Darlinghurst, Sydney - Region Information

Darlinghurst extends to Kings Cross and William Street (down Darlinghurst Road). The area between Oxford Street and William Street (which also includes East Sydney at the Hyde Park end) is peppered with restaurants which welcome everybody. Many feature Italian and Mediterranean cuisine.

Darlinghurst Accommodation - Get a room in Sydney's most colourful area! Along with nearby Kings Cross, Darlinghurst is always popular and the night life is always pumping. There are a number of historical buildings that are worth a look but this area is primarily to do with the gay community. Book accommodation and tours now.

The area around Taylor Square, which marks the start of Darlinghurst, and the couple of blocks to the end of Oxford Street at Hyde Park is the main entertainment area for the gay and lesbian community in Sydney.

It too has bars, discos, restaurants, cafes and boutiques. Sydney hosts the massive Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras early March each year.

It is a major event with floats, bands, dancing troupes and spectacular costumes. People from all over the world line Oxford Street 15 deep to watch it, many making it the focal point of a holiday in Sydney.

If you are anti-homosexual, stay away. Many establishments don't care if you are 'gay' or 'straight', but you and the other patrons will feel distinctly uncomfortable in others. If you are gay, that stretch of Oxford Street will give you the chance to meet like-minded people. Sydney has gay and lesbian publications which include information on entertainment eating out, as well as serious issues.

Woollahra

One of Sydney's oldest suburbs, Woollahra was always a 'quality' suburb with leafy streets and some grand houses including large and beautifully restored terraces, art and antique galleries and some fine upmarket restaurants. Heading towards the city, its runs to the right down Queen Street off Oxford Street just past the Bondi Junction bypass.

The Queen Street turnoff is right at one of the entrances to Centennial Park on the left, one of the largest parklands in Sydney. There are roads through the park, so you can drive in a have a look. It is a good picnic spot with several ponds and plenty of space to cycle and for children to run around in. Centennial Park has horse riding paths and several sports fields.

Paddington

Starts about the end of Centennial Park with most of it to the right of Oxford Street. Much of Paddington was originally working class though more substantial than the inner western suburbs - Balmain, Glebe and Newtown.

It was one of the first near-city suburbs to attract the 'upwardly mobile' but still young professionals and executives who could not afford to live in the wealthier eastern suburbs and would not dream of going 'west'. (Young upwardly mobile people are commonly called 'yuppies' or 'dinks' - double income, no kids).

Paddington has a lot more character and characters than its wealthier neighbours, and long term residents have a fierce pride in where they live.

Though Oxford Street is its main street, most of the residential area and many of its old 'locals' pubs are behind it to the right. Many of its streets are steep and narrow and parking is hard to find. Oxford Street itself is now almost devoid of ordinary shops where locals could buy essentials, such as food. It has been turned over to boutiques, bookshops, cafes and smart pubs. The Paddington Bazaar, in the grounds of an old church of the Paddington shopping strip (on the left), operates on Saturdays.

If you in the city and want to just explore Paddington coming from the city, it is easier to catch a bus or take a taxi, but avoid the evening rush hour. In light traffic it is only 15 minutes from the city, sometimes 40 minutes in peak periods.

There are few historical buildings of note. Victoria Army Barracks, surrounded by a sandstone wall, is open to visitors and is a small military museum in its own right.

Paddington runs out at Taylor Square, but just before it does there is a stretch of restaurants the locals call 'eaters half mile' on the left of Oxford Street. Most are not licensed but serve good, cheap food though you will often have to wait for a table. Among them are some long established favourites, including the Balkan which produces char-grilled main courses enough to defeat the hungriest of diners.There's Italian, Indonesian, Vietnamese and more.