Among the wide formal avenues of Centennial Park is the domed Federation Pavilion – the spot where Australia was officially proclaimed a nation (on 1 January 1901). Built in 1988, it contains the original Federation Stone and is inscribed with 'Mammon or Millennial Eden?', reflecting a poem of the time that wondered whether the new country would focus on materialism or idealism. Sydney has answered that one pretty emphatically.
Federation Pavilion
Sydney
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
2.21 MILES
Definitively Sydney, Bondi is one of the world’s great beaches. It’s the closest ocean beach to the city centre (8km away), has consistently good (though…
3.31 MILES
Sydneysiders love their giant 'coathanger', which opened in 1932. The best way to experience this majestic structure is on foot. Stairs and lifts ascend…
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park
17.84 MILES
A spectacular mix of sandstone, Australian bushland and tranquil water vistas, this 14,928-hectare park forms Sydney’s northern boundary. It’s located 20…
4.37 MILES
Lovely Watsons Bay, east of the city centre and north of Bondi, was once a small fishing village, as evidenced by the heritage cottages that pepper the…
3.53 MILES
A 12-minute ferry ride from Circular Quay, this forested harbour hillside is full of kangaroos, koalas and similarly hirsute Australians, plus numerous…
2.94 MILES
Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, this magnificent building is Australia's most famous landmark. Visually referencing a yacht's sails, it's a…
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6.32 MILES
About 3km south of central Manly, spectacular North Head offers dramatic cliffs, lookouts, secluded beaches, pretty paths through the native scrub, and…
22.13 MILES
This central section of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a spectacular wilderness, with awe-inspiring vistas over Pittwater and Broken Bay, hidden beach…
Nearby Sydney attractions
0.17 MILES
Scratched out of the sand in 1888 in grand Victorian style, Sydney’s biggest park is a rambling 189-hectare expanse full of horse riders, joggers,…
0.45 MILES
Despite its status as the premier antique-shopping strip in Australia (the first shop opened in 1957), tree-lined Queen St retains a village vibe, with…
0.81 MILES
If we were feeling cynical, we might say that the purpose-built Entertainment Quarter is a vacuous, self-perpetuating specimen of lightweight global…
4. Paddington Reservoir Gardens
0.96 MILES
Opened to much architectural acclaim in 2008, this impressive park makes use of Paddington's long-abandoned 1866 water reservoir, incorporating the brick…
0.97 MILES
Australia’s oldest villa (1824), this restored Georgian mansion was built by Robert Cooper with profits from his gin business (he named it after the…
1.05 MILES
While Oxford St is the main drag, this five-way intersection is in many ways the centre of Paddington life. Smartly dressed locals do coffee and shopping…
7. Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation
1.08 MILES
After 21 years as a cutting-edge commercial gallery, Sherman celebrated its coming-of-age by reopening as a not-for-profit gallery. The focus is on…
1.09 MILES
A manicured vision from the peak of the British Empire (built 1841 to 1848), these Georgian army barracks have been called the finest of their kind in the…