An Insider’s Guide to Gay Sydney

As we all prepare for Sydney WorldPride in 2023, I thought it would be helpful to have an insider’s guide to 7 days of LGBTQ+ activities, clubs, bars, restaurants, and nightlife for when you visit Sydney. I have written this out as a day planner of what I would do and recommend that you do to be the most G-A-Y during your trip to Sydney.

Three Important Things Before You Read On

1.) Monkey Pox: Get a money pox vaccine now before you come here. Sydneysiders and Melbournites take our sexual health seriously. Personally, I am going for my second shot this week, so I’ve been fully COVID, and Monkey Pox vaccinated.

2.) Get a hotel around Darlinghurst. Location, location, location. And if you can’t get a hotel in Darlinghurst, just hang out in Darlinghurst, Oxford Street. There are some queens who will say Oxford’s best days were 20 years ago, but I’m not one of them. I’ve lived in Newtown, Darlinghurst, or Surry Hills for the past 13 years and Oxford Street still has energy and attitude — two key components for a gay strip.

3.) This is not a WorldPride party guide. The party guide is here. This is an admittedly narrow insider’s guide to Sydney so you will have things to do if we get deluged with rain, which is possible. There is absolutely more cultural diversity in Sydney than in the picture that I have outlined below. This is a best-effort attempt to have fun! Lastly, please, please, please – double check the time, day and link for any given day. I have tried to include links to make this easy, but you know how the gays love to change things so please double-check — better yet, make a booking!

Now, let’s have 7 days of fun!

Monday

Plan your trip so you land on a Monday so you can rest. You’re going to need it. For lunch on day one, we’re off to Opera Bar. It’s an off-peak day so you should get seating AND it’s an Instagram destination next to the Harbour Bridge and Opera House.

Then if you are looking for something else a little different pop on over to Marble Bar (in the Hilton) for a drink in the afternoon. Word has it that this was an establishment for gays in the 1930s and 1940s in Sydney.

Your best bet on Monday night is Turbo Trivia at Stonewall with Charisma Belle starting at 7:00 pm or Social Ten Pin Bowling with the Rams starting at 8:00 pm. Just remember to email the Rams, so they know you are coming. Here’s their website: https://sydneyrams.net.au

Tuesday

Tuesday we are going to the best, gayest pool in Sydney: Andrew Boy Charlton Pool. It’s open starting at 6:00 am — 8:00 pm and will cost you $7.20 for admission. Take a break from jet lag on Sydney Harbour at our favourite pool. Don’t forget a towel.

If it rains on Tuesday, I have a backup plan. Head to one of the gayest bookstores in the southern hemisphere: Bookshop Darlinghurst on Oxford Street. Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2022, Bookshop Darlinghurst is a cultural and queer treasure of the community.

After your day of tanning or browsing the books, we take an Uber at 6:00 pm for drinks at the Bearded Tit in Redfern. The coolest, kookiest bar in Sydney. At some point, you will decide what your Sydney “local” pub is, and the Bearded Tit should be at the top of the list, with DJ’s like Jonny Seymour and events like the monthly Queer Reading Group.

For dinner on Tuesday, I recommend the Stanley Street Food Precinct, just off Oxford Street. There are dumplings, sushi, Vietnamese, Italian and my recommendation: TACO TUESDAY at La Farmacia

If you still have energy then head out after 9:00 pm on Tuesday; I am recommending you go to Kinselas off Oxford Street and Taylor Square for a night of pool and drinks. Kinselas is a personal favourite of mine and my friends. It is a friendly and festive place year-round!

Wednesday

Wednesday is my recommended day to try out the gay sauna — just go at 5:30 pm, NO earlier. You see on Wednesday; I am sending the boys and bears to 357 in the City, Sydney Sauna on Oxford Street, or Trade on Crown Street, again at 5:30 pm.

For dinner in the evening, I am recommending that everyone head over to the Imperial Drag and Dine at 6:30 pm. Don’t forget to make a booking. Remember that the opening scene of the iconic movie, Priscilla Queen of the Desert(1994) was filmed at the Imperial, so both its drag and its bar are a must!

And tonight we are staying in Newtown because there is a night for lesbians and bisexuals, so we are headed over to the Lesbian Party Birdcage at the Bank Hotel, which takes place every Wednesday at 9:00 pm.

Thursday

Let’s start planning for the weekend on Thursday with some shopping in the morning at the gayest store in Sydney: Daly Male on Oxford Street. Owner Terry Daly is the head gay and unofficial mayor of Oxford Street!

Then we are walking up to the Oxford Hotel to check things out and have lunch (possibly a pint). Make a stop in Adult World next door after lunch to make sure you are properly fixed for the weekend.

Recommendations for dinner send us back to Newtown and Atom Thai (in my opinion, the best Thai in Newtown — and that’s saying something).

Then after dinner, you can pop over to Breko’s Music Bingo at the Marly Bar in Newtown, which starts at 7:30 pm, just across the street. I have sung and played along so I can attest that Breko puts on a good show with lots of laughs and drag guest stars!

The late-night option on a Thursday in Sydney is Ching-A-Lings back on Oxford Street. I describe Ching-A-Lings as a little slice of Newtown on Oxford Street. And Thursday night is a great night there; just note that there are stairs, so it is not easily accessible to some.

Friday

 Fridays are for preparing, charging, and starting the weekend off right. So let’s start with lunch at Bill and Toni’s Italian. Yes, I know there are carbs involved, but you are going to burn them off “dancing” over the weekend anyway.

During the day on Friday, I recommend you head back to the pool, back to the beach, or to an art gallery at the Museum of Contemporary Art, or the Australia Museum, pleasantly located in Darlinghurst.

For Friday night dinner, we are going to get the newly famous fried chicken on the renovated roof deck of the Columbian Hotel. This is a great spot for dinner, drinks and people-watching!

After dinner, it is time to get your dancing shoes on and head to Palms. Palms is an institution on Oxford Street, 124 Oxford St, Darlinghurst, to be exact. Palms has the best 80s and 90s music on the strip. You should plan to be there at 10:30 pm on Friday to avoid the lines.

Late-night option Universal (upstairs) on Oxford Street. Both downstairs and upstairs are a staple of modern Oxford Street life. Licensee Dillon Shaw is pulling out all of the stops, and the drag is top-notch. Also, look out for Brazilian dancer (and my personal trainer) Rafael!

Saturday

Saturday in Sydney is for the beach. The gays go to three beaches: La Perouse, Lady Bay, or Obelisk. All three have clothing-optional sections to the beach. But note that La Perouse also has a lot of families, so it’s important to be respectful of other beachgoers.

You should start your day with an early morning brunch, maybe at 10:00 am or 11:00 am. One place we haven’t gone to yet are the cafes in and around the Oxford Villages Centre. There are three (3) cafes in that area to recommend. Ovo, (8:30 am — 3:00 pm), Caspers (8:00 am — 5:00 pm), and Sticky Fingers(7:00 am–4:00 pm), which is just outside the Oxford Center on 23 Pelican Street (corner of Pelican and Poplar St).

After you collapse from the beach and take a nap.

Tonight, you’ll need somewhere to go out unless you have a party to go to — in which case enjoy! But if not, it’s time to dance at Universal (downstairs) in the main bar area. Just be prepared for a line. But it’s worth it.

The second option and my personal favourite changes things up. I am going to recommend you check out the Red Rattler in Marrickville (near Newtown) on Saturday night. This is a genderqueer, lesbian, trans, radical space that we all love. But you need an Uber to Marrickville to get there so plan to plan ahead.

The Saturday Beaches

 

Sunday

Sunday in Sydney is for brunch and late afternoon drinks.

It’s easier to find parking in Sydney than to find a brunch spot on a Sunday morning. But I digress. You already have three cafe breakfast options.

I have also included Social Gay Tennis (12:00–5:00 pm) for the more adventurous of you at the Moore Park Tennis Courts by the SCG (Sydney Cricket Grounds). You will need to register to play beforehand but this is done to make sure everyone gets to play, not to be exclusionary. I played here for 8 years and had a great time.

Finally, we wrap up Sunday at the Beresford on 354 Bourke Street at 5:00 pm. The Beresford has a bit of a reputation as being for a “certain kind of gay”, and that reputation has lingered. But it is also the best show in town on a Sunday, with gaggles of gays for as far as the eye can see. And good drinks. Did I mention the drinks?!

Wait — Sydney is not done yet! Don’t forget the Burdekin Hotel on Oxford Street on Sundays. A hidden gem on Oxford Street, the Burdekin sports a number of fun nights (particularly on Sundays). Check it out! Happy Pride!

Chris Pepin-Neff, PhD lives in Surry Hills. He has been in Sydney for 13 years. His writing is his own and does not represent his employer.