Now that I've narrowed down the places I think I might go, I'm starting to plan my itinerary to try to figure out how I will handle public transit. (Opal card or not). I am a little confused, they list an "Adult single" price and then an "Adult return" price that is higher. Does return mean just the return ticket or the cost buying a roundtrip? But anyways, the day pass is one of the reasons I thought about just doing it all in one day. Arrive from the airport, stop at hotel, go to Manly, walk around, etc, then maybe stop by cockatoo or fort denison on the way over to watson bay, dinner, back to hotel to crash.