Kids activities in Sydney: family events & days out

A local guide to kids activities in Sydney

Where to take kids in Sydney — the harbour and the beaches, the free museums, what suits each age, and how to get around on an Opal card with a pram.

Family days out in Sydney

Darling Harbour is the easiest big family day in the city: SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium, WILD LIFE Sydney Zoo, Madame Tussauds and the Australian National Maritime Museum sit around one waterfront with Darling Quarter's free water play and flying-fox playground in the middle. Across the water, Taronga Zoo is best reached by ferry from Circular Quay — the crossing, the Sky Safari cable car and the harbour view from the giraffe enclosure are half the appeal.

For a bigger day, Luna Park sits under the Harbour Bridge at Milsons Point, the Royal Botanic Garden and the Calyx run from the Opera House to Woolloomooloo, and Bondi to Coogee is a six-kilometre clifftop walk with rock pools along the way. Further out, the Blue Mountains and Scenic World at Katoomba are 90 minutes by train, and Featherdale Wildlife Park at Doonside is the best place to get close to koalas and quokkas. Start with the top 10 attractions for kids in Sydney.

Free things to do with kids in Sydney

The beaches and the harbour make Sydney a cheap city for families. Bondi, Manly, Coogee, Balmoral and Shelly Beach cost nothing, and the ocean pools at Bronte, Bondi and North Sydney are free or a couple of dollars. The Royal Botanic Garden, Centennial Parklands, Barangaroo Reserve and the Darling Quarter and Ian Thorpe Aquatic Centre playgrounds are free, as is the Rocks Discovery Museum, the Art Gallery of NSW, the Australian Museum's permanent galleries for children under 16, and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Sydney Observatory's grounds, the Bondi to Coogee walk and the Spit to Manly track are all free days out with a view.

For programmed free sessions, see free events for kids in Sydney — library storytime, council holiday programmes and museum drop-ins run most weeks.

Indoor and rainy day activities in Sydney

Sydney rain arrives in short heavy bursts, so a covered fallback within walking distance matters more than a whole indoor day. Darling Harbour is the best insurance policy — the Aquarium, WILD LIFE and the Maritime Museum are all within two minutes of each other under cover. Add the Australian Museum in Darlinghurst, the Powerhouse in Ultimo for hands-on science, the Art Gallery of NSW, and the Sydney Observatory's planetarium sessions. For active indoor time there are trampoline parks and climbing gyms across Alexandria and Chatswood, ice skating at Macquarie Centre, and the indoor pools at Ian Thorpe Aquatic Centre and the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.

Filter to museum events for kids in Sydney, arts and crafts workshops or family theatre shows when you need to stay dry.

Best activities by age: toddlers, 5–8 and 9–12

Toddlers (0–4): Darling Quarter's water play, the Royal Botanic Garden's Palm Grove and Calyx, Balmoral's netted swimming enclosure, Centennial Parklands' playgrounds and library storytime. Shade and a change of clothes matter more than a schedule. Toddler activities in Sydney lists what is currently running for this age.

Ages 5–8: Taronga Zoo and the Sky Safari, SEA LIFE, Featherdale, Luna Park and the Manly ferry with fish and chips at the other end. Activities for children aged 6–11 shows what is on for this bracket now.

Ages 9–12: the Pylon Lookout on the Harbour Bridge, Scenic World in the Blue Mountains, the Powerhouse, surf lessons at Bondi or Manly, and kayaking on Middle Harbour. This age also gets the most from outdoor activities around Sydney — the coastal walks, Ku-ring-gai Chase trails and the Olympic Park bike hire.

Getting around Sydney with children

An Opal card or contactless card covers trains, buses, light rail and ferries, children aged 4–15 travel at a child fare with a daily cap, and under-4s are free — and ferries are charged as ordinary public transport, so the Circular Quay to Manly or Taronga crossing is the cheapest harbour cruise available. Trains and the light rail are step-free at most stops and buses kneel for prams. Driving into the CBD means tolls, tunnels and expensive parking, so park at a station such as Chatswood or Olympic Park and train in. Sun protection is not optional: hats, shirts and SPF50, and swim between the flags at patrolled beaches. School holidays here fall in January, April, July and late September, and the big Darling Harbour attractions are busiest between 11am and 2pm.