Making the most of Public Transport in Sydney

A great way to get around Sydney for a day is to buy a ‘Day Tripper’ ticket. At a cost of AUD16 ($8 for children, and a family fare deal is also available) the Day Tripper doesn’t only include unlimited rides on Sydney buses, trains and ferries, but it also includes discounts into some of Sydney top attractions. All you have to do is show your valid and dated (for that day) DayTripper ticket to receive your discount. An additional access fee is required for Green Square, Mascot, Domestic and International stations.

The discounted attractions include:
- Featherdale Wildlife Park - 25% off general admission
- Harbour Jet - 20% off general admission
- Hyde Park Barracks Museum - Buy 1 get 1 free admission
- Luna Park Sydney - 20% off general admission
- National Maritime Museum (my dad’s favourite) - 20% off general admission
- Ocean World Manly - 20% off general admission
- Pewerhouse Museum - 20% off general admission
- Sydney Aquarium -15% off Adult and Child tickets
- Sydney Olympic Park (Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi) and Telstra Stadium - 20% off the Listen Live self-guided tour
20% off the Telstra Stadium Behind the Scenes tour
- Sydney Opera House - 20% discount on The Essential Tour (adult price only). Subject to availability. Not valid with any other offer.
- Sydney Sky Walk - 15% off Adult and Child tickets
- Sydney Tower and OzTrek - 15% off Adult and Child tickets
- Sydney Wildlife World - 15% off Adult and Child tickets
- Taronga Zoo - 15% off Adult and Child tickets
- The Australian Museum - Buy 1 get 1 free admission

Tickets for the Day Tripper are available on board Sydney Buses and Ferries, at the Sydney Buses TransitShops and at the Sydney Ferries ticket offices at Circular Quay and Manly. You can pre-purchase tickets from TransitShops and they are valid from the time of first use, tickets purchased onboard buses and from CityRail station and Sydney Ferries are valid from the time of purchase.

On our day in Sydney, Robyn and I caught a bus from Robyn’s home to the train station (normally $3.00 one-way), then a train to Circular Quay ($6.80 for a return tkt), a ferry from the Quay to Darling Harbour (one-way $5.20), the train back from the city and a bus back to Robyn’s. I only saved myself $2.00 but I saved myself the hassle of having to buy a ticket for each ride and I would have saved more if we had of gone to one of the attractions, but we had already decided to see a photographic exhibition at the State library.

On my second day using a Day Tripper, Robyn and I caught a bus to Coogee Beach, then a bus back to town, and a train and a bus back to Robyn’s home. Later that evening I used the same ticket to bus it back to the train station and a train back into town for dinner and a show. I would have been able to use it to get back home, but was offered a ride by a friend.