Hi Bebe Voyage fam! My name is Jackie; I’m an American living in Sydney for the last 8 years. Getting ready to pick up and move back to the US to be closer to my family. A very bittersweet moment. I have loved living in this city, it has so much to offer! Beaches, mountains, city, bushland and some of the best people I’ve met. Here is my day in the life with my 2 year old son and all the places and things I will miss in Sydney!
8:00 AM MORNING
By this time I have been up for about an hour running around trying to get my toddler to eat while simultaneously getting dressed and packing a diaper bag for our day outing. His favorite breakfast is pancakes (1 egg scrambled with a mushed banana). I’ll make extras to take with us during the day. I’m usually yelling across the room to ask my husband to make sure we have a heap of snacks and water because my son eats like a grown man. Usually fruit, some chopped veggies, granola bars and the like.
845AM:
After breakfast we will head out with our Mountain Buggy Swift pram; its is sturdy but compact and has room for lots of storage. We live about a 45-50 min walk from the city so we like to walk into the city on a nice day over the Harbor Bridge. But before we do ANYTHING….this mama needs her coffee. There are a million great coffee places in Sydney. We live in Crows Nest which is a nice family area north of the city. I prefer to stop at Fresh, on the way to the bus. It is super kid friendly! Toys and an outdoor area are great to occupy the little one while you wait for your coffee!
915AM
Coffees in hand, we will make our way over to the bus to cut off some of the walking time into the city. You can grab an Opal Card which is a re-loadable transport card and use this on busses, ferries and trains. Rides are usually $2.70 one way however on Sundays, you can use all forms of transport for a flat fee of $2.70 the whole day. These can be obtained at a local news agency or in the train stations themselves. All transport accommodates for prams so it’s pretty simple-passengers are more than accommodating to help out and move if necessary. In our area, busses come every 2-3 minutes so no need to check the times however if you prefer a schedule, download the “TripView” app and you can plan away!
The first seated areas on the bus are dedicated to prams and wheel chairs-based on priorty-super easy to fit in and bus drivers are used to this.
930AM
We usually de-board in North Sydney and walk thru Luna Park. This is just on the north part of the bridge and hugs the harbor. Beautiful views and free to walk through the amusement park. We enjoy taking our toddler on the Ferris Wheel. Awesome view of the city and harbor. We then walk back up the hill towards back towards the bridge. There is a great park right under the Bridge-Bradfield Park-if the kids are getting anxious from being in the pram and need to run around. If you time it right, the Kirribilli Markets happen every 4th Saturday of the month and feature local vendors and food stalls.
11AM-
After leaving the park, we walk up over the harbor bridge…a bit of a warning…there are plenty of steps so you’ll need your husband/wife/partner to help you carry it up and then down on the other side. The walk over the bridge is about 2KM (1.2mi). On the other side, you’ll land in “The Rocks” which is a historical part of Sydney. Lots of restaurants and bars which are ok for kids but probably better reserved for a couples’ night.
1130AM:
From here, it’s an easy 15 min walk down to Circular Quay (pronounced key) which is a transport hub of Sydney. You can catch ferries, buses, trains or taxis form here. We would grab the Manly ferry which takes about 30 min by ferry to reach Manly Beach. You can also grab a ferry to the Taronga Zoo which is pretty fun!
1230PM
Manly beach has a beautiful walk of shops and eateries before you hit the beach. I recommend grabbing some Fish and Chips and sitting on the beach. There is also a great restaurant called Daniel San which is a funky Japanese Fusion restaurant with great beach views/. Great sushi with a twist but also the standard French fries and pub fare. They have an awesome kid’s area with coloring and Lego too!
130PM
So by this time, we hope our little one is nice and full and ready to nap in the stroller while my husband and I continue enjoying the beach and maybe grab a beer at one of the many patios on the beach. Our Mountain Buggy Swift lays fully flat so nice and comfy for our little dude.
When our son wakes up, we may go down to the beach and splash around for a while depending the type of toddler mood he’s in. Otherwise we will catch our bus back to our home. About 30 min by bus.
430PM.
After arriving at home, we will unpack the 50 items that we brought with us-towels, diaper bag, clothes, snacks…it’s never ending! We have recently invested in Hello Fresh for dinner-it’s a life saver. Delivers fresh ingredients plus recipes to your door and takes the thinking out of dinner. It is subscription based, and we receive it 3 times a week. Great for days like this when you’ve had a long day and don’t want to start the inevitable “whats for dinner?” conversation!
Alternatively, we have lots of great restaurants in Crows Nest. Our personal favourite is Raavi’s Cumin. Located on Burlington St between Alexander and Willoughby, Raavi’s offers DELICIOUS Indian food! Luckily our son is a pretty great eater so he is happy with Butter Chicken…a very mild curry dish and the doughy naan bread. If you aren’t in to Indian Food or want something more kid friendly, there are great pizza places (Bravo Trattoria) which offer an easy selection of pasta and pizza for the family, high chairs, outdoor open space next door so the kids can play, and of course crayons and coloring!
6-630pm
Bathtime and stories! Followed by Bedtime-730p-8p depending what’s happening!
Hope this has been helpful to you all. Enjoy your fabulous trip to Sydney!
If you want some more tips to discover this wonderful city, check out our Sydney destination guide!
