I just returned from Sydney Australia and I’m going to share how traveling to Australia is right now. Topics covered will include the airport and air travel experience, how busy it is, what’s open, what’s closed, the general vibe of things, and everybody’s favorite subject, masks and vaccines. But the good news is that Australia is finally open for tourism! So really.. Even though it’s not “the same” it’s still pretty good!
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26 Comments
✔️ Check out the Level8 Luggage here: https://bit.ly/Level8cases
✔️ You might enjoy watching more of my travel videos on Australia here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOVadUHX1B-J6_YG8xxYBFX91xthy6ZYs
It’s Australia as a whole has banned single use plastic bags,
Nazi-ralia !!! I escaped Oz to live in freedom at Communist Vietnam few months ago.
Far, far better, more Freedom, cops smile at us instead of beating us.
WARNING TO ANYONE THINKING NAZI-RALIA IS BETTER THAN Your OWN COUNTRY…. DON'T RISK IT !!!!!!
Thank you Chris 👍
Australia has world’s highest minimum wage, with enormous overtime and weekend loadings that make the cost of business at these times difficult. It is the tradition here of “a living wage” that allows retail workers to have a normal work – life balance. Also why tipping is not generally expected. All positive for the worker but not for the consumer. Which explains a lot about Australian culture.
This is a very good video. Thank you.
I just watched this video and made extensive notes. It is that good and informative. I have been to Sydney three times and loved every minute. My wife and I enjoyed Harry's Cafe de Wheels, which is by Wooloomooloo. A trip to Sydney would not be a real trip to Sydney without going there at least once. Awesome. Nice food choices for takeaway. Likewise, if you like seafood you have to eat at the Sydney Fish Market once or twice. I usually stay for two weeks in Sydney and then two weeks on the Gold Coast. The Sydney Fish Market does way more than sell fish. They cook very fine fish meals. Yes, I love the fish n chips. Yummy. Trust me. You want to eat there at least a couple of times. Doyle's at Watson's Bay is another easy to get to and delicious seafood restaurant. A trip to Watson's Bay (bus or ferry) is a must if you spend more than several days in Sydney.
My wife and I like to stay at the Sofitel Hotel at Darling Harbour. It costs between $300 and $400 a night, but they treat you like royalty. I was distressed to hear that Harbourside Mall (Darling Harbour by the Sofitel Hotel) is fairly empty,. but I assume the stores and shops will come back soon and it is usually a happening place. If you don't stay at Darling Harbour you need to visit often. It is an easy walk from the CBD, a short ride on the light rail (if that is back up and running) or a nice, serene ferry ride from Circular Quay. Why do I feel like I am "working" for the Sydney Tourism folks? Well, we love Sydney. It is hands down my favorite large city. I would love to live there.
We visit Taronga Zoo every time we go. You catch a short ferry ride to there from Circular Quay and then to really enjoy it set aside 3 to 4 hours for the place. They have food and there are plenty of animal exhibits. Also, it is a great place to take pictures of the south shore of Sydney Harbour (which is where the CBD is), In the USA, we would call the central business district (The CBD) something like "downtown." I say that because not everyone could be expected to know that.
On beaches I would say there are many fine beaches in and around Sydney. Certainly do your own exploring and come up with your own favorites. We love the busy ones like Bondi and Manly. They have lots of surf shops, cares, and nearby hotels and apartments. The atmosphere and shopping are great. But, many people may prefer quieter beaches with less people. Sydney has those, too. If you try, you can catch public transportation to many of those, so please don't take my word for it. In Sydney, you will find a beach or several really that you will like.
I have been to the Blue Mountains three times, once for each trip. If you are in Sydney at least a week, spend one day with a tour company. They will be informative and take you to the main sites along those mountains. Book a tour. If you do that, you can go with others, not miss anything of real value, and they will pick you up at your hotel and deliver you back to your hotel at the end of the day. It was worth the money to us.
The name of the tour group we used for the day trip to the Blue Mountains is "Blue Mountains Day Tours." Our driver was "Hayden" and he was great. We would go with him again if he is available.
The great thing about Manly Beach is the ambiance of the place. First, you take a relaxing ferry boat tide across the harbor from Circular Quay for about 30 minutes to the north side where Manly is. You get off of the ferry boat and enter a place where they have large stalls of great candy for sale. Pick some up for snacking. I found some great Spanish black licorice ropes one time and stocked up. That was delightful. Then you walk out into the Corso, where you can walk down several wide blocks to the sea. There are surf shops, tee shirt stores, and nice places to eat along The Corso. The side streets also offer a lot of choices in this regard as well. I strongly recommend a ferry ride to Manly and then spend a few hours over there on the north shore of the harbor. Actually, Manly Beach is on the ocean side and you depart from the ferry boat on the harbor side. Great fun.
Here is a hidden gem we found in 2013 and visit whenever we are in Sydney. In Darling Harbour there is a place called The Chinese Garden of Friendship. It is serene and peaceful. Very serene and very peaceful. It only costs a few dollars to visit and we really love it. They have cute little water dragons (little, harmless lizards) there and the whole thing is great fun.
I could go on and on. They have great busker shows at Darling Harbour and fireworks on weekends. The CBD has Hyde Park, the Botanical Gardens, great shopping, fine restaurants, and just a lot to see and do. I wish I was there right now, and yes we are going again.
You mentioned the Gold Gold Coast on the video. We have been there twice and like to stay for about two weeks there. We are planning another trip to the Gold Coast for about 16 days this time. You should make a trip to the Gold Coast and stay either at Surfers Paradise or Broadbeach. The light rail will take you up and down the coast and it is very easy to get around. We had a lot of fun there.
If you visit the Blue Mountains folks, try to get to the place where there is an overlook that peers down on the Napean River. The view is stunning. Wow. I plan to see that again. Our driver for Blue Mountains Day Tours (Hayden) took us there and it was amazing. He also showed us plenty of birds and kangaroos in the Blue Mountains. I would go there again in a heartbeat.
Please visit the Gold Coast, Chris. I would love to hear your video about that when you get back. My wife and I have been there to the Gold Coast twice and we love it there.
Im thinking about heading down under in October. I didnt know United had flights from LAX to Sydney? And Ive seen on local news about mass lines and confusion at Sydney airport, did you experience the same? So no issues with cancellations/delayed flights? Thanks
Are the Australians able to travel outside of the country?
On the masks, here in Melbourne they're still required when on public transport (this includes taxis & Ubers) and also when visiting a health care facility. Mask compliance on public transport varies, but most people here will mask up when travelling by train on the Morning & Evening peaks when the trains are busy. People will still mask up when in crowded situations, etc. Apart from that, things are as they were pre-COVID, though staff shortages have resulted in some business having to vary their opening hours.
It's not lax travel to Syd but Syd go to LAX
As a person living in Sydney, yes, the retail hours are a joke closing at 5 pm in 2022.
Your videos are always very informative. Thank You. I am planning to go to Perth for the very first time. I will be flying out of LAX and don't know what to expect when I arrive at Sydney airport. Do I go thru passport check first and then retrieve my luggage and go thru customs? Can you please help me? Thank you
The public transport mask mandate in Sydney is now gone. Although there was a mandate in place when you were in Sydney it could only be enforced by NSW Police and they haven’t enforced it all of 2022. So effectively there was no mandate and masks were optional.
Hi hoped you enjoyed my home town, lots of good points and a few problems Iike any big city. Airfares are ridiculously expensive at the moment.