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The Sydney Opera House in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, seen across the harbour, with office towers on the far shore under a cloudy sky

Where to stay in Sydney

Photo: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Places to stay in Sydney

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About Sydney

Sydney Airport is 8 km from the CBD, and the six areas in this guide lie between about 11 and 28 km from its international terminal by road. The choice is between the harbour and the inner city, where City of Sydney meters charge AUD 7 or 9 an hour, the beaches at Bondi and Manly, and Parramatta in the west.

Australia. Guide last checked .

Facts and rules

Last checked . Each fact links to its source.

Airport
Sydney Airport (SYD) in Mascot, 8 km from the CBD; about 11 to 28 km by road from the international terminal to the areas in this guide. Source
Entry for EU and UK citizens
The eVisitor (subclass 651) is free, valid for 12 months and allows up to 3 months after each entry. It must be granted before travel. Source
Entry for US citizens
The Electronic Travel Authority (ETA, subclass 601), applied for in the Australian ETA app for an AUD 20 service fee, valid for 12 months with up to 3 months after each entry. Source
Tourist tax
No New South Wales or City of Sydney levy on short stays was found as of September 2026. Advertised prices must be the total price, taxes and unavoidable fees such as cleaning included; GST is 10%. Source
Registration number
Holiday rentals must be on the NSW short-term rental register, and platforms may not advertise premises without the registration number shown. Hotels, serviced apartments and approved B&Bs are exempt. Source
Nights cap
A non-hosted rental in Greater Sydney may be let for at most 180 days in its registration year. Bookings of 21 consecutive days or more do not count towards the limit. Source
Parking with a rental car
City of Sydney meters: AUD 9 an hour in Area 1 (the CBD, The Rocks, Barangaroo) and AUD 7 in Area 2 (Pyrmont, Surry Hills, Darlinghurst, Potts Point), public holidays included. Hours vary by sign. Source
Monthly stays
A holiday let of up to 3 months at a time is a short-term rental arrangement, outside the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 when it is not the guest's main home. No bond is required. Source
Currency
Australian dollar (AUD). Cash over AUD 10,000 must be declared on arrival. Source
Emergency numbers
000, or 112 from a mobile phone Source

Areas of Sydney

A cruise ship berthed at Circular Quay beside the old sandstone warehouses of The Rocks, with the towers of the Sydney CBD behind, seen from the Harbour Bridge
Photo: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Circular Quay and The Rocks

The harbour edge of the city centre. The Rocks is a historic area and tourist precinct on the southern shore of Sydney Harbour, and Circular Quay beside it has ferry wharves, bus interchanges and a railway station, with views of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. It suits a first visit on foot, less so a stay built around a car.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 15 km
Sydney CBD
about 1 km

Car and parking

City of Sydney Area 1 meters charge AUD 9 an hour at all times, public holidays included, and some machines in The Rocks belong to Place Management NSW. Council visitor permits exclude hotels and serviced apartments, so ask the hotel or host where the car goes.

The Darling Harbour waterfront with a boardwalk, palm trees and restaurants along the western shore, a hotel tower and construction cranes under a clear blue sky
Photographed in 2019. Photo: Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Darling Harbour and Pyrmont

Darling Harbour, west of the CBD, is a recreational, retail and entertainment precinct with pedestrianised public spaces around Cockle Bay. Pyrmont beside it is a former industrial waterfront redeveloped for residents and office workers. It suits a city stay by the water with a shorter drive from the airport than the harbour front.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 12 km
Sydney CBD
about 3 km

Car and parking

Pyrmont's streets are City of Sydney Area 2, AUD 7 an hour. The Darling Harbour precinct itself is run by Property NSW, and some ticket machines around it belong to Place Management NSW, not the council.

Surry Hills

An inner-east suburb immediately south-east of the CBD, with Crown Street and its restaurants, pubs and bars, and Central station at its north-west corner. It suits a city stay in a residential street and a month in the inner city.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 11 km
Sydney CBD
about 3 km

Car and parking

City of Sydney Area 2 meters charge AUD 7 an hour. Council visitor permits go only to eligible households, not to serviced apartments or to flats in buildings approved since 1996 or 2000, so a flat with its own space is worth asking for.

The curve of Bondi Beach with sunbathers on the sand and waves breaking along the shore, and houses and apartment blocks behind the beach and on the far headland
Photo: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Bondi Beach

A beach and suburb 7 km east of the CBD in Waverley, one of the most visited tourist sites in Australia. It suits a beach stay in the eastern suburbs with the city a short drive away.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 18 km
Sydney CBD
about 9 km

Car and parking

Waverley's meters are pay by plate. The large metered parking areas at the beach, on Queen Elizabeth Drive and Park Drive, switch their meters off at 7pm, though time limits still apply. Visitor permits, including a 30-day permit at AUD 66.50, are bought by a resident for visitors to the resident's home and accept a hire car agreement; ask the host whether one applies.

Manly Beach with blue umbrellas and sun loungers on the sand, a paved promenade lined with tall pines, and apartment blocks near the far headland under a clear sky
Photo: Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Manly

A beach-side suburb 17 km north-east of the CBD, a tourist destination for its setting on the Pacific Ocean and the ferry to the city. It suits a beach stay with the harbour crossing by ferry rather than by car.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 28 km
Sydney CBD
about 15 km

Car and parking

The council's four Manly parking stations give 2 hours free a day and reach AUD 55 for 5 hours or more, plus AUD 5.50 for each night. Beach car parks cost AUD 10 an hour or AUD 40 a day from 1 October to 30 April.

Church Street in Parramatta with light rail tracks between rows of white outdoor dining pavilions, and a domed old building and an office tower behind
Photo: Nick-D, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Parramatta

The commercial centre of Greater Western Sydney, about 24 km west of the CBD and often called Sydney's second CBD, founded in 1788 as the oldest inland European settlement in Australia. It suits a base in the west with the car in daily use.

Sydney Airport (T1)
about 27 km
Sydney CBD
about 25 km

Car and parking

More than 1,700 metered street spaces at AUD 2.60 to 4.70 an hour; all-day metered spaces cost AUD 7.50 to 10.70, paid by card or the EasyPark app, no cash.

Guides

Where to stay

Where to stay in Sydney with a car: the areas compared

Sydney Airport sits 8 km from the CBD, and the six areas in this guide lie between about 11 and 28 km from its international terminal by road. They differ in what is outside the door, from ferries to surf, and in what a car costs to park.

Photo: DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Questions

Which part of Sydney is best for a first visit?

Circular Quay and The Rocks, on the southern shore of the harbour, with ferry wharves, buses and a railway station at Circular Quay and views of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. Street parking there is metered at AUD 9 an hour, so ask the hotel about parking before arriving by car.

Is there a tourist tax in Sydney?

No New South Wales or City of Sydney levy on short stays was found as of September 2026. Under ACCC guidance the advertised price must be the total price, with taxes such as GST and unavoidable fees such as cleaning included.

How can a guest check that a Sydney holiday rental is registered?

The listing must show its NSW short-term rental registration number: platforms may not advertise premises that are not on the state register. Hotels, motels, serviced apartments and approved bed and breakfasts do not register.

What do EU, UK and US visitors need to enter Australia?

EU and British citizens can apply for a free eVisitor; US citizens apply for an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) in the Australian ETA app for AUD 20. Both are valid for 12 months, allow up to 3 months after each entry and must be granted before travel.