Sydney

[awhw]

Oh, any recommended restaurants- that are affordable haha.. How much are the meals at HV anyway? More than in Sydney?

Restaurants in Hunter Valley are generally pricey, but the quality is top notch. There are less expensive options like the deli in Tempus Two, or the Irish pub (forgot the name) and Pokolbin Village.

One tip - if you are a Accor Advantage Plus member, you can have really nice meals at the Accor hotels there for half the price. So the meals become much more affordable.

 

[BlurKillerEX]

If you feel paiseh, just share one glass for the wine tasting. Very often one would only take a small sip and pour the rest away in a bucket. Usually wine tasting entails seeing the colour, smelling and tasting. Not drinking. Have a good time at the Hunter Valley! Highly recommend Audrey Wilkinson too for it’s amazing views.

Actually if you can't finish, better to share glass than to pour away their wine. My friend there told me it's often seen as rude if you keep pouring their wine away.

 

[seianko]

Actually if you can't finish, better to share glass than to pour away their wine. My friend there told me it's often seen as rude if you keep pouring their wine away.

i usually just tell them jus give me as little as possible. they will understand.

 

[princessreiko]

I enjoyed the city in Sydney itself and didn't go outside of it very much except for Blue mountains.

For blue mountains, I took the train from Central station to Katoomba station.
I bought the Lyrebird pass online and validated it at the office in Katoomba.

 

[BlurKillerEX]

I did the hike at blue mountains as well, started at katoomba and headed to jenolan caves. The hike wasn't that amazing though, the views were pretty stale after awhile and the bus back was really expensive at 50 per person. Luckily we arranged with a local beforehand to give us a ride for $50 (2p). Went to do the bundeena - otford hike too, the weather then was very hot and we ran out of water towards to end, but at the end of the trail we hitched a ride with a nice elderly couple who were heading to the train station too.

 

[pau1ine]

Hunter Valley and Port Stephens are to the north. Blue Mountains is to the west. Wollongong and Jervis Bay are to the south. To go between any of these 3 directions, you would need to drive through at least some suburbs in Sydney. It's very difficult to fit all of those into 6 nights. My suggestion would be Blue Mountains, plus either the north side or the south side.

Thanks Awesom Andy!
I have one who wants to go Kiama and another one who wants to go Port Stephens. How about Syd > Kiama > Blue Mountains > PS? 6N possible? Any day of long driving?

 

[tulipkiss]

Thanks Awesom Andy!
I have one who wants to go Kiama and another one who wants to go Port Stephens. How about Syd > Kiama > Blue Mountains > PS? 6N possible? Any day of long driving?

google map gave pretty accurate estimation of the driving duration when we were there.
BM to PS is a pretty long drive, about 3.5hrs according to google maps. but add in 1-3 rest stops and buffer for bad/wet weather condition, it may take 4.5hrs or more to reach ur destination.

it's possible to squeeze all into 6N.. but i think it'll be more enjoyable if you can cater more time at each location.. unless your travel mate just wants a 'touch-and-go' experience.

 

[Whirling_Dervish]

Restaurants in Hunter Valley are generally pricey, but the quality is top notch. There are less expensive options like the deli in Tempus Two, or the Irish pub (forgot the name) and Pokolbin Village.

One tip - if you are a Accor Advantage Plus member, you can have really nice meals at the Accor hotels there for half the price. So the meals become much more affordable.

I have been to one, called Bistro Molines. The price of the food was more memorable than the food itself, though the view were very good!

Oh what I meant was that HV is North of Sydney, while the Southern Highlands and South Coast, are well.. South of Sydney.

Oh, any recommended restaurants- that are affordable haha.. How much are the meals at HV anyway? More than in Sydney?

Hmmm Bistro Molines is good for the view; the food was just average. It costed around AUD40 per main course 5 years ago?

 

[pau1ine]

I think you can include blue mountains in your sydney itinerary, as syd-blue mountains only around 2 hrs drive one way, can do it within 1 day and evening time just return back to sydney, unless you want to stay overnight there.

Yes plan to stay at Blue Mountains.

 

[pau1ine]

google map gave pretty accurate estimation of the driving duration when we were there.
BM to PS is a pretty long drive, about 3.5hrs according to google maps. but add in 1-3 rest stops and buffer for bad/wet weather condition, it may take 4.5hrs or more to reach ur destination.

it's possible to squeeze all into 6N.. but i think it'll be more enjoyable if you can cater more time at each location.. unless your travel mate just wants a 'touch-and-go' experience.

Thanks for sharing!

 

[Awesom Andy]

Thanks Awesom Andy!
I have one who wants to go Kiama and another one who wants to go Port Stephens. How about Syd > Kiama > Blue Mountains > PS? 6N possible? Any day of long driving?

It can be done, but there will be long days (whether driving or not) to fit everything in. You should be able to fit most things into 1 full day driving from Sydney to Kiama, stay overnight nearby, drive to the Blue Mountains some time during the day (but plan to miss the peak hour traffic). You would arrive in the afternoon, stay 2 nights there so you get one full day, and then set off reasonably early to Port Stephens. You would want to spend 2 nights there as well. That leaves 1 night spare, which you can add to any of the 3 destinations but I wouldn't try to go anywhere else as you'll just end up driving a lot for very little gain.

 

[pau1ine]

It can be done, but there will be long days (whether driving or not) to fit everything in. You should be able to fit most things into 1 full day driving from Sydney to Kiama, stay overnight nearby, drive to the Blue Mountains some time during the day (but plan to miss the peak hour traffic). You would arrive in the afternoon, stay 2 nights there so you get one full day, and then set off reasonably early to Port Stephens. You would want to spend 2 nights there as well. That leaves 1 night spare, which you can add to any of the 3 destinations but I wouldn't try to go anywhere else as you'll just end up driving a lot for very little gain.

Thanks very much! Now I can read up/ book the accommodation

 

[Velton]

The Three Sisters

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[Tommy_dbt]

Beautiful! ☺

Miss the place!

 

[Velton]

How can we forget Bondi Beach?

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[donald83]

HI Guys,

I am planning a trip to Sydney in Sept with my wife, my 62 year old mum and 2 kids aged 6 and 3.

Been reading through the thread and can't really see any kid-friendly activities. The only activities i can think of is the usual Sydney Opera House, the markets, Darling Harbour, walk around the city and Taronga zoo.

Anything else that i have missed?

 

[Awesom Andy]

HI Guys,

I am planning a trip to Sydney in Sept with my wife, my 62 year old mum and 2 kids aged 6 and 3.

Been reading through the thread and can't really see any kid-friendly activities. The only activities i can think of is the usual Sydney Opera House, the markets, Darling Harbour, walk around the city and Taronga zoo.

Anything else that i have missed?

How do you define kids friendly? Although a lot of visitors spend little time in Sydney itself, and head out into the surrounds. If you want to spend more time in Sydney, the playground at Darling Harbour is very popular. September can also be warm enough to head out to the beach as well (although the water will be freezing so you'll want to stay on the sand). The Australian Museum has interactive displays for kids, I haven't been there so not sure what it's like but it's probably worth considering especially if it's raining and you can't do anything else. The powerhouse museum is also interesting.

 

[seianko]

HI Guys,

I am planning a trip to Sydney in Sept with my wife, my 62 year old mum and 2 kids aged 6 and 3.

Been reading through the thread and can't really see any kid-friendly activities. The only activities i can think of is the usual Sydney Opera House, the markets, Darling Harbour, walk around the city and Taronga zoo.

Anything else that i have missed?

plan a observatory trip. Its reservations only. in the city, very accessible

I dunno know the ful name, but its observatory for star glazing, they have tours for children

 

[Awesom Andy]

plan a observatory trip. Its reservations only. in the city, very accessible

I dunno know the ful name, but its observatory for star glazing, they have tours for children

There's only one in the cbd. Wouldn't worry about the name.

 

[seianko]

There's only one in the cbd. Wouldn't worry about the name.

i mean, he can go google base on that. and in before " so whats the address of the place"