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The Atlas Obscura Guide To Sydney

28 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Sydney, Australia

Updated February 2, 2023

Unusual Attractions in Sydney

Sydney, Australia

Wendy's Secret Garden

Built over an abandoned train yard, this hidden gem is full of winding paths and offers gorgeous views of Sydney Harbour.

Sydney, Australia

Gould's Book Arcade

Australia's largest secondhand bookstore.

Sydney, Australia

'Forgotten Songs' Sound Sculpture

A collaboration of art and ornithology mourns the calls of Sydney's lost birds.

Sydney, Australia

Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney

Come for the flowers, stay for the bats!

Sydney, Australia

Purikura Photoland

People can't get enough of these adorable Japanese photobooths.

Sydney, Australia

The Lex and Ruby Graham Gardens

This secret Australian garden was built on love after a man planted a random bulb he found in the ocean.

Sydney, Australia

Justice and Police Museum

This grim museum collects artifacts and evidence of some of the most sensational antipodean crimes.

Sydney, Australia

Badu Mangroves

A boardwalk winds through this sliver of coastal nature hidden within Sydney.

See All 28 Things To Do in Sydney

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Sydney

Sydney, Australia

The Lillipad Cafe

An indigenous ethnobotanist runs this brunch spot celebrating Australia’s native flavors.

Sydney, Australia

Yerrabingin Farm

The world's first indigenous rooftop farm boasts 2,000 plants from more than 35 different native Australian species.

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Stories About Sydney

Podcast: The 'Forgotten Songs' Sound Sculpture

Join us for a daily celebration of the world’s most wondrous, unexpected, even strange places.

by The Podcast Team

November 15, 2021

The Fiddly Business of Tracking Australia's Most Venomous Spider

To study the Sydney funnel web spider, one researcher tags along from a distance with the help of tags the size of a grain of rice.

by Hannah Thomasy

In Sydney, a Cafe Serving Aboriginal Food Brings Comfort and Challenges

Nyoka Hrabinsky, an Aboriginal ethnobotanist, is turning “bush tucker” into brunch.

by Reina Gattuso

November 19, 2020

In Sydney, Intricate New Models Depict Australia’s Brutal Colonial Era

A redesigned museum hopes to grapple with the thorny legacy of the “convict period.”

by Sabrina Imbler

February 7, 2020

Fish Flock to the Super-Salty Wastewater of the Sydney Desalination Plant

Sydney's technological solution for drought is having unexpected effects on marine life.

by Sabrina Imbler

January 2, 2020

A Chain of Seahorse Hotels Is Coming Soon to Sydney Harbour

"If you build it, they will come."

by Sabrina Imbler

December 13, 2019

A New Purpose for Sydney's Unfinished Train Tunnels

They will be transformed into an underground entertainment space.

by Sarah Laskow

October 1, 2018

The World's Largest Speedo Collection Almost Oozed Away

In 2012, Australia's Powerhouse Museum discovered that something strange was happening with some of their swimsuits.

by Abigail Cain

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