Arriving by Air

Sydney has the largest and busiest passenger air terminal in Australia with over 26 million passengers passing through every year.  Sydney's Kingsford Smith International Airport (SYD) is named after one of Australia's most famous pioneers of aviation. Located only 8km from the central business district, the airport is easily accessible by all modes of transport. It is located in the suburb of Mascot and two runways are built out into Botany Bay.

Taxis

Outside each of the terminals there are covered taxi ranks where you will find an almost never ending supply of taxis to take you to your accommodation.  Supervisors man the ranks at peak periods to ensure an even flow of traffic.  A trip by taxi from sydney airport will take you between 15-30 minutes depending on traffic and will cost you around $25 Australian dollars.

Buses

There are several options for travel by bus to the city, however most of these are privately run companies and as such usually require pre-booking or purchasing from the transfer desk at the airport terminal on arrival.  Public bus services  also run from the airport and stops are usually just outside the arrivals area.  For more information on Sydney buses click here 

Bus Route 400 or 410 to the Eastern suburb of  Bondi Junction  via Mascot, Eastgardens Shopping Centre, Maroubra Junction Anzac Parade at the Pacific Fair Shopping Centre, Anzac Parade at Avoca Street (Randwick Army Barracks), Kingsford (Roundabout  / Nineways), NIDA on Anzac Parade, University of  NSW (UNSW) at Anzac Parade and then at Randwick High St, Prince of Wales (PoW) Public & Private  Hospitals at Randwick High St, Children's Hospital at Randwick High St, Royal Women's Hospital at Randwick High St, Belmore Road Randwick Junction at Allison Road and St. Catherine's School at Charing Cross to the Bondi Junction Bus & Train Interchange.

Bus Route 400 or 410 to the Western suburb of  Burwood (Westfield Plaza) via Arncliffe, Rockdale railway station, Forest road at Bexley, Bexley North shopping centre, Campsie shopping centre, Hume Highway intersection at Burwood to the Westfield Plaza Shopping Centre on Burwood Road.

Please Note:-  Westmead Children's Hospital is located in the western suburb of Westmead (just to the west of Parramatta).

Greyhound Australia    coach company have a drop off and pickup schedule that includes the arrivals level of the International  terminal (T1).

Murrays Coaches includes a drop off and pickup stop in their Sydney Canberra schedule. It is at the arrivals level of the International terminal (T1). It is the same location as Bus 400 or Greyhound.  

Trains

The Airport link is a fast and reliable train service that runs approximately every 10 minutes from all Sydney airport terminals.  It costs about $13 Australian dollars and will take you directly into the centre of the city in 15 minutes. For more information about Airport link click here .

Be aware that the train is not a dedicated Airport service and will have lots of local commuters also using it.  During Peak hours the train will be very crowded so your best bet is to move to either end of the platform.  Everyone likes to get on at the bottom of the escalators however not all the luggage will fit leaving you with a last minute dash along the station.  Note the train stops for less than a  minute. Move into the area at the end of the carriage if possible.

When travelling or returning to the airport think carefully and don't put your luggage in front of the doors.  Many other travellers will be trying to get on and off and you will block access to the main part of the carriage.

Airport Shuttle Minibus

A number of companies provide a shared shuttle minibus service to various parts of the city and some suburbs. The information counter in the arrivals hall is your best initial source of contact, information and prices.

Arriving by Train

For international travellers you can not travel by train into Australia. The only internaltional services are by air or boat.

Countrylink 

There are train services into Sydney from most major Australian cities and New South Wales regional centres.  For rail services into Sydney from Melbourne &  Brisbane visit the countrylink website by clicking here

Indian Pacific 

From Perth and Adelaide you can travel to Sydney on board the famous Indian Pacific Train. 

All these services terminate at Sydney Central Station.  From there you can transfer to suburban and city circle trains.

Arriving by Car

For international travellers you can not travel by car into Australia.  The international services are by air or boat.

Sydney is serviced by a well maintained system of highways, freeways and motorways.

From Brisbane you can travel down the New England Highway.  This is the inland route and whilst it is a little longer than the coastal road it is not as busy traffic wise and you can save a little time that way.  Alternatively you can travel down the Pacific Highway which is the coastal road.

From Adelaide you can travel via the Sturt Highway which is an inland highway linking Adelaide to Sydney.

From Melbourne you can travel via the Hume Highway which is an inland highway linking Melbourne to Sydney.

All of these roads are well marked so just follow the signs and you can’t go wrong.

Arriving by Boat

Sydney’s overseas passenger cruise terminal is located right in the heart of the city at Circular Quay, alternatively the secondary cruise terminal is at wharf 8 Darling Harbour.  Various cruise ships visit Sydney throught out the year, with peak periods being between December and March when the weather is warmer.

Other cruise lines

• Other cruise operators that operate services to and from Sydney include;
• P & O Cruises Australia
• Pacific Sky, Sun, & Star (Pacific destinations)
• Princess Cruises, Diamond, Sapphire (Pacific destinations)
• Aurora (Asian and European destinations)
• Oriana (Asian and European destinations)
• Orion Cruises
• Expedition Cruises (Australian & Antarctic destinations)
• Holland America Lines
• Statendam (European, Asian, Pacific & American destinations)
• Saga Cruises
• Saga Rose & Ruby (European & Asian destinations)
• Cunard Lines
• QEII (European, Asian, Pacific & American destinations)