In a city as ridiculously beautiful as Sydney – home of turquoise seas, lush bushland and a sparkling harbour, not to mention a certain bridge and a house with sails – why settle for a drink when you can have a drink and a view? Us Sydneysiders know our city is home to some bloody great rooftop bars. Now, we can lay claim to having some of the best in the whole wide world, thanks to a brand-new ranking of the globe’s top sky-high drinking spots. If that doesn’t call for a cheers, we don’t know what will.
Ten of our beloved Sydney rooftop bars nabbed a spot on the list, the result of an intensive study by Mandoe Media. The company analysed 703,289 online customer reviews from 997 bars across 135 global cities to come up with a definitive grading of the 200 best watering holes on the planet. TripAdvisor ratings, drinks prices and Instagram shares were all taken into account, and the results are now in. Ready?
The highest Sydney bar to rank on the list at number ten was Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel, the sprawling waterfront venue where the rosé is always crisp, the Eastern Suburb bros are out in full force and the prawns are fresh. (And we’re not saying everything is a competition, but we beat Melbourne, as their top bar came in 15th place.) Coming in at 34th place, Coogee Pavilion is the breezy oceanfront boozer with delicious eats, drinks and cracking sea views.
Next up in 43rd spot was Sydney favourite The Glenmore Hotel in The Rocks, which is an ever-reliable option for after-work drinks and a place to bring your out-of-towners.
In 70th place was Corridor, located on Newtown’s King Street and where it’s very easy to lose an evening on the upstairs deck. This was followed by SoCal and The Golden Sheaf, which came in at 97th and 112th, respectively.
Four more Sydney bars made the cut in the top 200, including The Light Brigade, Royal Hotel Paddington, Bridgeview Hotel, and Strawberry Hills Hotel.
Wondering which rooftop bar nabbed the world's top spot? It was AkaAza Bar in Bangkok, and we can't deny it – those sunset views look top-notch. But until we next book flights to Thailand, we're pretty damn stoked to have some of the world's best right on our doorstep.
You can check out the full global ranking online here. And here's our very own round-up of Sydney’s best rooftop bars.
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.