As a whole, Sydney ranks as one of the most beautiful capital cities in the world; it’s a statement that’s not uncommon to hear from those visiting from overseas for the first time.
Fringed by water, with distinctive buildings and a substantial amount of greenery among the urban sprawl, it’s easy to take for granted just how pretty a part of the world we have here during the daily 9 to 5 grind.
While beauty is subjective and almost entirely in the eye of the beholder, there are some suburbs in Sydney which stand out from the crowd in terms of their physical beauty.
Sure – many of them may cost a pretty penny to live in, but they’re all at least worth a visit. Here’s our list of the 10 most beautiful Sydney suburbs. Note these aren’t necessarily the “best” or “most liveable”; we’re going strictly skin-deep here.
10. Woronora
What it offers: lovely dense greenery; relaxed river environment; secluded and peaceful
This great little pocket of Shire goodness is a wonderful example of a pristine “hidden valley” environment. Head down, down from the bridge and you’ll find the charming Boatshed where you can grab a cup of coffee and relax alongside the calm water.
Surrounded by dense bush and parkland yet close enough to Sutherland to still feel connected to the city, Woronora is packed with greenery. It’s home to some of the best relatively unknown bushwalks and cycling tracks in Sydney
Both sides of the Woronora River fall under the suburb’s remit, and it’s hard to find anywhere in the suburb that doesn’t offer lovely river views regardless of which side you’re on.
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This river-adjacent location makes Woronora a go-to suburb for non-beach water enthusiasts, although it does have small snippets of beach if that’s your thing.
Kayaking, boating, fishing swimming, they’re all on the cards here and all come surrounded by a lovely dose of wilderness.
The suburb is heavy with the sounds of nature and birdsong, and is a great spot for birdwatching in particular.
It’s quiet and peaceful as well, and makes for a great weekend getaway spot if you’re looking for a suburb on this list that’s lighter on the crowds.
9. Watsons Bay
What it offers: breathtaking ocean and harbour views, clifftop walks, heritage architecture
Perched on the South Head Peninsula, Watsons Bay has come a long way since its origins as an isolated fishing village. Sandwiched between Sydney Harbour on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other, there are few parts of the suburb that don’t provide incredible water views.
It’s perhaps most famous for the Gap cliffs that serve as a dramatic lookout point to the open ocean, and there’s a range of great walking trails around the headland that provide magical views looking back at Sydney city as well.
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It’s not just the water that is so spectacular, either; Watsons Bay boasts ample parkland ideal for grabbing some seafood from the famous Doyles (which has been around for nearly 150 years and is still going strong) and soaking in the atmosphere.
There’s plenty of interesting heritage buildings to admire here as well. They’re more of a historic townhouse/cottage type architectural mix than just garish mansions, which differentiates itself from some of the other gorgeous and gaudy high-end suburbs elsewhere in Sydney.
Property prices are as outrageous as one might expect given the exclusivity, with multiple and even tens of millions of dollars required. It’s a little bit of a chore to access by road, so take the ferry instead.
A full day here admiring the views, grabbing a drink at the Watsons Bay Hotel, a snap in front of the lighthouse and a panorama of the harbour is well worth the effort.
8. Manly
What it offers: excellent beaches, tons of dining, great walking tracks
Most people’s first impression of their first time in the Northern Beaches will likely be a good one courtesy of what Manly offers. The ferry ride over from Circular Quay is pretty enough in itself, and sets the scene of what’s to come.
This is a “beach” suburb in the extreme, with multiple top-notch beaches on offer, each providing something a little different to suit all tastes. Whether it’s surfing, diving and snorkelling, or a safer and calmer area to wade in with the kids, Manly’s beaches deliver in spades and are kept exceptionally clean despite its popularity.
The beach vibe carries over to the general atmosphere – it’s hard not to feel like you’re on a mini-getaway when visiting Manly even though it’s only a brisk ferry trip away from the city.
Its promenade is a bit touristy, sure, but it’s nothing compared to, say, Bondi, and its numerous opportunities for dining or grabbing a gelato to enjoy on the beach are excellent
There’s a range of great walks, including everything from shorter strolls like the aforementioned headland ideal for picnics on its various patches of grass along the way or down alongside the water, all the way up to the epic multi-hour Spit Bridge walk.
Views back to the harbour are likewise great, and its waters are eternally busy with a mix of kayakers, stand up paddleboarders and boating enthusiasts that make for some good photographic subject matter.
7. The Rocks
What it offers: heritage architecture, culture and markets, waterfront views
The Rocks makes this list for mostly entirely different reasons than some of our other entries.
This is a suburb where the beauty comes from its character rather than purely natural offerings – although looking across the water at Circular Quay and the Opera House are obviously no slouch, either.
An antique cluster of pubs, restaurants and heritage terraces mixed in with incredible executive residences, it’s one of the oldest parts of Sydney and easily one of its most charming.
The area oozes history and walking down any number of its back lanes and stumbling into its courtyards is an exercise in discovery and stepping back in time.
Its regular markets are an eclectic mix of souvenir-style trinkets blended in with some truly good quality street food and other edibles that’s interesting to browse. The little crafts stores run out of its terrace houses are quaint as well.
Sure, they might be designed with tourists in mind, but they’re no less intriguing. Add in the ability to enjoy a drink at spots like the Glenmore while getting awesome views of the harbour’s architectural icons, and you’ve got a unique mix that’s worth visiting multiple times.
6. Cronulla
What it offers: excellent beach walk, great beaches and parkland in general, pubs & cafes
The beach icon of the Shire has come a long way over the past 20 or so years in terms of its development for drinking and dining options, but one thing has remained the same: it’s still beautiful.
Cronulla offers a great mixture of beaches and parks along with a general beach lifestyle that’s a bit similar to Bondi, although a little more oriented around the “party” as opposed to the “tourist” side of things.
There’s now a huge range of cafes, pubs, restaurants and clubs to choose from, and while some intoxicated people can occasionally spoil the atmosphere, it’s still a physically pretty place to behold.
Surfers will be in their element here, as it’s a long-time favourite surf spot and Wanda Beach has been an easily-accessible go-to spot for decades.
Cronulla’s home to a wonderful promenade for strolling along the headlands, and its Beach Walk is one of the best Sydney has to offer.
This little trek offers around 4km worth of goodness heading from the surf lifesaving club up to Bass & Flinders Point which culminates in outstanding views over to Port Hacking and Bundeena.
It’s also a great spot for scuba diving, with easy access to the water and plenty of crayfish and schools of other fish species can be spotted. Non-divers can take a dip in its signature beach rock pool instead, then go grab a bite to eat and enjoy a drink afterwards.
Cronulla’s got a bit of a high-density apartment tendency, but its streets are pleasant enough to walk down and there’s some impressive mansions dotted throughout to gawk at while exploring.
The pubs a little too crowded and the beach a bit too busy on a weekend? No worries – hop on the ferry over to Bundeena and explore all the incredible greenery of Royal National Park to balance things out.
5. Palm Beach
What it offers: excellent beach, great headland, iconic lighthouse
The real-world home to the long-running Home and Away TV series has become known as the go-to getaway spot for the truly wealthy, with a lot of high-rollers choosing to either purchase holiday homes or relocate to Palm Beach in recent years.
What the Sydney Morning Herald recently named “Sydney’s richest suburb” is an immensely desirable stretch of headland that’s a bit of a bitch to get to for the average Sydneysider.
It’s more than a tad of an extreme trek for your average ‘day trip’ (particularly if travelling by bus), but many consider it worth it upon arrival.
Palm Beach may be home to the best all-around beach in greater Sydney. It’s an impressive 2km long, it’s safe, clean, and there’s plenty of parking. It’s also far less crowded than the more “name” beaches of Sydney like Bondi or even Manly, so even on weekends you’ll have the chance to stretch out on your own decent-sized slice of sand.
It doesn’t hurt that it sits alongside one of Sydney’s most impressive headlands, either. Barrenjoey Head’s home to the iconic sandstone Barrenjoey Lighthouse – something of a pilgrimage for Instagrammers Sydney-wide – with a choice of easier/longer and shorter/harder walking tracks to reach.
Once atop, the views back to the beach and beyond are simply stunning, and the lighthouse itself is well worth a snap or three.
Streetscape-wise, a lot of Palm Beach’s older weatherboard homes have been cleared to massive and slick modern constructions, but they’re almost all low-density so there’s not highrises blocking any of its pleasant scenery.
4. Balmain
What it offers: historic sandstone buildings, great water views, cafe & pub culture
Few inner Sydney suburbs blend together nature and history in such a lovely way as Balmain.
Walk down its main thoroughfare of Darling Street all the way down to the water, and you’ll encounter a wide range of historic buildings with different facades that are highly photogenic.
Sandstone features prominently here, and there’s a reason why the entire area is an ongoing heritage project – even its banks and police station are full of character and provide an entirely different streetscape to most Sydney suburbs.
It’s dotted with charming terraces, cottages of former government officials, high-ranking military personnel and even explorers, and all this is intermingled with nice helpings of greenery and parkland.
The view from down near the ferry wharf at Thornton Park looking over to Goat Island, the Harbour Bridge, and the city is likewise wonderful and something social media dreams are made of.
Balmain’s not just pretty, it’s full of things to do as well. It’s home to some excellent heritage pubs, has a huge array of great cafes and local restaurants, and its markets are a great way to spend some time on a weekend.
Overall, it’s probably our favourite suburb in Sydney to visit, although perhaps not the most “purely” beautiful.
3. Cremorne Point
What it offers: great public parkland, sweeping harbour views, ritzy houses
Jutting out on its own little peninsula from the Lower North Shore, Cremorne Point’s not only an obviously exclusive place to live, but one of Sydney’s most desirable vantage points to take in the New Year’s fireworks each year.
It’s not hard to see why; Cremorne Reserve (accessible by ferry) offers pretty dramatic and uninhibited views of the outer harbour area. It’s a nice public space in general as well, with a beautiful garden to explore and nice paved pathways to stroll along.
There are fewer more picturesque picnic spots in Sydney, either, with plenty of open and shaded patches of grass to stretch out on.
It’s particularly beautiful later in the day as sunset approaches, and the view takes on a whole new light – then you can simply hop back on the ferry and have dinner in the city.
Some of the houses here are as impressive as you might expect (as are their pricetags), with some towering Federation-style manor houses and art deco homes dotted throughout. It’s quite quiet and peaceful too given how easy it is for public access,
Doing the walk loop from Cremorne Point around to Mosman Bay and back again will give you an up-close view of some truly exclusive real estate, and is an easy journey with a range of views of Sydney Harbour and the city along the way.
2. Balmoral
What it offers: gorgeous, safe beach; premium waterfront dining
The “pretty face” of Mosman, Balmoral is basically a suburb in itself – an extremely exclusive one, that’s home to a truly exceptional beach.
Other than its obvious physical beauty – it’s home to crystal-clear water that’s almost universally calm, sand that’s clean and soft underfoot, and a bevy of dining options nearby – Balmoral’s best feature is its balance.
Its kept pristine despite its popularity, and the low-density nature of its housing means it’s both seldom too crowded nor obscured by the shade of towering buildings. The beach itself is well-sheltered for a swim that makes it ideal for families, and has shark netting for extra safety.
Views stretch out to the headlands on either side, and go along with the sight of moored yachts and other seacraft to paint a pretty picture.
Walking along its esplanade here is beautiful – particularly up to the other side of Rocky Point Island where the heritage-listed, white-washed Balmoral Bathers Pavillion sits. It’s a pretty building in its own right, but also offers some gorgeous upmarket dining.
For those who want to keep things a little more casual, the iconic Boathouse provides an alternative for enjoying a quality coffee, burger or some fish while soaking in the views.
There’s plenty of grassed areas for picnics as well, and its 1930’s Rotunda has long been a popular site for hosting weddings. And who wouldn’t want to get married with such a pretty backdrop?
1. Kirribilli
What it offers: best views of the Opera House, amazing purple jacaranda trees
When the official homes of the Prime Minister and the Governor General are both located in the one suburb, you know you’re probably onto a good thing.
Both Admiralty House and Kirribilli House are impressive in and of themselves, as Kirribilli‘s mix of pretty period and contemporary cottages and terraces.
While many entries on this list might be a little “harbour-heavy”, the direct-line view from its hilly streets over to the pylons of the Harbour Bridge and straight towards Bennelong Point and the Sydney Opera House is one of the closest across-the-water panoramas of the city’s famous icons that one can possibly have.
Walk down to the Jeffrey Street Wharf, and their sheer scale only becomes more impressive, while the bustling water traffic behind adds an extra layer of dynamism to the proceedings.
Kirribilli’s streets are clean, pretty and tree-lined on regular days, but they truly shine as beautiful during one particular time of the year: Jacaranda season.
Typically lasting from October to November, the vivid purple of the flowers forms a veritable violet roof overhead. McDougall Street in particular has had its traffic frequently stopped by in-season selfie hunters looking for that perfect floral pic.
Add in Kirribilli’s pleasant village-type atmosphere with its mix of local delis and cafes (the suburb lends itself to al fresco dining in general) to the wrap-around waterfront views, and you’ve got one of the most desirable postcodes in Sydney.
