Are you looking for the best places to view Sydney Opera House? Here’s my ultimate list!

The Sydney Opera House is one of the main sights to see in Sydney. It’s a stunning building – and to fully appreciate it you’ll want to view the Sydney Opera House from a few different areas and locations! It looks beautiful wherever you see it – but having a list of the best places to view the Sydney Opera House is definitely useful!

If you’re wanting to capture some photos too, visiting a few of these locations will also give you loads of different photo opportunities, so this list could also be a ‘best places to photograph the Sydney Opera House’ too!

I’ve created a map below, with numbers that coordinate to a place in the list below. Each number is an area of Sydney, which will have one of the best places to view the Sydney Opera House. Take your camera and enjoy these best places to view the Sydney Opera House!

best place to view the sydney opera house

1. Pylon Lookout or The Harbour Bridge

The Pylon Lookout is a museum and amazing lookout point that is part of the Harbour Bridge. The Harbour Bridge is (of course) the bridge itself. You can actually climb the Harbour Bridge, and it has to be one of the coolest activities you can do in the city, hands down. The views you get and the experience of being on top of the world – is just epic. You can book ticket to the Harbour Bridge climb by clicking here.

best places to view the Sydney Opera House

2. Luna Park

Luna Park is a vintage-style amusement park overlooking the Sydney Harbour. I love this as one of the best places to view the Sydney Opera House because it’s not just a great view of the Sydney Opera House, it’s also so much fun! There are ferris wheels, rollercoasters, games, food stalls… It’s a proper nostalgic day out. The best view (in my opinion) is from the top of the ferris wheel, because you can see the Opera House through the Harbour Bridge. You can book an unlimited rides pass for Luna Park by clicking here. 

the best place to see the sydney opera house

3. Kirribilli

Kirribilli is a neighbourhood in Sydney that overlooks the Sydney Opera House. If you get an Uber or a bus over the bridge to Kirribilli, you can enjoy the most gorgeous views of Sydney Opera House from across the water. When you get over there, if you put “Mary Booth Lookout Reserve” into Google Maps, it’ll take you to a fantastic lookout point where you can enjoy the view and take some photos.

best places to see sydney opera house

4. A Harbour Boat Tour

There are loads of boat tours and harbour cruises that leave from Circular Quay, and these boat tours provide the best places to see the Sydney Opera House up close. It’s also really nice to find a place to see the Sydney Opera House from the water, rather than from land. A tour a really recommend is the Sydney Opera House & Bondi Beach cruise (click here to get tickets) as you not only get to see the Sydney Opera House, you also get to see Bondi Beach (another iconic spot in Sydney!) so it’s really good value. They also give you lunch (which is always a bonus).

best places to view the Sydney Opera House

5. Mrs Macquarie’s Chair @ The Botanical Gardens

Mrs Macquarie’s Chair is an area of Sydney’s Botanical Gardens, which basically directly faces the Sydney Opera House. Because of this, it’s definitely one of the best spots to view the Sydney Opera House. It’s always a popular location during the NYE celebrations (because the view of the Sydney Opera House is so good!). It’s free to enter the Botanical Gardens, and it’s a lovely day out.

best places to photography sydney opera house

6. The Mare and Foal Lawn @ The Botanical Gardens

Next on my list of best places to view the Sydney Opera House is the Mare and Foal Lawn is another area of the Botanical Gardens, and definitely one of the best places to see the Sydney Opera House. You could definitely see this, and the area above in the same day, as they’re only a short walk from each other.

best place to view sydney opera house

7. The Sydney Opera House Steps

The Sydney Opera House is actually raised up on many steps, and these steps make for a great place to view the Sydney Opera House and to take pictures of the Sydney Opera House. The angle of the Sydney Opera House from this perspective is really interesting too, as the building looks very different from here (compared to other places on this list). The change in perspective is why this location makes it onto my list for the best places to view the Sydney Opera House.

the best place to view the sydney opera house

8. The Opera Bar (and walkway)

The Opera Bar is an amazing bar located a short walk from the Sydney Opera House, with amazing outdoor seating and lovely views of the Opera House. But you don’t need to sit at the bar to enjoy the view of the Sydney Opera House, there is actually a public walkway alongside this whole area, and you can enjoy some of the best views of Sydney Opera House all along here. There is even places to sit and soak in the atmosphere too!

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9. Circular Quay West

This walkway and road goes all the way up the opposite side of Circular Quay, which means you can enjoy views of the Sydney Opera House all the way along. It’s one of the most popular places to view the Sydney Opera House, because the view are uninterrupted! There are some bars and restaurants along here (if you want to enjoy the view with a drink or something to eat) but you can just enjoy a stroll and take some photos too.

best places to view the Sydney Opera House

10. Blu Bar on 36

Last on my list of best places to view the Sydney Opera House is Blu Bar is a swanky bar, and one of the best places to see the Sydney Opera House. You could head up there for a couple of beers, or a cocktail or two – and enjoy some of the best views in Sydney! It’s located in the Shangri-La hotel, and well worth a visit. Especially if you’re in Sydney for a special occasion.

best places to view the Sydney Opera House

I hope this list of best places to view the Sydney Opera House has been useful and you take some amazing photos of the iconic Sydney building!