Circular Quay in Sydney is the harbourside transportation hub of the city's central business district. It is a major city terminal for buses, trains and ferries.
Actually Circular Quay is hardly circular, despite its name, and is more like an angled horseshoe that opens out to the harbour where the ferries ply.
For the first-time visitor to Sydney, Circular Quay is a convenient starting point for a discovery tour of the city.
The Sydney Opera House and the historic Rocks district are within a few minutes' walk, as are the Royal Botanic Gardens and a number of Sydney museums.
You can reach practically any place on the Sydney map by catching a bus, train or ferry (or a combination of them) from Circular Quay.
Ferries, trains, buses
Circular Quay is Sydney's major ferry terminal. Places you might want to visit via ferry include Manly (for the beach and the Corso), Taronga Zoo, Watsons Bay near South Head, and Parramatta inland up the river. Water taxis are also available especially from jetties along West Circular Quay.
The train and bus networks are vast and extensive and should bring you wherever you want to go by land in Sydney.
If going by rail, you might need to catch a connecting train at Wynyard, Town Hall or Central to travel north across the harbour or west to the mountains. You might also need to catch a connecting train at either Martin Place or Central for travel to Bondi Junction and to Sydney Airport.
Because of its focal point, Circular Quay is an ideal meeting place as long as you indicate exactly where to meet as the Quay is an extremely busy place and there always are crowds.
The Museum of Contemporary Art is along West Circular Quay (and that's as good a meeting place as any). The Overseas Passenger Terminal is also just up ahead, and there are some nice restaurants in the area.
Along East Circular Quay are shops, restaurants, sidewalk cafes, all the way up to Bennelong Point where the Opera House is.
Writers Walk
Of interest to a large number of Sydney visitors — particularly those who grew up on Mark Twain, Robert Louis Stevenson and other well-known writers — are the metal plaques embedded in the Circular Quay walkway from near the Overseas Passenger Terminal down to the jetties and up to the forecoourt of the Sydney Opera House.
This is the Sydney Writers Walk and the plaques contain interesting and pertinent passages from the works of Australian and international writers honored there.
Entertainment venues
Stroll along the concourse to the Opera House. Take a guided tour. Book a seat for an evening of music, ballet, opera or live theatre.
Concerts are held in the Concert Hall, opera and ballet productions in the Opera Theatre, live theatre in the Drama Theatre, Playhouse or the Studio.
There are fine restaurants and cafes at the Opera House, too.
If you wanted to sample an Australian movie, there's a good chance Dendy's Opera Quays cinema on East Circular Quay will be screening one.
