Sydney Insiders Blog

See your children’s faces light up by visiting some of your local festive light displays—a magical (and affordable!) way of getting the whole family in the Christmas spirit this year. These Sydney streets are some of the best to make a beeline for; renowned for their epic (and we mean, epic) light displays. Bondi 5 Waratah…

Once upon a time in Sydney, burgers—at least as we’ve come to know them—were pretty hard to come by. We’re talking those hefty, layered, over-the-top, dripping, saucy, American-style stacks that currently grace your Insta feed. A few years back, these guys didn’t really exist. We’ve largely got Mary’s, Chur Burger, and Dan Hong to thank for kicking things…

This is known as the most haunted hotel room in Australia, said to be inhabited by the ghost of a sailor murdered by a prostitute. The ghost supposedly only appears to women sleeping alone, recreating the circumstances of his death. Employees have said they felt like they were walking through a cobweb, like they were…

The third pop-up bar by the good people at The Wonderland Bar is an extravagant Christmas decorated bar decked out with baubles, tinsel, bows, wreaths, trees, and every other kind of Christmas decoration you can possibly think of. No square centimetre of the venue has been missed, with even the walls decorated in candy cane…

We can all appreciate the atmospheric experience of dining by candlelight, but why not take it a step further and dine entirely in the dark? Do you think that you could distinguish between flavours without actually seeing the meal in front of you? Psychologists have studied the impact that eating in the dark has on…

But if you’re looking down at your treasure map, (ie, your phone), you’ll walk right on by because Button Bar is hiding even though it’s in plain sight. But hey, that’s part of what makes this local treasure such a great find in Surry Hills. The other part is that it’s pirate-themed and who doesn’t…

That’s possibly because you never had brunch at 35 metres high in the sky, and never while going round and round on a Ferris Wheel while taking in 360-degree views. Good news, Darling Harbour’s resident giant wheel is hosting brunch in one of its cabins for two, three or four people. The food is supplied…

The Chau Chak Wing Museum is free to visit! But that’s not the best news for Sydney’s newest museum, which opened just this week in the middle of the University of Sydney. The purpose-built space, designed by Sydney-based design studio Johnson Pilton Walker, now houses three distinct collections that, until now, were showcased separately and…

When locals think of Sydney, they think of the harbour, the good weather, and the beaches. But what about our world records? Sydney is a city of great individuals. It is also a city that continuously brings people together. And when great individuals come together, records are sure to come crashing down. From the crazy…

In 1964 The Beatles traveled to Australia for their first and only tour. At the time, all the best and brightest stars in the entertainment galaxy stayed at one hotel, The Chevron Hilton Hotel in Kings Cross. This was Sydney’s only first Five Star international hotel. The “Silver Spade” dining room, was on the first…

Before large cemeteries were created throughout Sydney, the local parishes buried their dead within their own grounds.  Sydney’s first official cemetery was located where Sydney Town Hall now stands. Dating back to the 1790s, the site is commonly called the Old Sydney Burial Ground. The site, on the outskirts of town, was chosen by Governor…

Sydney Harbour may be the city’s sparkling centre piece but its sandy bottom reveals its darker side. The city’s coast and harbour have claimed more than 140 ships and hundreds of lives since the First Fleet arrived in 1788. For example, when you sail over the Middle Head stretch of Sydney Harbour, you may not…