Sydney tours

Sydney is one of the world’s great holiday destinations. Australia’s global gateway is an essential stop on any traveller’s itinerary.

Below are a few must-do attractions and activities in Sydney. Contact numbers and email addresses have been provided for the different activities available, please contact them with any enquiries and/or bookings.

For additional information on where to go and what to do in Sydney and New South Wales visit the Tourism New South Wales website: http://www.sydney.com/Activities_and_Attractions_p517.aspx

More information on visiting and travelling Australia can be found on the Tourism Australia website: http://www.australia.com/index.aspx

Guided Tours and shopping at the Queen Victoria Building (QVB)

An experience of grand proportions where history, culture and shopping converge under a majestic dome. Over five levels, QVB houses the best of Sydney’s contemporary fashion, food, art, jewellery and antiques amidst a cultural backdrop of unprecedented Romanesque design.

Queen Victoria Building, a beautiful way to shop.

In the heart of Sydney’s CBD, the Queen Victoria Building offers regular historical tours of the building. Tours are AUS $10 per person for around 45 minutes. Bookings are essential, for further enquiries please contact the Concierge Desk on +61 2 9264 9209 or email infodesk@qvb.com.au Alternatively, visit the concierge desk on Ground Floor for more information.
Queen Victoria Building (QVB)
Address: 455 George Street Sydney
Web: www.qvb.com.au

Sydney Opera House

Sydney Opera House’s promise is to take people on a journey from the ordinary to the extraordinary into a world where the inspiration of the building outside is reflected in everything we do.

In 2007, Sydney Opera House was formally recognised on the UNESCO World Heritage List. We want people to come inside and experience the wonder and so we continue to develop our suite of visitor experiences. In the same year, the Tour of the House was superseded by The Essential Tour. It is underpinned by an enthralling narrative and rich audio-visual component.
 
This unique venue is not only one of the world’s most recognised global landmarks but one of the world’s premier Performing Arts Centres.  We operate a range of inspiring guided tours offering a once in a lifetime opportunity to see inside one of the great architectural masterpieces of the 20th Century!  Alternatively our Experience Packages provide a range of entertainment and dining options to suit all tastes and budgets.  
 
The Essential Tour:
Daily 9:00am – 5:00pm, departs every half hour (no booking required)
The latest addition to the range of visitor experiences at Sydney Opera House.  For the first time ever, visitors can see, as well as hear, the dramatic story of the global landmark. Featuring previously unseen video footage from the House archives, with narration by Golden Globe winner Rachel Griffiths, The Essential Tour is a celebration of Sydney Opera House’s life as Australia’s premier performing arts centre. In a world-first for a World Heritage listed site, video sequences are shown at points of interest, using the building as a storytelling canvas.  The sequences are delivered in ways which respect the building’s heritage values, using methods such as the projection of video footage directly onto the interior walls to take visitors on a journey celebrating the genius of architect Jørn Utzon Tour guides complement the audio-visual experience, explaining how one of the busiest performing arts centres in the world came into existence against impossible odds and giving visitors an insight into the special magic moments which take place at Sydney Opera House every day

Backstage Tour: 
Departs daily at 7:00am (BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL)
This 2 hour tour takes visitors behind the scenes of one of the world’s truly great performing arts complexes.  Starting early hour in the morning allows us access to all backstage areas which are in use at any other time of the day or night. The tour includes access to places such as the Opera Theatre scenery dock, the Orchestra Pit, On Stage in either the Concert Hall or the Opera Theatre as well as rehearsal rooms and dressing rooms. 

High Tea:
Wednesdays at 2:00pm (BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL)
Takes this tradition to new heights. The combination of opera performance, fine cuisine and the ambience of a World Heritage listed building have created an High Tea experience worthy of standing ovation. Includes an Opera recital.

Download tour pricing list Here

For all bookings please contact Tourism Reservations on tel: +61 2 9250 7250 or
email: Tourismbookings@sydneyoperahouse.com
Address: Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, Sydney NSW 2001
Web: www.sydneyoperahouse.com

The Art Gallery of New South Wales

The Art Gallery of New South Wales is one of Australia’s leading art museums, housing some of the finest works of art in the country. Located within beautiful parklands overlooking Sydney Harbour, this Sydney institution is only 15 minutes walk from the CBD.

Over one million visitors a year enjoy its permanent collection of Australian, Aboriginal, European, Asian and Contemporary art. Of special interest to international visitors is the Yiribana Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Gallery, an impressive space dedicated to the permanent exhibition of indigenous art.

To complement the permanent collection the Gallery hosts an extensive exhibition program with up to 30 exhibitions each year. Many of these exhibitions are accompanied by a wide range of programs including lectures, films, concerts and special events.

Open daily 10:00am – 5:00pm, Wednesdays until 9:00pm
Free general admission, costs apply to some exhibitions.

FREE GUIDED TOURS
Free guided tours of the Gallery’s Collection and the Yiribana Torres Strait Islander Gallery run daily. No booking required.

General collection
Monday                       1:00pm & 2:00pm
Tuesday – Sunday        11:00am, 1:00pm & 2:00pm

Yiribana Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Gallery
Tuesday – Sunday        1:00pm

EXHIBITIONS ON VIEW 13-15 JULY
Intensely Dutch Image, abstraction and the word, post-war and beyond
5 June - 23 August 2009
Free admission

Uncompromising, confronting, optimistic – after World War II a new young generation of Dutch artists took to modernity as never before. For them it was a time of renewal.
This exhibition presents the work of some of the most important post-war Dutch artists, including those associated with CoBrA and art informel, and those who preceded them, such as Willem de Kooning. Works have been borrowed from Dutch museums, augmented with loans from Australian galleries, the Pompidou, Paris, and private collections in the Netherlands and Australia.

For more information visit: http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/coming/intensely_dutch

Silk Ikats of Central Asia From the collection of the Islamic Arts Museum Kuala Lumpur
2 July - 11 October 2009
$7 admission

An exhibition of late 19th century robes, tunics and textile panels that presents the remarkable artistic achievement and technical virtuosity of the silk designers, dyers and weavers of Central Asia. Within and without the borders of Central Asia, ikat textiles had political and social value, used as payment for services rendered, as dowry and bride price, in diplomatic exchanges and as gifts to monarchs. Great pride was taken in the aesthetic quality and bold originality of the designs of these ikat fabrics that came to symbolise the exoticism of the Islamic world.

For more information visit: http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/coming/silk_ikats

The Art Gallery of New South Wales
Address: Art Gallery Road, The Domain Sydney NSW 2000
Information line: +61 2 9225 1744