Travel Blogger Daily Blog: Having Fun Riding The Sydney Ferries

Visiting Watson’s Bay, A Tiki Bar On Manley Beach And Other Cool Destinations

 

By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Travel Blogger

Travel is as much about doing the things you don’t get to do at home as anything, so when I saw there were ferries to get around in Sydney, Australia, I jumped for joy.

I like being on the water and ferries fit me perfectly because they get me out on the water and also don’t require a huge time commitment as much as, say, a tour cruise.

In Sydney, I quickly realized I could go from The Rocks area where I was staying to the cool-named Darling Harbor, Manley Beach, under Harbor Bridge and be back at Opera Bar for Happy Hour and sunset.

Better yet, it was cheap. I bought a pass for about a week and it only cost something like the equivalent of $30 USD. I could ride as many ferries as I wanted in that time and one day I did just that – rode the ferries all day.

It’s more expensive now – $63.20 a week in Australian dollars which is about $45 USD. That does include trains, buses and light rail.

Sometimes I didn’t even get off the ferries. Other times, I did, tho, such as to Manley Beach and back – discovering a tiki bar, the Sugar Lounge, while I was there by the way. That’s time well spent!

One day I took the ferry to Watson’s Bay, a gorgeous area I would not have even known about had I not noticed the ferries go there and and said “hey, what’s that place?” I was greeted by gorgeous steep cliffs that looked like the coast of Ireland.

I had grabbed a sandwich for lunch so I walked toward a lighthouse and searched for a bench to sit down an eat it with that spectacular “gee I’m so glad I came here” view. There were plenty of benches but I wanted to eat in peace, and was being harassed by those danged Australian flies.

They seemed to hand off territory from one to the other and, after I was doing what Aussies call the “bush salute” (waving one’s hand frantically in front of the face), eventually they left me alone to my sandwich.

It was a spectacular experience.

I then took a bus to meet a friend at Bondi Beach (there’s no ferry service there, unfortunately).

About the only other city I’ve traveled to where I’ve used the ferries is San Francisco. I like those, too, especially after an afternoon of drinking on the deck at Sam’s in Tiburon.

One of the biggest bummers when I left Sydney was having to give up those ferry rides. But it does give me something to look forward to on a repeat trip.

Cheers!