Alice Ellis

New Year’s Eve is the night we bid farewell to the year that was and welcome the next with open arms and embarrassing antics. What nobody wants to talk about is their desperate need for a wee at the most inopportune of times. So, we've gone and collected a list of public toilets that will be open throughout the night. Visit these when the fireworks are coming, and the seal is well and truly broken. Photograph: Cassandra Hannagan Mrs Macquaries Road, SydneyThis is arguably the best spot to watch the fireworks, with the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House forming a picturesque backdrop against the water. The Botanic Gardens will no doubt be a popular destination this NYE – but it’s a big area and not all toilets are open all night. You can find the closest open-at-night toilet on Mrs Macquaries Road, up towards the point. Bourke St Park, 103 Bourke St, WoolloomoolooAvoid the queue for the toilet at Mrs Macquarie's Road by crossing William Street and heading towards the public toilet at Bourke Street Park. It'll be a quicker, sweet release if you’re heading out of the Gardens. Cumberland St, The RocksThe Sydney NYE fireworks is undoubtedly a beautiful display to watch from The Rocks, despite the crowds. If you find yourself needing a quick break, there's a toilet on Cumberland Street – and you can probably still see the pyrotechnics on your way back. Lang Park, Grosvenor St, SydneyIf the party leads to Grosvenor Street but you need a small pit stop, the fully accessible

Contrary to contemporary yarns, there are still pubs and bars that host live music in Sydney. Many of them have successfully lashed back at the encroaching frontline of pokie machines.  We're all for it. So Time Out Sydney's writers – including pub-frother and Editor Alice Ellis, and resident booze-lover and Editor Avril Treasure, have rounded up a list of our fave bars and pubs that host live bands. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. Hate the ding-ding of pokie machines? Here's a list of Sydney pubs without pokies. More into dancing to a DJ? Check our guide to the best clubs in Sydney.

There’s no doubt about it, Sydneysiders can’t get enough of Italian food. And who can blame us? There’s something about a bowl of perfectly al dente pasta paired with a luscious, rich ragu that just hits the spot. And while Italian cuisine differs throughout the 20 incredible regions – broadly speaking, the northern regions eat more rice and polenta, while down south they feast more on seafood – Italians share a love of beautiful, seasonal produce; they choose simplicity rather than overcomplicating dishes and cook with soul. No wonder we love it so much. Luckily, there are plenty of excellent options for Italian dining in Sydney. Time Out’s food writers and editors – including Food & Drink Editor Avril Treasure, who has eaten her way through Sicily, Sorrento, Rome and Florence – have picked our favourite eateries, covering all bases. The only catch? They just need to provide a feel-good environment and dishes you’ll want to come back for. From casual red-sauce joints and classic pizzerias to fine-dining restaurants, you’ll find them all here. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. Not in the mood for pasta? Here are our picks of the best spots for Greek and French food in Sydney.

Believe it or not, we're already back at the school holidays, and if the thought of keeping the kiddos entertained for not just two, but six weeks sends you into a spiral, we have you covered this summer with an ultimate list of the best activities and experiences happening in Sydney for kids and families.  Check out something for the explorers, the budding scientists, the mini-athletes, the musical prodigies and just about everyone in between.  Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. Looking for somewhere affordable to eat out with the kids? Check out our guide to the best cheap eats in Sydney. Or visit the best kid-friendly restaurants in Sydney.

While dreams of sleeping beneath unpolluted starry skies, swimming on secluded beaches and snuggling by a campfire sounds pretty good to all of us, the thought of battling spiders, dirt floors and zero showers can shatter it real quick. Enter: Glamping – your solution.  In Australia, the opportunities are truly endless for all those who like their wild nature escapes with a side of fluffy luxury. Whether it's reclining in a private bubble bath beneath a rainforest canopy, dipping into a rainwater plunge pool next to Uluru, or sleeping in clean sheets next to one of the world's most remote coral reefs, the dreamy glamping spots Down Under are both epic and aplenty. All you've gotta do is hit the road.  ✅ The best caravan parks to hit up in Australia⛺️ All the best free campsites for your travels🚘 The most epic Aussie road trips to do before you die

This year has been a doozy when it comes to Sydney nightlife – with the addition of a slew of sexy new wine bars, unfathomably epic hotel renovations (we’re looking at you, Sofitel Wentworth) and some seriously swish rooftop venues giving our evenings the boost we didn’t know they needed. With such a stellar run of new openings, we expect to see some pretty impressive debut NYE parties joining the old faithfuls on this year’s festive calendar.To help you choose between the good and the great, we’ve put together a round-up of the best parties to book this NYE – so you can ring in 2025 with a bang (or an intimate dinner – pick your poison). Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED: Ready for a celebration right now? Here are our picks of the best bars in Sydney. Want to watch the fireworks without the hefty price tag? Here's our guide to the best free spots in Sydney to watch the NYE fireworks.

First dates are nerve-wracking. I know this because I’ve been on hundreds of them. Well, maybe not that many, but enough to know the good (butterflies, chemistry, non-stop laughs) from the bad (lacklustre conversation, no vibe). As a hopeless romantic – and as Food & Drink Editor for Time Out – I’m always on the lookout for the perfect bar for a first date (sorry, cafés) – ones that set the scene for fun and kisses, allowing your nerves to melt away like butter. So, what am I looking for? I’ve chosen bars that are cosy and welcoming, not too loud, but not too quiet, with drinks and snacks as excellent as the atmosphere. Good, moody lighting is important, as is a killer playlist. You won't find any super-polished or overly formal restaurants here. White tablecloths? Forget about it. Talking to a hottie on the apps? Met someone in real life? (Nice one). Check out this handy guide to Sydney’s best first date bars and head out together. Here’s hoping you hit it off. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. Feeling a bit skint after all the boozing? Keep it cheap with our guide to the best free dates you can go on in Sydney. Want to bar hop? Take a squizz at our guide to the best bars around town.

Located on a sparkling harbour and fringed by idyllic beaches, Sydney is a true seafood city. We’re home to many cracking waterfront restaurants, and our fish and chips are top-notch. So, where are the best spots for enjoying the ocean’s gifts? Whether it’s a perfect piece of fish with a squeeze of lemon and olive oil at Margaret, Josh Niland’s legendary tuna cheeseburger at Saint Peter’s bar, or a waterfront feast that’s nearly as good as a trip to Italy at Ormeggio at the Spit, I’ve rounded up the best seafood restaurants in Sydney. The only catch? The seafood has got to be fresh-as, bro. Cast your net and dig in. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, food & drink inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. Want more? Check out our guide to the best Sydney restaurants.

Don't celebrate Christmas? Or maybe you do celebrate it, but you don't want to deal with all the dishwashing. It's a good thing that some of Sydney's finest and most delicious Chinese venues stay open for December 25, dishing up trolleys upon trolleys of steaming goodies.  Some of Sydney's best yum cha restaurants will be servicing all of your dumpling needs this Christmas Day so dig out your stretchy pants. If you're into a more traditional festive spread, check out our list of the best (conventional) Christmas Day restaurant lunches and dinners.

Whether you've got a spreadsheet full of present ideas finalised in October, or you're the type to be hanging out waiting for inspiration to strike on December 24, we've got a gift guide to suit all your gift-giving, stocking-stuffing needs. Spread the festive cheer with our round-up of goodies to suit every personality type. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED: Need to cool off after a big Christmas lunch? Hit up one of Sydney's best beaches.

If the thought of a road trip interstate makes you queasy, and Euro summer is a bank-breaking exercise, don't overlook the wealth of holiday options you've got in your own backyard. Sydney has some of the finest guestrooms in the country, offering plush, luxe, thoroughly bougie comforts and indulgent experiences worthy of a staycation. No one knows the Harbour City better than the team at Time Out Sydney (it is our job to professionally explore this metropolis) and we've selected staycation locations for their niche experiences, phenomenal views and taster of the luxe life. These are some of our favourites in and around the great city of Sydney that are ready and waiting to take your booking. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel tips and city insights, straight to your inbox. RECOMMENDED: Check out our guide to the very best hotels in Sydney – from affordable to luxury. Don't have time for a weekend getaway? Have a look at these daytrips from Sydney instead. Looking for a room that's a little more niche? Here's our guide to the most unusual places to stay in NSW.

Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park is a thing of beauty that needs to be seen in person to be believed. Sure, you might have seen all the landmarks – Dove Lake, the imposing mountain itself, pristine Lake St Clair, flowering fagus in autumn, adorable snow-dusted snuffling wombats – on Instagram, but nothing compares to breathing in the pure alpine air and seeing this glorious place with your own eyes. While you can definitely tick off some Cradle Mountain experiences in a day, we highly recommend extending your stay because there’s simply so much to do. With heaps of hikes (ranging from easy strolls to challenging summit treks), outdoor activities, animal spotting and luxe spas to visit, your days will be suitably and satisfyingly packed. Beautiful in every season, Cradle Mountain is probably at its most spectacular in autumn, when the fagus trees start to turn and everything is bathed in fiery orange. But no matter what time of year you visit, you’ll find plenty of things to do in Cradle Mountain. 🚗 The best day trips from Hobart🏞️ Australia's best national parks🥾 The best hikes in Hobart

Let’s just start by saying I’m not a D&D player. I’ve played a couple of times with my family, led by my teenage son as Dungeon Master, but that was just to show interest in something he loves. So I do understand the basics – that said, you don’t need any prior knowledge of D&D to get swept up in the magic that is Dungeons and Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern. If anything, this show is probably the best way I’ve found so far to get a better grasp on the complex game that is D&D. This is an interactive show that began in New York as an Off-Broadway production – the same director, Michael Fell, also rehearsed with the Australian cast. In what ways is it interactive? The story lies in the audience’s hands, as well as with the roll of the 20-sided dice.  As you enter The Studio at the Sydney Opera House, you pick a coloured sticker from a basket. Depending on what colour you choose, you get aligned with one of the three classes: Warrior, Mage (Wizard) or Assassin/Entertainer. Throughout the show, you make decisions for the character in your assigned class, mostly by choosing options via your mobile phone (after scanning a QR code) – and sometimes just by yelling out. (Top tip:Make sure you turn up with a fully-charged phone.) You answer polls and take part in little games to choose what character the actors play, then make decisions or see the outcomes of characters’ actions. Dice rolls are directed by the Dungeon Master, played by the charismatic Cody Simpson-lookalike William Ka

Earlier this year, I was asked about my top Australian bucket-list destination – if I could go anywhere in the country, where would I pick? I nominated Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain. So it’s a pinch-myself moment as my husband and I wind our way up through the mountains in the car towards Cradle Mountain Lodge, spotting wombats, echidnas and pademelons throughout the countryside. Before we’ve even arrived at our destination, we start feeling the magic of this wild part of the world. Cradle Mountain Lodge – part of the Peppers family – sits on the edge of the World Heritage-listed Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park (a scenic two-hour drive from Launceston). It’s the perfect place from which to set off on any number of hikes through the national park, a landscape that looks like it’s been thought up by the mind of JRR Tolkien: bright green grassy knolls that appear to be kept perfectly mowed by happy wombats; crystalline lakes with mountains reflected in them; patches of rainforest encasing secret waterfalls; and rocky inclines just begging to be climbed for an even better view.  You only have to walk for about five minutes from the lodge to arrive at a shuttle bus stop – and the bus takes you to the start of multiple trails. There are also a range of boardwalks and smaller tracks that start directly from the lodge. Back at the lodge, the scenery is enchanting, too – also full of wombats, pademelons and even a little family of Tassie devils hiding under the main building

One look around this restaurant and its lush surrounds, and you can see why it’s called Lucky Duck – you can definitely call yourself lucky to spend time here. Although the rest of the Hunter Valley is pastures, grape vines and gumtrees, Leaves & Fishes in Lovedale – the property where Lucky Duck is – is more like Byron Bay. Or even Bali. There are tropical plants around the path leading into the restored timber house featuring colourful and ornate stained-glass windows, lanterns hanging from the ceiling, and a deck that sits above a dam full of silver perch. The verdant landscaping isn’t all that sets this newish restaurant apart from other Hunter Valley venues. While the region is full of eateries with menus that are Modern Australian (with some European thrown in for good measure), Lucky Duck features fun, bold and super-tasty Asian food. The dishes are share-style. On the small plates menu, there are fresh and tangy offerings such as the hiramasa kingfish with yellow curry and kaffir oil; a pineapple and cashew salad; and half-shell scallops with seaweed butter. Then some more indulgent picks, like a drop-dead-delicious prawn toast; Szechuan-spiced chicken wings with a pepper caramel and roasted peanuts; and – of course – duck bao. The large plates include barramundi over coals with burnt cos lettuce, kombu dashi and edamame; and local mushrooms with a yuzu ‘bernaise’. Lucky Duck began as a pop-up. It was a concept introduced into the space until the restaurant group – th

Some 25 years ago, The Wharf Revue began as a post-show, cabaret-esque satire act in the Sydney Theatre Company’s Theatre Bar at the End of the Wharf. It soon became obvious that it deserved a place on the main stage, and it quickly became one of STC’s most sold-out shows for the Sydney Theatre Company. I first attended this annual comedic roasting of (mostly) Australian politicians back when I was 21. Cut to 20 years on (yikes) and I’m here at the Seymour Centre (it eventually moved here and into the hands of indie producers, Soft Tread) for their last ever show. It’s the end of an era for the revue’s long-term writers and performers – Phil Scott, Jonathan Biggins and Drew Forsythe; all now in their 60s and 70s – and the end of an era for staunch audience members like me. I start to wonder if, perhaps, this is also the end of an era for satire like this. For a quarter-century no one in the public eye has been safe from mimicry. The End of the Wharf as We Know It opens with Paul Keating (portrayed by Biggins) expressing his relief at the extinguishment of this “satirical blowtorch”, which he compares to being “thrashed with overcooked broccolini”. The musicality of the revue has always been one of its most charming aspects. Scott is a talented composer, pianist and lyricist, having written and composed musicals and cabarets over the years. The others jump on guitar, bass and drums now and then as support, and everyone sings LOL-inducing lyrics, including new lyrics set to wel

The Gidley burger has got a lot of attention this year – it was named the world’s ninth best burger by the World’s 101 Best Steak Restaurants – so it’s no wonder it’s something that’s attracted people to The Rover, since they started serving it up, too. But that’s not all that draws people to this neighbourhoody cocktail bar. The Rover has a lot going for it. The fisherman’s pie, for one (more on that later). The Rover is a dimly lit cocktail bar in Surry Hills’ Hollywood Quarter (the section of Sydney named the coolest in 2024 by Time Out). If you go to this little intersection of Cambell and Foster Streets, you know you’ll have a good time – perhaps dinner at Pellegrino 2000 across the street, then drinks at The Rover. Or just skip Pellegrino altogether and eat your way through The Rover’s delicious menu, with a couple of cocktails or some wine. My friend and I start with the burger, of course. It’s double-beef patties made from Riverine sirloin chain meat; Coppertree farms retired dairy cow chuck and brisket, dry-aged at the in-house butchery at one of Liquid & Larder’s other steak venues, Alfie's. Basically, these guys know their meat (as well as Alfie’s and 24th best steak restaurant in the world, The Gidley, they also run Bistecca). The milk bun is perfectly round on top like in the photos; it looks polished, almost shiny, and we don’t really want to have to cut it in half. They’re thin, smash-style patties – crowd-pleasing because they’re not served rare like they are

I'm not a daredevil. I love adventure and trying new things, but I'm also not prepared to jump out a plane. So the idea of indoor skydiving has long appealed to me, and I finally gave it a go, with my husband and 13-year-old son. When you arrive, you sit and watch others for a while, "flying" with their instructor in the big transparent wind tunnel that's in the middle of the room. Everyone gets a couple of goes – on the first go, they stay low, just to get an idea of how it feels to float in the air; the instructor stays standing with feet planted on the net below as air (a mix of oxygen and nitrogen) gushes up fast against the skydiver's body. He holds their body so they don't fly up to the top of the tunnel. On their second turn, if they want to, their instructor takes his feet off the net and together you zoom together into the upper part of the tunnel. Then "drop" back down towards the net.  Next, it's our turn to get the suits on and have some basic tutorials. When we say basic, we mean it – kids as young as three can do indoor skydiving, so it's not rocket science. Regardless, I'm a bit nervous and so are some of the other participants in our group.  The thing that surprises me most when I have my first turn is that, while you are suspended in the air "flying", the wind that rushes up against your body is so fast and powerful that it feels hard, like something solid instead of airy. So it almost feels like you're lying on something as opposed to floating. Regardless, i

✍️ Time Out Sydney never writes starred restaurant and bar reviews from hosted experiences – Time Out covers restaurant and bar bills, and anonymously reviews, so that readers can trust our critique. Find out more, here. Our city has cluckloads of excellent charcoal chicken shops all over the place (you could say Sydneysiders are obsessed with them) so it’s hard to stand out in a cramped market – but Hariri Chickens in Kogarah does. I’d have to say it’s the best chicken shop in all of Sydney. I’ve eaten my way across a lot of them because my son does love a barbecue chook.  I am particularly clucky for Lebanese style-charcoal chicken – not only because of the toum, tabouli and pickles served alongside it, but because the chicken meat is always so flavour-packed and juicy. Hariri takes it up another notch – they finish the cooking of their whole barbecue chicken (after the skin is golden and crisp) by wrapping it in a village-style Lebanese bread (you know like those really thin Mountain Bread wraps you get from the supermarket?). As well as keeping the chicken insulated so it stays nice and succulent, the bread soaks up all the tasty chickeny goodness – the flavours from the skin and the juices from the chicken, so it’s this partly-crisp, partly-oozy thing that you rip into alongside the chicken. It’s an absolute masterstroke. Even just thinking about it right now, my tastebuds are keen.  As well as that, Hariri serves up all the other chicken-shop staples (chicken burgers, w

I have to be honest – I never thought of Penrith as a holiday destination. I tend to opt for beach holidays, nature adventures and CBD staycays, but I've always passed through Penrith on the way to the Blue Mountains without thinking of it as a destination in itself. Cut to me and my family looking for something a bit different to do – we've long been keen to try indoor sky-diving at iFLY, and then Penrith scored its first luxe hotel. The new Pullman Penrith, part of a $110 million development, got our attention. The Pullman is Penrith’s first five-star hotel, and it’s located in the Panthers precinct, right across from the sprawling Leagues Club with its many restaurants as bars, as well as iFLY, and an Aqua Golf driving range – plenty for me and my family to do right there on the hotel's doorstep, let alone everything else nearby. I was expecting the hotel to be comfortable and have all the amenities you’d expect from a five-star hotel – I didn’t expect it to be so elegant, though. As you enter the lobby, striking and colourful artworks and installations line parts of the walls and ceilings – it feels more Melbourne than Western Sydney. We’re offered a glass of Champagne and juices after check-in, which we enjoy on a lounge at a marble table while we decide where to go for lunch. We settle on a restaurant at the Panthers club across the road, because we're booked in for dinner at the hotel's restaurant, Marcel Bar & Bistro, tonight. We head to the lawn out back as the kids

Chippendale ranked as Sydney’s coolest neighbourhood – seventh coolest in the whole world, actually – and at least some of the credit for that can be granted to The Old Clare. The Old Clare is a boutique hotel with bars and restaurants on Kensington Street, the area that’s the beating heart of Chippendale. The Old Clare was here first, then the eateries down the laneway – as well as Spice Alley and the plant-covered Central Park Mall – grew around it. Back in the day, when I was a student across the road at UTS, The Old Clare was my go-to pub. I enjoyed countless nights in this drinking hole clad in pale yellow Art Deco-slash-Aussie-pub tiles (the tiles are still here), having formative experiences and reading messages scribbled onto the back of the dunny door.  Since then I’ve grown up and so has the good old Clare. In 2015, the building was converted into a classy yet welcoming bar (thankfully they retained a lot of original features), a pool bar on the rooftop, and really good hotel rooms in between. It's now part of Ode Hotels, a newly branded collection of unique hotels bringing a boutique experience to travellers. Launched by EVT Hotels & Resorts (on behalf of property owners, Invictus Developments), Ode Hotels introduces a collection of three iconic properties: The Old Clare Hotel in Chippendale, Harbour Rocks Hotel in The Rocks, and The Inchcolm in Spring Hill, Brisbane. The Old Clare rooms are some of the most beautiful hotel rooms in Sydney, I find, when I step into

This little pocket of Alexandria is the perfect place to hide out on a rainy day. You’ve got indoor warehouses for games, bowling, laser tag and putt-putt thanks to Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq and its Funlab neighbours, the Hijinx Hotel and Holey Moley. Inside, there are bowling lanes, an interactive 3D theatre ride, a laser tag zone (more so for the kids), and the tightest dodgem track you’ll ever come across. Older players will enjoy shooting hoops at the basketball rings, playing on old-school games like Pac-Man and Space Invaders, and trying out the VR platforms. Younger kids (aged 8-10) will enjoy the overhead rope course and the whac-a-mole arcade games. In the middle, there’s Dazzler's Diner, where you’ll get your sugar fix from any one of the cocktails. They’ve got spiked shakes, plus many non alcoholic options. Prices vary, depending on what interests you, but they have packages for families, groups and also parties. Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, things to do in Sydney, travel inspo, food and more, straight to your inbox.  Got kids in tow? These are the best things to do with them.

If you like your cinema experience to really pop, head to IMAX Sydney, in the W Sydney hotel building. IMAX Sydney’s movie screen is the third largest in the world, spanning a staggering 693 square metres. While most cinemas rely on digital projectors, IMAX Sydney goes all out with a state-of-the-art 4K laser projection system. This means that the screen pops with brighter images, more vivid colours and crystal-clear resolution. Plus, the cinema boasts an impressive 12-channel sound system, meaning you can feel the action run through your bones.  Audiences can kick back and watch the magic unfold in one of the 430 spacious seats, with the option to upgrade to a full recliner, cosy couples recliner, or private pod for parties of four. And their candy bar is a marketplace of all your favourite cinema snacks, bound to bring all your childhood dreams to life.  You can book tickets for IMAX Darling Harbour over here. Want to know more about what's in the W Sydney? Read about the W Sydney hotel here. Find out about the W Sydney's Away Spa, here. And check out the hotel restaurant, Btwn.

Taronga Zoo rocks, but what we love so much about Wild Life Sydney Zoo is that it's all about native Australian animals. Nestled in next to Sea Life Sydney Aquarium and Madame Tussauds at Darling Harbour, this smaller-scale zoo houses a whole bunch of true-blue native Australian animals across a range of different exhibits.  Tourists, kids and city-slickers alike can get up close and personal with koalas, various species of kangaroos, colourful birds, reptiles, a wombat, a platypus, and even a male southern cassowary called Princess.  If you don’t have all day to linger, you can tick off the whole attraction in about an hour and half. Kid's eye view (Reviewed by: Bill Blake, aged 8) The best thing about Wild Life Sydney is handling the animals. I loved it when Terry the black cockatoo sat on my shoulder. He was unusually heavy and he nibbled my cheek! He is a red-tailed black cockatoo. While he was sitting on my shoulder my brother Thom ran up and scared him away and he was very reluctant to get back on again. So I got to hold a tawny frogmouth instead. He was extremely heavy on the end of my arm. I learned that he is not an owl, like Hedwig in Harry Potter, although he does look a bit like Hedwig. But he’s not white. He has very big eyes and he’s nocturnal. I learned that owls hunt with their feet and tawny frogmouths hunt with their beaks. They have a very big mouth. I had a guided tour with Ben. He was a dude. But he was very nice. First of all, he showed my brother and I

Ping. Ping. Ping. That’s the sound of Sydney's Boxing Day sales as digital payments ring out across Aussie shopping centres – with hardly a note in sight. Tyro’s latest Big Time Business Report, which surveyed more than 500 small and medium enterprises (SMEs), revealed that 55 per cent of businesses are considering the idea of going cashless in 2025, partly to cut admin costs. Hospitality businesses like restaurants and bars, as well as retail businesses, are even more likely to go cashless than other industries. And 16 per cent of Australian businesses have already gone fully cashless in 2024, with hospo and retail leading the charge. “With almost 80% of payments in Australia made by card, and the cost benefit that comes with streamlining payment operations, it’s not surprising that more businesses are interested in going cashless,” says Tyro CEO, Jon Davey. Rising costs are putting the squeeze on profit margins – 48 per cent of small to medium enterprises (SMEs) surveyed for the report said they have hiked their prices in the last year to keep up with climbing supply costs. Some have absorbed the financial strain or switched suppliers to avoid passing the pain onto customers. As the saying goes, time is money. Financial admin is a big time suck for business owners who know they need to modernise how they do business to stay competitive.  RECOMMENDED: These are the best cheap eats in Sydney. No surprises here: consumers are feeling the pinch, too. They are getting increasing

Hughes Street in Potts Point is anticipating its annual shutdown on December 25 to make way for the Wayside Chapel Christmas Day Lunch and Street Party for homeless members of the community. Thanks to over $1,400,000 in donations from the public, the Wayside Chapel will provide over 1,000 Christmas lunches “with all the trimmings” to people who’d otherwise have nowhere else to spend the public holiday. While they've met their fundraising target for 2024, demand for the service grows each and every year, so you can still donate to support the cost of keeping their kitchens, programs and support services open across the festive season. Not only is their aid in the Christmas spirit — they provides daily support for thousands of homeless people living in Sydney. Last year, they provided over 86,000 meals to vulnerable community members who walked through the doors at the Kings Cross shelter in need of nourishment. The Christmas community event that's been running for over 40 years encourages anyone who is living on the street, lost or lonely, on Christmas Day to join the free party. There’ll be a Christmas breakfast at 9am, a service at 10am and lunch at 11.30am followed by a street party full of DJ's, live music, dancing and activities until 5.30pm. More than 100 volunteers help out on the day, serving up 100kg of prawns, 50 hams and 500 Christmas puddings.   Guests can look forward to a visit from Santa Claus, alongside Christmas songs, kids’ activities, (fake) tattoo stati

Parramatta is packed with IT professionals, Lakemba has loads of taxi drivers, Epping is where accountants assemble, Mosman has a lot of legal eagles, Castle Hill is home to school principals, Bondi Beach is a hub for models – and plastic surgeons. Stereotyping, much? Not exactly. We’re referencing "occupation by suburb" statistics from the latest Census, as recently broken down by the SMH. The Sydney workforce has now climbed to almost three million people across its 562 suburbs. The most common job by sheer volume is the sales assistant – we have 89,000 of them in Greater Sydney, with Blacktown alone home to 932 of them. The second most popular occupation is general clerks (49,000) and, again, Blacktown is where a huge portion of them live. Coming in third is accountants (44,000), a big portion of whom reside in Epping.  It won't come as a surprise that suburbs with water views – e.g. Vaucluse, Mosman, Hunters Hill – have more CEOs than anywhere else. Mosman has 471 lawyers and a dozen judges among their working elite. It's also a hot spot for management consultants, HR managers and financial advisors. Lawyers also dwell across inner Sydney, with a strong presence in other waterside areas like Woolloomooloo and McMahons Point. Newtown and Stanmore also have a smattering of legal professionals due to the gentrification of these once-working class suburbs.  In less obvious news, medical professionals like to settle down in Strathfield; it's home to big portions of GPs, cardi

Each year, Spotify delivers its Wrapped – and Time Out delivers ours. Want to know what Time Out Sydney readers got most pumped about in 2024? Jump on in, and add these top hits to your bucket lists. Here’s the round-up of the most-read subject matters in 2024 on timeout.com/sydney, across the categories of events, restaurants, new venues, concerts and natural wonders. All these top-topic lists are based on our website traffic from this year. In 2024, Sydneysiders were most excited about these happenings: The Sydney Metro: Who knew that fresh public transport would be the most exciting thing to happen to Sydney in 2024? Head On Photo Festival: This photo fest definitely got you looking. Ramadan Nights: You love this festival of food, held each evening during Ramadan in Lakemba. (But did you know it's changing in 2025?) Tekno Train (@ Vivid Sydney): Toot! Toot! This new addition to Vivid booked out quick. Sydney Cherry Blossom Festival: This Auburn event is always one of the best things about spring in Sydney. Photograph: Supplied | Transport for NSW  These are the eateries Sydneysiders enjoyed reading about most:  Saint Peter (2.0): The opening of the new iteration of Josh and Julie Niland's fish restaurant has gone swimmingly. The Grounds of Alexandria: The most Instagrammed eatery in Australia is a perennial fave. Prefecture 48: What's not to love about this new six-in-one Japanese precinct with four restaurants, a patisserie, and a whisky bar? The Gidley: Everyone w

In October, plans were revealed to increase the housing capacity of Sydney Olympic Park by 479 per cent in the next 25 years. The future Olympic Park is still a way off, but recent progress has been made, as the two Metro tunnel boring machines (TBMs) have broken through at Sydney Olympic Park. The hardworking TBMs, named Beatrice and Daphne (cute), have excavated more than 2 million tonnes of material – enough to fill 316 Olympic swimming pools – over an 18-month period, carving out two 11-kilometre tunnels from The Bays in the Inner West to what will become a brand-new Metro station. (It will eventually join these existing Metro destinations.) This new part of Metro line will make living along this stretch – and in Olympic Park itself – more convenient to the rest of Sydney, and it will also mean the precinct will become a more thriving community itself. Photograph: Supplied | NSW Government The new Sydney Olympic Park precinct (given the tick of approval by the Department of Planning, Housing & Infrastructure) will feature three new residential buildings ranging from 21 to 45 storeys, and will include more than 300 new homes, with plans in the pipeline to increase this to 490 homes. The area will also be propped up with a mix of commercial and retail spaces, so it will not only be a liveable neighbourhood, but also a buzzing destination for sport, entertainment and events. “Sydney Olympic Park metro station will have sports and entertainment fans cheering when it provi

You head out for your morning coffee and who’s this red-headed fella you keep bumping into? Why, it’s a brush turkey, and there’s a reason you’re seeing more and more of them popping up all over Sydney. The Australian brush turkey was all but extinct back in the 1930s, but recent research published in the Wildlife Research journal has found that these curious birds are having a huge resurgence in urban areas. Yup, Sydney is in its brush turkey era. Brush turkeys were hunted and roasted for dinner at a rapid rate in the Depression, yet since legislation declared the birds a native species in the 1970s, they’ve been rapidly increasing in population across Sydney. The resurgence has been a while in the making, but it's been a rather extraordinary bounce-back from near extinction. Dr Matthew Hall, an urban ecologist at the University of Sydney, said research shows when the brush turkey boom hit our city. He told the ABC they “became really common in northern Sydney in the 2000s and 2010s." Now, in 2024, they can be found in around 312 Sydney suburbs – which is most likely why you’ve bumped into a few on your daily constitutional. Besides becoming an official native species, ecologists have been keen to pinpoint exactly why these yellow-necked birds have had such a spectacular return from being all but gone. One such theory behind their resurgence is the fact that by nature they practice sustainability habits – they’re more than happy to scrounge for discarded food and they’re no

ICYMI, Chippendale this year ranked as the seventh coolest neighbourhood in the whole world, on Time Out's annual global list – edging out hip and happening suburbs across New York, Paris, London, Berlin and Tokyo. And, going by information from the real estate insiders over at Domain, more and more people want to call this suburb home. So, what sets this inner Sydney locale apart – and what will it cost you to live there? “Chippo”, as the locals call it, was once an industrial area. Today, it's evolved into a hip enclave filled with creative spaces, boutique stores, trendy eateries and a community vibe. As for its population, it's a mix of university students (due to its proximity to UTS and Sydney Uni), and young professionals looking to live close to the Sydney CBD. Photograph: Anna Kucera Given its young population of students and up-and-coming professionals, most of Chippendale's residents are renters. The median weekly rent is $1,095 for a house or $820 for an apartment. The median unit price is $850,000, with studio apartments coming in relatively cheap – by Sydney standards – at around $500,000 to $600,000. Sounds like a lot, but – despite its proximity to the city, and the cool factor – it's a fair bit cheaper than nearby Surry Hills, where the median unit price is $70,000 more to buy. In fact, data published early this year found that Chippendale is the eighth cheapest suburb within 10km of Sydney's CBD to buy in. You'd want to get in fast before everyone else. C

For our inaugural Time Out Recommends (in partnership with Tyro), we gave our readers the chance to vote for their favourite things to do, places to stay, places to eat and more.  These are the places you loved most in 2024... People’s Choice: Best Thing to DoBondi to Coogee coastal walk People’s Choice: Best RestaurantLuna Lu People’s Choice: Best Cheap EatMarrickville Pork Roll People’s Choice: Best Regional VenueMuse Restaurant, Hunter Valley People’s Choice: Best Wellness SpotNature’s Energy, various locations People’s Choice: Best HotelCrown Towerrs Sydney People’s Choice: Best Arts & CultureArt Gallery of NSW Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.  Looking for cheap stuff to do? Here's a heap of free and cheap things to do in Sydney, as recommended by our readers.

Sydney is famed for its outdoor culture, but we also have a huge diversity of world-class arts and culture venues – from art galleries and theatres to live music, museums and cultural experiences. Check out these Time Out Sydney Recommended Arts & Culture venues for 2024. (Time Out Recommends 2024 is presented in partnership with Tyro.) Art Gallery of NSW Sydney Opera House Carriageworks White Rabbit Gallery Belvoir St Theatre Riverside Theatres  Old Fitz Theatre Enmore Theatre Qtopia Sydney Hayes Theatre Co Artspace Ritz Cinemas Randwick  Oxford Art Factory Heaps Gay Parties White Bay Power Station Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news, travel inspo and activity ideas, straight to your inbox.  Check out some of the theatre and musicals on Sydney stages now.

Sydney is hard to beat when it comes to incredible ways to spend your time and coin, thanks to the city’s mind-blowing landscapes and iconic attractions. With so many options, it can be hard to know which ones are worthy of your time, so we’ve narrowed it down to these 50 experiences that Time Out editors truly love – things to do in the city, but also in the north, east, south and west. There’s a mix of hugely popular as well as lesser-known gems. Looking for fun? Get yourself over to these Time Out Sydney Recommended Things to Do places for 2024. (Time Out Recommends 2024 is presented in partnership with Tyro.) Urbnsurf Sydney, Olympic Park Phoenix Central Park, Chippendale Sydney By Kayak, Lavender Bay Golden Age Cinema & Bar, Surry Hills Auburn Botanic Gardens, Auburn Luna Park Sydney, Milsons Point Sydney Architecture Tours, Sydney Sydney Observatory, Millers Point Chinese Garden of Friendship, Darling Harbour iFly, Penrith Bare Island fort guided tour, La Perouse Aboriginal Harbour Heritage Tour, Royal Botanic Garden Hyper Karting, Moore Park Clay Sydney, Enmore Chau Chak Wing Museum, Camperdown Wylie’s Baths, Coogee Q Station ghost tour, Manly Treetops Adventure Western Sydney, Abbotsbury The Cipher Room, Newtown Old Government House, Parramatta OzHarvest cooking classes, Alexandria Australian National Maritime Museum, Darling Harbour Elizabeth Farm, Rosehill The Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan Bondi Icebergs Pool, Bondi Lantern Ghost Tour, The Rocks Parramatta

This category was very tricky to narrow down, considering Sydney is flush with beaut accommodation. Our editors have bed-hopped around our city’s hotels to bring you this list of everything from inner-city stays to places further out. The deserving big chains and luxe hotels get a shout-out, as do boutique and more affordable stays.     Looking for a top place for a Sydney staycay or getaway? Check out these Time Out Sydney Recommended Hotels for 2024. (Time Out Recommends 2024 is presented in partnership with Tyro.) The Park Hyatt, CBD The Old Clare, Chippendale Pullman Penrith, Penrith Paramount House Hotel, Surry Hills YHA Sydney Harbour, CBD W Sydney, Darling Harbour Wildlife Retreat at Taronga, Mosman Ovolo Woolloomooloo, Woolloomooloo Crystalbrook Albion, Surry Hills Intercontinental Sydney, CBD Manly Pacific, Manly Jonah’s, Palm Beach Ace Hotel Sydney, Sydney Pier One Sydney Harbour, Sydney QT Bondi, Bondi Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news and things to do, straight to your inbox. Looking for things to do while you’re in Sydney? Here’s our guide to bucket-list experiences in this town.

Sydney is celebrated for its beaches and harbour, but we’re calling it – we’ve surely got one of the most delicious, culturally diverse dining scenes in the world. It’s a big task narrowing down our editors’ faves, but we’ve picked this mix of restaurants across a range of cuisines and vibes. Looking for a tasty recommendation? Check out these Time Out Sydney Recommended Restaurants & Bars for 2024… (That said, if you’re looking for one of our top Recommended Cheap Eats, head over here.) Time Out Recommends 2024 is presented in partnership with Tyro. Restaurants: Sean’s Bar Vincent Jane Ante Yellow Porkfat Saint Peter Pilu Spice Temple Pino’s Vino e Cucina al Mare Firepop Pellegrino 2000 Colombo Social The Wedge Cho Cho San Kurumba Ursula's Paddington Lankan Filling Station Aalia Rafi Fontana Ester Cafe Paci Kiln Fior 10 William St Bart Jr Bars: Earl’s Juke Joint PS40 Stowaway Bar Bar Copains Deux Frères Famelia Old Mate’s Place Vermuteria Centro 86 White Cockatoo Hotel The Imperial Hotel Nick & Nora's Fortunate Son Apollonia Harbord Hotel Arcadia Liquors The Bob Hawke Beer and Leisure Centre The Rover Double Deuce Lounge The Waratah Pleasure Club P&V Merchants Paddington The Bearded Tit  Stay in the loop: sign up for our free Time Out Sydney newsletter for more news and things to do, straight to your inbox. If you're looking for a more budget-friendly option, see our Recommended Cheap Eats over here.