It’s the ultimate debate for all Australians. If
you’re from Sydney you will fight to the death to prove Sydney is better
than Melbourne, and if you’re from Melbourne you’re too good to care
which city is better, because you know Melbourne
is. And if you’re from any other city in Australia you wonder why yours
doesn’t appear in the debate, but will still back up either one. The
idea is, our capital city Canberra was chosen being in between both
Sydney or Melbourne, and even our nationals couldn’t
decide. OK I don’t know if this is a real fact, but that is what all
Sydney-siders and Melbournians say to get over the rejection.
I have lived in both cities, so I think I am more
than qualified to weigh these champion cities out. So, if you’re
thinking about travelling to or making either of these cities your final
destination, here is a little guide to help you
decide.
Weather:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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Although Sydney gets more rainfall in a year than Melbourne, you can hardly tell.
Sydney is basically Australian for sunshine, blue
skies and phenomenal thunderstorms. For me anyway, I love the smell of
the downpour from a typical Sydney thunderstorm accompanied by shards of
lightning that brighten the sky for a split
second and the rumble and crackle of the air and ground colliding. This
is a symbol of Summer, minutes before and after it’s nothing but 30c
days and blue skies. If it’s Winter you’re after, temperatures can still
be seen up in 24-25c, but settle around 18c.
Spring has just begun and today I didn’t bother putting on a coat or a
scarf, and embraced the 27c, Summer can wait if Spring is going to be
like this.
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Do you like rain? Despite the bucketing down
thunderstorms of Sydney dropping more rain than Melbourne, it is just
constant on and off drizzle. You must always be accompanied with an
umbrella because you will be more than likely stuck in
a bit of rain. Given it is south and the coast of Bass Strait, the
winds there can be ferocious as well with a bite of frost. I was really
confronted by this in November still no sign of 20c days of sunshine,
locals said February just wait Summer will be here.
There was a period of 2 weeks in February which involved hot sticky 45c
days majority. Melbourne does heat waves very well. Safe to say my
Summer there was a total of 4 weeks broken up across February – April.
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Winner: Sydney
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| Rainy days in Melbourne - St Kilda Pier |
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| Nothing but sunshine in Sydney - Cronulla Beach |
Food:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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I think the restaurateurs and café owners around
Sydney have started to put up a fight against the hipster vibe of Food
in Melbourne. Lately places have been popping up that offer great
competition to the Southern State rival. There a great
pockets throughout Sydney City and its suburbs that offer quality food.
The restaurants have been in the past sterile and offer food without
the vibe, atmosphere and design, you know a row of options that offer
the same thing. However, things are improving
and you can find a great spot depending on what you’re after. My tips
are Surry Hills, Newtown, The Rocks, and Darlinghurst.
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Where do I start. When I arrived in Melbourne, I
knew I would be spoilt for choice with places for food, the trick is you
have to find them. Part of what makes Melbourne so iconic is the
variety of cuisines, cultures and the platter in
which they are served to you. Generally in a back alley camouflaged
with graffiti, plants walls and brick facades, you will be presented
with a dining experience like no other, with some of the best Australian
and International chefs calling this place home.
And guess what, it is affordable! Great food is not hard to find, you
do just have to search for it and here is a little help: Specific
streets with top spots Flinders Lane, South Melbourne Market, Chapel St
and Exhibition St. Just remember to weave in and
out.
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Winner: Melbourne
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| Japanese Cuisine in Melbourne |
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| Tasting a selection of desserts in The Conservatory, Melbourne |
Bars and Nightlife:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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From when I was legally capable of drinking I discovered Sydney nightlife, I soon got sick of it
(a trip to Europe helped with that). There is a lot to offer for those who want to go clubbing with some premium spots throughout the city, if you don’t mind paying a cover fee and waiting in lines. Sydney however has a vast amount of pubs, my favourite place to enjoy a drink with friends. Live bands followed by DJ’s are in most pubs across the city, and you can start your night earlier than 11 pm. Bars are not as prevalent, if so they’re in a large building with a restaurant feel. Sydney is your place for clubbing the early hours of the morning in Darling Harbour, George St and Kings Cross; or old-style pubs nearly every corner for a relaxed vibe mainly found in The Rocks, Paddington and Town Hall. Don’t forget The Star Casino also which offers a bar and a nightclub. |
I was nervous when new friends asked me to go out
for a few drinks over the weekend. I thought please no, don’t let it be
clubbing. I was pleasantly surprised. Melbourne is a laid back small bar
kind of place, and an array of rooftop watering
holes. It is really the place to meet with friends and enjoy yourself
and you can still hear one another. Just like the food, to find the
drinks you have to weave in and out of the back alleys to find pretty
awesome spots. Most bars offer a theme, and cocktails
to match the uniqueness. Most of the time you will either have to climb
stairs or wander to the basement to get to your destination, again
adding to the experience. Most bars offer quality tapas style food so
the atmosphere of mixology and gastronomy overlaps.
Swanston St offers a 7 storey selection of great bars so you can you’re
your pick, or try Russell St, and Little Lonsdale. As well as bars,
Southbank boasts the iconic Crown Casino with the complex offering so
much more to anyone who visits.
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Winner: Melbourne
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| Outdoor bar on the Yarra River, Melbourne |
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| The Establishment nightclub in Sydney |
Getting Around:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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Most people local complain about their transport,
but having lived in both cities I can see the best of both worlds.
Sydney lacks a tram network, but I don’t know how well it would work
anyway. Then on the other hand has a fantastic railway
servicing majority of the city. You may have to catch a ferry across
Sydney Harbour to the Manly (that sounds terrible doesn’t it…), or a bus
out to the Eastern suburbs, but you can get everywhere else by train.
The trains are great, built to take thousands
of passengers. Just please as a traveller if you don’t have to be
anywhere detrimental, do NOT travel in peak hour. It will be cheaper for
you off-peak and I don’t want you thinking I gave you the wrong
information when you are stuck under someone’s armpit
for a 2 stop journey. Just avoid it, for the locals too.
Sydney has just upped the anti and introduced the Opal Card which compares to Melbourne's MyKi system, it is now a dream using transport and you don't have to pay for the card like in Melbourne. The train system is great to avoid driving around Sydney, the roads are average, and traffic in peak is congested, but people like to move, fast. The drivers in Sydney are always on their way somewhere, so everyone is alert and not getting in your way.
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First of all their train system kind of sucks.
Always delayed, due to weather changes, and that is unavoidable where I
think in a city that has constant weather changes, a contingency really
needs to be discovered. It would be a revelation!
To avoid getting caught in the weather, they have the best mode of
transport in the whole country. The Yarra Trams. You can travel anywhere
in the city quickly, efficiently and avoid the weather. Getting around
is very easy and different trams come along every
couple of minutes. I was first overwhelmed because I didn’t know where I
was going. I would only use a tram if you are travelling within the
city surrounds, St Kilda and Bay suburbs, Richmond and Prahran. Just
follow your route and remember which stop number
you need to get off.
Melbourne introduced the MyKi card to tap on and tap off to pay for your journey but loading money on the card. No matter how long you are in Melbourne, you have to pay for this card. If you're driving, beware. The roads are great, drivers not so much - sorry! And be careful, there is no tolerance for speeding even if its a few kilometres over.
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Winner: Sydney
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| Waiting for a ferry on the wharf in Sydney |
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| On foot in Melbourne watching a train pass under the city |
Sightseeing:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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When you think of Australia, I know you have in
your head right now Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House,
followed by a bunch of kangaroos and koalas. Am I right?
Sydney-siders are very proud of the harbour, there
is not a local I know who doesn’t embrace that view no matter how often
they see it. You then have Darling Harbour which is on the other side of
the harbour and a beautiful boardwalk with
plenty of places to stop, and enjoy the sunshine. The Royal Botanical
Gardens also offers a wonderful view and peaceful walk amongst nature.
There is no doubt the beauty of this city for me surpasses many other
cities around the world even. There are other
sights to offer outside the city, The Blue Mountains in the West,
Taronga Zoo on the North Shore, and the South Coast. Overall, if you are coming to Australia for the beaches, and want to choose between these two cities, Sydney has a long stretch of coast to offer beautiful shores with surf, relaxation and fun in the sun. Just remember to slip, slop, slap - sunburn is a killer in Australia (literally).
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I don’t know what I picture apart from food and
culture when it comes to Melbourne sights. There is the Yarra river
which separates the city, reality is it is dark and murky, but it is
surrounded by great buildings and complexes that boast
art and design that astounds great architects globally. Melbourne city
offers so much more within than the look of it. See Federation Square,
the bar at the top of Rialto Tower, and the Gardens that surround the
city, but venture out. Decent sightseeing is generally an hour out of the city, Yarra Valley in the North for just above average wine, Mornington Peninsula in the South for more wine and the majority of the beaches found in Melbourne, West is the city of Geelong and further is Torquay where you can find Australia's number one beach for surfing - Bell's Beach. For a little longer on the road, there is the Great Ocean Road which really cannot be missed, but now you're well outside of Melbourne.
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Winner: Sydney
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| Embracing the view on my Hen's Night Out in Sydney |
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| Brighton boat sheds in Melbourne |
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| The 12 Apostles along the Great Ocean Road, outside Melbourne |
Sport:
Sydney
|
Melbourne
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| Sport in Sydney is made up majorly of Rugby League fans, and up and coming soccer (football) teams. We have the best AFL Team in the country, and it slowly growing in the state of NSW as the red and white of Sydney Swans dominate the sport across the country - I am bias. Other than this nothing really compares to what Melbourne has to offer, so I might as well move on. | Melbourne is undeniably the sport's capital of Australia. With some of the best venues in the country and worldwide, the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) makes the top 10 sporting stadium in the world in terms of visitors. Cricket isn't all that is played here, this is the home ground for many AFL Teams and is basically a sell out all year round. Out of the 18 AFL teams in Australia 8 are in Melbourne city, and the fans are fanatic. The atmosphere is a tourist destination, buy a ticket and go to a game. Melbourne is also home to the Australian Open every Summer, Formula 1 every March, and an ecstatic racing carnival with the very well known Melbourne Cup (this is a public holiday). There is more, and many more stadiums, arenas and parks that you can take in all the sport there is to offer. |
Winner: Melbourne
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| I see the light on the way to the MCG |
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| In our Sydney Swans gear at the MCG |
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| Cricket at the MCG |
Final Result: Sydney 3 - Melbourne 3
So overall, my 23 years living in Sydney and 18 months in Melbourne - I can't decide. Does this mean if I gave more time living in Melbourne, it could have won me over? Quite possibly. It means that I am a proud Australian to more than one city, but I still believe at least Sydney or Melbourne should be the capital.
Which Australian city do you prefer?
I've also left a few resources to help you during you're visit to either city - and then let you decide:
Sydney
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Melbourne
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| Food: Urbanlist Top 50 Transport: Transport NSW Sightseeing: Things to Do | Food: Urbanlist Top 50 Transport: Public Transport Victoria Meeting People Bars/Nightlife: Newbies International Sightseeing: Things to Do |
