One of the best things about the 21st century is that there’s an app or online guide for practically anything. If you’re anything like me (admittedly lazy), then you’ll love the convenience and (more importantly) the savings that new technology brings you.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t go on a guided tour if you really want to. A lot of them are definitely going to be informational with quirky and entertaining guides, giving you little-known historical fun facts. The trouble is, especially when you’re on a budget, guided tours can get quite expensive. Add the tour expenses on top of entrance fees, show tickets, and snacks along the way and you end up spending a lot more than you thought was needed. These paid tours also don’t give you much wiggle room if you want to explore more from one area or take a quick breather to digest all of the sightseeing you’ve done.
For these very reasons, you have got to love self-guided tours. You get a bit more freedom to take it all in as you please, and it saves you heaps of money. The best part? A lot of them are FREE. So find a good parking spot for that car hire and put on some comfortable shoes. It’s time to get those feet moving with free self-guided walking tours around Sydney.
Sydney Moving Guide Tour
Video by Sydney Walking Tour via YouTube
If you’re a bibliophile or just love reading all about the incredible stories of the past, then the Sydney Moving Guide is for you. It gives you a free downloadable PDF that you can just save in your mobile device and read as you go along.
PRO TIP! If you don’t want to keep reading while you’re going around, turn on your Text-to-Speech option on mobile. If you don’t have one, or if you just want a different accent on audio, download one of the free text-to-speech apps or convert the pdf to mp3 for free online and just play and pause as you go through the tour.
This tour will take you from the David Jones Food Hall where you can pick up supplies for a quick picnic later on. From there, it’ll take you to the Archibald Fountain in Hyde Park then to the Opera House, to the Royal Botanical Gardens, to the NSW Art Gallery, to Macquarie Street, and then to the Anzac War Memorial. There are a lot more things to do and places to see in between and the map provided and complete See and Do guide that comes with the PDF is going to be a big help. It’ll even tell you where to go to buy souvenirs, some of the best places to eat, and where you can go to have a quick drink.
Powerhouse Museum Walking Tours App
Image by Powerhouse Museum via iTunes
Powerhouse Museum gives you not one, not two, but five free self-guided walking tours with the option to buy a Sydney Heritage Pub Crawl walk for only $1.99. Of course, you don’t have to purchase but if you want an inside scoop of the best pubs around Sydney, then you might as well.
No PDF conversion or text-to-speech apps needed because each of the walking tours includes a narration by one of the museum curators Geoff Barker or Anni Turnbull. Each tour gives you a GPS-enabled map, so you’ll see and hear which route and stops to take, and a myriad of fun facts, complete with text, images, and audio commentary. Just take note that you have to download the app and the walks that you want to go on before you head out to explore.
Try The Rocks, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the George Street and discover old Sydney, it’s really well worth it. Each of these walks will take you around an hour or two depending on how fast you walk. I suggest you do The Rocks tour then the Sydney Harbour Bridge tour. Don’t worry, they’re around the same area and you won’t run out of places to take a quick bite or a cold lager for a break.
When you’ve had your fill of the Sydney CBD, it’s time for you to hop back onto that Sydney car rental and explore the best that NSW has to offer! From the Greater Blue Mountains Drive, to the Waterfall Way, and so much more; you’re going to love discovering all the wonderful sights and sounds of the beautiful New South Wales. Check out our Alpha Car Hire blog for more travel tips, holiday destinations, and road trip routes in Sydney, Melbourne, Gold Coast, Brisbane, and Adelaide!