The Sydney Opera House may be iconic and the Harbour Bridge a sight to behold. But if you're heading to Australia's largest city, why not look beyond the same old tourist attractions. Here's a thumbs up to 15 things to do in Sydney and its surrounds, which you can write home about.
Hunter Valley
1 Visit a top vineyard
Hunter Valley, New South Wales' popular wine district, is dotted with up to 120 vineyards of varying sizes which you can raise a toast to. But if you don't have time, zoom in on a favourite. The Bimbadgen Estate (790 McDonalds Road, Pokolbin, www.bimbadgen.com.au), which has been producing grapes for over 30 years, is magnificently picturesque.
The best spot to view its verdant vineyards is from its award-winning Esca Bimbagden restaurant, which has full-length glass windows. Try the tasting plates at A$31.50 (S$38.20), which come in seafood or bits of red meat, paired with three of the estate's wines. The sauteed loin of veal (A$34.50) and char-grilled cumin lamb fillets (A$34.50) are also exceptionally succulent.
Port Stephens
2 Get your adrenalin pumping
Try the wave-jumping Thundaraft (A$60, www.thundaraft.com.au) in Nelson Bay, Port Stephens. The 45-minute, heart-stopping experience involves strapping yourself into a 8.5m rubber boat (apparently the same kind used by the Navy Seals in the US), which then proceeds to slice through monstrous waves at breakneck speed. Such rides are also available from operators in the Sydney Harbour but at Port Stephens, the waters are much choppier.
The ride includes short stops out at sea where a typically droll boat guide points out the local sights and threatens to feed you to the sharks.
If you prefer sand over sea, try your hand at sandboarding down the Stockton Bight Sand Dunes. Believed to cover an area of over 2,500ha along the 32km-long Stockton Beach in Anna Bay, these natural formations go up to 30m high at angles of up to 60 degrees.
I signed up with the friendly folks from Moonshadow 4WD Tours (A$20, www.moonshadow4wd.com.au), who drove me to the top of a mound, handed me a waxed sandboard, and shoved me down without warning. Tip: The walk back up is a killer. Expect to digest mouthfuls of sand and don't wear loose-fitting clothes unless you intend to get exfoliated in all the wrong places. Still, you'll be a fool to give this a miss.
3 Savour fresh seafood
At the Rock Lobster Restaurant (6 Teramby Road, Nelson Bay, www.rocklobsterrestaurant.com.au) at the D'Albora Marina at Nelson Bay, both the catch and the air are fresh.
The eatery is known for The Rock Lobster's Famous Seafood Platter, which comes with generous servings of crab, crayfish, smoked salmon, prawns, oysters, grilled Moroccan prawns, beer battered flathead, salt and pepper calamari, seared scallops and chips with fruit and dips (A$65 for one person). For an extra A$30, you can add half a lobster. Reservations are recommended.
For a fuss-free meal, however, nothing beats a bag of fresh oysters, sweet cold prawns and ice-cold beer. You can get these over a takeaway counter at the Holbert's Oyster Farm (51-52 Diemars Road, Salamander Bay, www.holbertsoysterfarm.com), which also boasts an outdoor seating area overlooking a tranquil lake.
4 See the sunrise
Australia's summer sunrise is brilliant but those darn rays also shoot up at the most ungodly hours. Sunrise times, by the way, are charted at www.ga.gov.au/geodesy/astro.
A solution for lazy bums is to find a hotel with a view. Salamander Shores (147 Soldiers Point Road, Salamander Shores, www.salamander-shores.com), a nondescript but functional Port Stephens hotel, offers a superbly unobstructed view of the early morning spectacle from the comforts of my bed. I highly recommend getting a room there because one, you haven't been to Australia till you've caught the sunrise and two, there's no need to sacrifice those extra hours of sleep by trudging to a look-out point.
Blue Mountains
5 Experience nature
Bushfires may have recently ravaged parts of the Blue Mountains, but most of the bushwalking trails are still intact. Pack some water, sunscreen and a hat and spend a day traipsing around the reserve. Sights to see include the famous Three Sisters rock formation and Wentworth Falls, the latter a 300m waterfall.
If you don't have much time to spare, but yet want a decent challenge, try a 5km walk that passes the Giant Stairway, Dardenelles Pass and Prince Henry Cliff Walk. Starting from Echo Point, it should take you about four hours.
The Giant Stairway, like its name suggests, is a ridiculously steep ascent up 900 steps. See - no, climb it - to believe.
Alternatively, join the Glow Worm Walk organised by a company named Tread Lightly Eco Tours (A$45, www.treadlightly.com.au). Starting after dinner, it takes you into the pitch-black heart of the rainforest armed only with a torch. You won't need the light though - what with thousands of gloworms and fireflies blinking overhead like mini beacons in the night sky.
Complete the one-with-nature experience by staying in The Falls Mountain Retreat (The Avenue, Wentworth Falls, www.fallsmountainretreat.com.au), a chic, apartment-style hotel situated so close to Wentworth Falls that the footpath into the reserve begins at your doorstep.
Sleeping there for a night, I was pleasantly awakened by loud chirps from 'laughing' kookaburras. Newly built in a minimalistic Zen-style, this hideout wouldn't look out of place in Wallpaper magazine.
6 Take in the view
A lazy way to see everything is to hop on the rides at tourist attraction Scenic World (www.scenicworld.com.au). To head down into the Jamison Valley, take the Scenic Railway (A$8 one way), the world's steepest train ride that plunges at an incline of about 50 degrees into the rainforest. To come up, take the Scenic Skyway (A$8 one way), a high-tech, glass-floor gondola suspended 270m above the Jamison Valley. The eight-minute ride offers a 360-degree view of major sights like the Three Sisters and Katoomba Falls.
7 Stay in a quirky hotel
Barn Stay: The Moo Manor in Blue Mountains is made from recycled and natural materials.
The Blue Mountains is dotted with brand-name resorts bursting with colonial character, or family-run B&Bs that offer a more personal touch. But the Old Leura Dairy (61 Kings Road, Leura, www.oldleuradairy.com.au ) in the township of Leura really steals the show.
Nestled in a quiet residential estate and on the premises of an old dairy, it comprises a cluster of six milk barns, sheds and cottages restored to working - and luxurious - condition. From furniture to fittings, all the lodges - with charming names like Moo Manor and Buttercup Barn - are made from recycled, natural materials.
I stayed in the country-style Moo Manor, which had lovely details like a brick fireplace and a table made from solid log. We even had a back garden with a free supply of herbs.
In the evenings, my friends and I fired up a barbie of steaks and lamb chops, marinated to succulent perfection with rosemary and thyme. Bliss.
8 Splurge on a good meal
Fine-dining establishments are mushrooming in the Blue Mountains, so it's a sin not to spend some well-earned money soaking in some Modern Australian gastronomic finery. The Eucalypt Restaurant (Sublime Point Road, Leura, www.peppers.com.au/Fairmont) at the Peppers Fairmont hotel in Katoomoba is renowned - expect to spend A$75 for a three-course meal. The aged beef fillet was 'melt-in-your-mouth' delicious, while dessert - a trio of creme brulee - sent my tastebuds into seventh heaven.
A more affordable choice is the quaint Leura Post Office Restaurant (148 The Mall, Leura) in Leura. Formerly the brick-clad premises of a post office, this eatery serves up starters for about A$10 and mains for about twice that. The duck thigh confit left a lasting impression, its meat tender and cooked to perfection.
Tea on wheels: A waiter in top hat and coat-tails wheels out your tea set with accompanying music in Bygone Beautys.
9 Have afternoon tea
For an almost bizarre trip back in time, head to Bygone Beautys (Corner of Grose & Megalong Streets, Leura, www.bygonebeautys.com.au), an old-world tearoom in Leura filled to the brim with antique teapots, dolls and other collectibles.
Order your tea in a set - it comes with scones, cucumber sandwiches and an assorted bites for about A$10 per person - and you'll be in for a surprise. A waiter wheeled out my Devonshire tea set in a top hat and coat-tails, striding towards me to the notes of the song Rule Britannica. It's a tad tacky, but still loads of fun. Reservations are a must.
Sydney City
10 Have 'gourmet' brekkie
He's been accused of being overly gimmicky and hawking overpriced omelettes, but Sydney chef Bill Granger is still much of a culinary institution for breakfast aficionados. Brekkie at his restaurant bills (433 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, www.bills.com.au) at Darlinghurst starts at 7.30am and you can tuck into quality stuff like sourdough toast with scrambled eggs (A$12.80) and sweet corn fritters with roast tomato, spinach and bacon (A$17.50). Worth going at least once.
11 See the city in an unconventional way
Two wheels are better than none, so for an express way to see the sights, a company named Bonza Bike Tours (www.bonzabiketours.com) organises cycling tours for enthusiasts. Bikes and helmets are provided so all you have to do is show up.
I signed up for the four-hour Sydney Classic Tour (A$89), an easy ride that took me from Sydney Harbour to Hyde Park through William Street, one of the busiest parts of town. Stops along the way include Chinatown, Darling Harbour and the famous Hero of Waterloo pub.
More adventurous types can opt for harder rides - the Manly Beach and Sunset Cruise tour has an ascent up an extremely steep slope.
If free and easy is more your style, buy and download an audio tour from a company called Self Guided Walking Tours (A$10, www.selfguidedwalkingtours.com), which offers walks around the usual sights like the Harbour Bridge and Bondi Beach. Just plug into your iPod and go.
12 Go surfing
You've not been to the world-famous Bondi Beach until you've suffered a serious wipeout, which is why I signed up with surf school Let's Go Surfing (www.letsgosurfing.com.au) for a two-hour 'taste test' of the waves (from A$65) - and lived to tell the tale.
Surfboards and wetsuits are provided for the lesson, which covers paddling, standing up and well, surviving. Unfortunately for me, I hit the water on a day when the waves were 2.4m high - the biggest in six months - so the closest I got to standing was a half-crouch before tumbling headlong into the freezing cold, white surf for mouthfuls of salt water. Warning: Expect to be underwater for as long as 15 seconds at a time, so if you're not a strong swimmer, give this a miss.
Surf's up: The writer survived 2.4m-high waves at Bondi Beach.
13 Shop at Newtown
While Pitt Street and William Street are where the major department stores like Myer are, the student-centred bohemian Newtown is where the clued-in shoppers go. It's indie and brand-name boutiques galore, along with a smattering of Thai restaurants frequented by the artsy types. Prices are also cheaper than downtown - I bagged a few dresses for about A$30, plus a skull motif bag for about A$40.
Check out shops like Munky Bizness (313 King Street) for streetwear, Tree of Life (320 King Street) for ethnic-inspired stuff, Braintree Hemp (131 King Street) for eco-friendly gear and Pure Botanicals (322 King Street) for massages and psychic readings.
14 Experience the tapas culture
Like most major cities, Sydney is big on Spanish-style bites. Hot restaurants of the moment include Kika Tapas Bar (247 Victoria Road, Darlinghurst), where the colourful decor - think orange rayon curtains and pop-art striped walls - is inspired by none other than film-maker Pedro Aldmodovar, and the so-hip-it-hurts Bodega (216 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills), which is run by two skinny, rocker-type chefs who wouldn't look out of place in a Franz Ferdinand MTV video.
If you like waterfront dining, try the slightly more uppity Firefly (Pier Seven, 17 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay), which offers a great view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
15 Stay cool with gelato
Australians are said to be the third-largest consumers of ice cream in the world, with 18 litres per person annually, just behind New Zealand with 20, and the United States with 23. One place where you can find a cluster of gelato parlours is in - where else - Little Italy, or Leichhardt. A famous one is the De Luca Cremeria (106 Norton Street, Leichhardt), where gelato is made from scratch. At Bondi Beach, try Pompeis (126-130 Roscoe Street, Bondi Beach), which serves up flavourful fare for tourists and locals.
Places featured
Sydney City
A bustling metropolis that offers shopping, dining and nightlife round the clock. Singapore Airlines, Qantas and British Airways fly there daily.
Hunter Valley
The region's wine haven with about 120 wineries is a popular holiday retreat. About two hours from Sydney by car.
Blue Mountains
Declared a World Heritage Park in 2000, it is a hub for eco-tourism and comprises 26 townships in an area of 1,433sqkm. About 11/2 hours from Sydney by car.
Port Stephens
Pristine beaches and lots of aquatic and outdoor activities, About two hours from Sydney by car.
5 things to do
1 Do rent a car. It's the most efficient way to get around. You will be driving long distances, so choose a reputable car rental company. I went with Hertz ( www.hertz.com.au ), which rented me a trusty Ford Falcon that came with GPS, absolutely essential when you are driving in a strange land. The cost is about $700 for a week's rental.
2 Do wear sunscreen and a hat. Australians have the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world. So don't put yourself at risk.
3 Do book accommodation ahead. It's nearly impossible to get a place to stay during the holiday season of December to February. Also, many hotels are small bed-and-breakfast types which can be snapped up quickly. Go to www.sydneyaustralia.com/sg to suss out the options.
4 Do time your visits. Sydney is a hotbed of cultural activities. So why not plan a trip where you can soak in festivities like the Sydney Festival in January and the Sydney Royal Easter Show next month?
5 Do dress like the locals. No point poncing around the streets dressed to the nines. Australia is all about hanging loose, so slip on those tank-tops, shorts and slippers.
2 don'ts
1 Don't speed. In Australia, speed cameras are everywhere. Bust the rules and you'll come back to a post-holiday fine - about A$50, depending on how much you are over the speed limit - in your mailbox.
2 Don't swim recklessly. When you are at the beach, swim only between the flags and watch for rip (strong currents flowing away from the shore). Even the best swimmers get swept out to sea so don't be a maverick.
