Getting There By Air:Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport (SYD) Tel: (02) 9667 9111.
Website:
www.sydneyairport.com.au Sydney Airport is situated on the northern shoreline of Botany Bay and is Australia’s premier gateway.
Airport facilities: Sydney Airport’s international terminal (T1) is well equipped with restaurants, cafes, bars and a food hall, as well as information desks, lockers, a health care center, money changing facilities, ATMs, prayer room,
showers and two smoking lounges. There are hotel reservation facilities and car hire from
Avis,
Budget,
Europcar,
Hertz and
Thrifty.
Business facilities: Sydney Airport Executive Services (tel: (02) 9352 7499; website:
www.execservices.com.au) hires out meeting rooms in terminal one and terminal two, as well as VIP rooms in terminal one and a conference area and large function room in terminal two. Equipment and catering are supplied on request. Post, fax and photocopying facilities are available at the
Australia Post Shop (tel: (02) 9669 1564), while Internet kiosks can be found throughout the international terminal. There are also eight airline lounges in terminal one.
Transport to the city: The
CityRail Airport Link (tel: 131 500, in Australia only; website:
www.cityrail.info) operates approximately every 10 minutes to and from Central Station, daily from around 0500 to midnight (journey time - 10 to 15 minutes). Taxis to Circular Quay cost A$25-35 and taxis to Central Station cost A$20-30.
Kingsford Smith Transport (tel: (02) 9666 9988; website:
www.kst.com.au) operates a bus connecting the airport and central Sydney hotels; bookings for this service are essential.
Approximate flight times to Sydney: From London is approximately 23 hours; from New York 21 hours; from Los Angeles is 13 hours 30 minutes; from Singapore 7 hours 40 minutes and from Toronto is 21 hours 30 minutes.
Getting There By Water:Passenger services dock at Darling Harbour Passenger Terminal, located a short walk from the city center, while cruise ships berth at the Sydney Cove Passenger Terminal, Circular Quay. There are no facilities at the terminals, although restaurants, cafes, ATMs and other conveniences can be found in the neighboring Rocks and Darling Harbour areas. Information is available from the Department of Shipping
(tel: (02) 9296 4999; website:
www.sydneyports.com.au).
Ferry services: There is probably no more memorable way for one to arrive in Sydney than by water. Unfortunately, however, services to Australia are limited. From Europe, the USA and Hong Kong,
P&O (tel: 132 469, in Australia only; website:
www.pocruises.com.au) and
Cunard (tel: 132 441, in Australia only; website:
www.cunardline.com.au) include Sydney on their itineraries.
Getting There By Road:Driving regulations are not uniform across Australia’s states and territories, so visitors should be aware that the laws in Sydney might differ from states outside New South Wales.
Driving in Australia is on the left and the speed limit outside built-up areas is generally 100kph (62mph) or 110kph (68mph) on freeways. In built-up areas, the speed limit is 50kph (31mph) unless otherwise indicated. Wearing of seat belts is compulsory in the front and back. Roads are usually known by their names (for example, the Hume Highway) although motorways are also identified by a corresponding number.
The legal driving age in New South Wales is 16 years. Overseas driving licenses are acceptable, although an International Driving Permit is preferred. By law drivers must carry their licenses while driving. Visitors are required to take out minimum third-party insurance for driving both their own cars and hire cars. The maximum legal alcohol to blood ratio is 0.05%, which is enforced with random breath tests and curbed by severe penalties including hefty fines.
Visitors who plan to drive in the more remote outback areas should contact one of Australia’s motoring organizations beforehand, to obtain maps and advice on road and weather conditions, supply points and spare parts to be carried, as these regions are occasionally affected by excessively wet or dry weather. The
Australian Automobile Association (tel: (02) 6247 7311; website:
www.aaa.asn.au) provides further information. The
National Roads and Motorists’ Association - NMRA (tel: 131 122, in Australia only; website:
www.mynrma.com.au) also provides information and motoring services.
Emergency breakdown service: NRMA Emergency Breakdown (tel: 131 111).
Routes to the city: The main routes into Sydney are the Hume Highway (heading northeast from Melbourne), the Pacific Highway (south from Brisbane), the scenic Princes Highway (north from Melbourne via the coast) and the Sturt Highway (linking Adelaide on the west coast to Sydney on the east coast).
Approximate driving times to Sydney: From Melbourne - 11 hours; Brisbane - 13 hours 30 minutes; Adelaide - 18 hours.
Coach services: Greyhound Australia (tel: 1300 473 946, in Australia only; website:
www.greyhound.com.au) is the main operator and offers routes to over 1,100 destinations in Australia including Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide and Melbourne. Buses arrive at and depart from Sydney Coach Terminal, Eddy Avenue, outside Central Station (tel: (02) 9379 1777).
Getting There By Rail:Countrylink (tel: 132 232, in Australia only; website:
www.countrylink.nsw.gov.au) runs the New South Wales rail network. Countrylink provides high-speed XPT trains and XPlorer trains for shorter distances and links Sydney with Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra. These trains are new, modern and comfortable, featuring air conditioning, wheelchair access, buffet and satellite telephones. Seats are modeled on the French TGV and there is one sleeping car per journey, with cabins equipped with private bathrooms. Rail travel tends to be expensive, although a number of passes are available to overseas visitors. The
Indian Pacific train, operated by
Great Southern Railways (tel: 132 147, in Australia only; website:
www.gsr.com.au), runs between Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.
Sydney’s Central Station, on Eddy Avenue, just south of the city center, is a grand old building lined with newsagents, coffee shops and restaurants, as well as transport and tourist information offices.
Rail services: Popular inter-state destinations include Melbourne (journey time - 11 hours), Brisbane (journey time - 14 hours), Adelaide (journey time - 24 hours) and Perth (journey time - 64 hours).
Getting Around:Public TransportSydney’s mass transit system, incorporating
bus,
ferry and various
rail services, is well developed, efficient and cheap. The
Transport Infoline (tel: 131 500, in Australia only; website:
www.131500.com.au) provides route, timetable and fare information for all buses, ferries and trains.
State Transit (tel: 131 500, in Australia only; website:
www.sydneybuses.nsw.gov.au) operates Sydney’s
buses. Buses run daily 0600-2400 and night buses operate on selected routes thereafter. You can buy tickets from the driver for the most part although on a number of buses you need to buy tickets in advance.
Sydney Ferries (tel: 131 500, in Australia only; website:
www.sydneyferries.nsw.gov.au) runs the commuter
ferry network that criss-crosses Sydney Harbour. Ferries ply between Circular Quay and approximately 30 destinations, daily 0600-2400. Tickets are available at ticket offices and machines located at the ferry stops or, if there is no office or machine, on board.
CityRail (tel: 131 500, in Australia only; website:
www.cityrail.info) operates the network of
trains designed primarily for rapid transit between the suburbs and the city. The stops are not necessarily very convenient for tourists, who tend to remain within the city center. Trains generally operate daily 0430-0100 with varying times on the different routes and a limited service or no service on some routes on the weekend. Tickets are available from the railway stations.
Connex Sydney (tel: (02) 9285 5600; website:
www.metrolightrail.com.au) operates the
monorail and
light rail services. The
monorail shuttles between the city center, Darling Harbour and the Chinatown areas Monday to Thursday 0700-2200, Friday and Saturday 0700-2400 and Sunday 0800-2200. The
light rail service operates 24 hours between Central Station and Star City, and Sunday to Thursday 0600-2300 and Friday and Saturday 0600-2400 between Central Station and Lilyfield. Tickets are available on the trains.
Numerous money-saving
passes are available, including the
SydneyPass (website:
www.sydneypass.info),
- a three-, five- or seven-day pass. This pass allows unlimited travel on public buses, harbor ferries, the Sydney Explorer bus and the Bondi Explorer bus as well as three sightseeing cruises operated by the State Transit authority and train travel within the red (city and inner suburban) travel pass zone. It also includes a return trip on the
AirportLink train. Passes are available from TransitShops
at Circular Quay, Wynyard Station and at the York Street entrance to the Queen Victoria Building (QVB). You can also buy the pass at the Sydney Ferries ticket offices at Circular Quay and Manly, onboard Sydney Explorer and Bondi Explorer buses, and at the Sydney Visitor Center, 106 George Street, The Rocks.
The color-coded
TravelPass, valid for one week or more, allows unlimited travel on public transport within a designated area.
A
DayTripper pass is valid for travel on all regular buses, ferries and metropolitan area trains. A
TravelTen bus pass is valid for 10 bus journeys. A
FerryTen ticket is valid for 10 ferry trips.
There are also travel passes for the Sydney Metro. The
Monorail Supervoucher Day Pass gives a full day of unlimited use and there is also the
Metro Light Rail Day Pass and the
Weekly Unlimited Trips Pass. A
METROConnect pass and allows for unlimited travel on both the light rail and monorail for one week.
All passes are available for purchase from the railway and bus stations, as well as from newspaper stands on bus routes.
TaxisTaxi ranks can be found outside most bus and railway stations, as well as the larger hotels. Taxis run on meters, with a 20% surcharge added from 2200-0600. Fares are also subject to surcharges for telephone bookings, crossing the Harbour Bridge and using certain parts of the Eastern Distributor, where toll systems operate. Taxi drivers do not expect a tip, although fares are generally rounded up to the nearest dollar. Operators include
Taxis Combined Services (tel: 133 300, in Australia only
or (02) 8332 8888; website:
www.taxiscombined.com.au) and
Premier Cabs (tel: 131 017, in Australia only; website:
www.premiercabs.com.au).
Driving in the CityThe construction of a new road network for the 2000 Olympic Games left many Sydney routes vastly improved. The Eastern Distributor tunnel, for instance, has made driving to the airport a breeze. The Cross-City Tunnel has helped reduce city congestion by enabling travel from Kings Cross to Darling Harbour, under the CBD. That said, Sydney drivers are renowned for their speed and intolerance and parking is invariably difficult and/or expensive.
Parking restrictions are clearly signposted and usually specify an hour or two of metered parking during business hours. There are ‘clearway’ zones that apply at certain times of day and vehicles parked in these areas during the times indicated will be towed and impounded. Parking in the city center is difficult and visitors are often forced to use one of the (expensive) car parks - it’s better to take public transport where possible. If parking on the street remember that drivers must park in the direction of traffic.
Many of Sydney’s motorways are tolled and most of them are fully electronic; you will have to arrange a pass before or shortly after your trip - see
www.rta.nsw.gov.au for details. There’s a southbound toll on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel, a northbound toll on the Eastern Distributor and tolls in both directions in the Cross City Tunnel. The city’s main motorways (M1, M2, M4, M5 and M7) are also tolled.
Car HireA national driving license printed in English is required for driving in Sydney, although some hire firms prefer an International Driving Permit. The minimum age for hiring a car is often 25 years. Minimum third-party insurance is required.
Major operators include
Avis (tel: (02) 9353 9033
or 136 333, in Australia only; website:
www.avis.com.au),
Budget (tel: 1300 362 848
or 132 727, in Australia only; website:
www.budget.com.au),
Hertz (tel: 1800 550 067
or 133 039, in Australia only; website:
www.hertz.com.au) and
Thrifty (tel: 1300 367 277; website:
www.thrifty.com.au).
Bicycle HireSydney’s many steep hills do not make for a leisurely ride and there are limited (and often dangerous) designated cycle lanes. Manly has better paths for cycling but best of all is the popular Centennial Park. Hire companies include
Centennial Park Cycles, 50 Clovelly Road, Randwick (tel: (02) 9398 5027; website:
www.cyclehire.com.au), and
Inner City Cycles, 151 Glebe Point Road (tel: (02) 9660 6605; website:
www.innercitycycles.com.au).
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
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Related Australia Content
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
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