Thanks for the replies. You guys have me excited! Rooms from the 24th to the 29th not hard to come by. But after that the better hotels are either booked or have rates that are simply insane (Shangri La for example has 4 night minimum for the NYE weekend and the harbor view room, not a suite, is $AUD 2145 per night!!!). So, still working on the last few days accommodations. I know we're not likely to end up anywhere too special for Christmas lunch/dinner, but if anyone has suggestions that are the kinds of places that are not top tier (and therefore may not booked solid) I'd love to hear about it. Of course I am all ears so any other must do's please jump in. We tend to be fairly active types....so beaches, cycling, walking, are all good. Boats? Love them. Nice outdoor restaurants are always wonderful too. Not into overly pretentious dining; we're fairly casual usually but totally find it worth it to pay the price to be in a great location (nice patio, nice view, attractive space) to enjoy good food. And we do clean up okay for the occasional night out that is a bit more on the formal side. It is Sydney though so I am thinking it is more like So. California in terms of casualness. Right? Or is the British tradition still on?