TOURING THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
The last time we made it to Sydney we did just about everything else you can think of, including climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, however we missed out on going inside one of the most iconic buildings in the world - The Opera House. We vowed that if we were ever back in Sydney a tour of the Opera House would be on the top of our list, and luckily for us we returned.
Opera House Tour, Sydney
The Opera House is situated in Sydney's Circular Quay, right opposite the Harbour Bridge. Even without going on the tour we recommend you visit Circular Quay for the sites and atmosphere.
Sydney Harbour
Opera House Sydney
The guided tour operates just about everyday of the year between 9am and 5pm and will take up just about an hour of your time. The tour is perfectly designed to start small and end with a big finish as you begin in one of the smaller of 7 venues before making your way into the larger concert halls.
View of the Harbour Bridge from Inside the Opera House
We were able to take about 10 minutes off during the tour to stop and enjoying a performer practicing her piano piece for that nights performance. As we had no plans to see a performance it was a nice way to experience a little slice of what attending a show would be like.
Inside Stairs at the Sydney Opera House
Hall in the Sydney Opera House B&W
During the tour you do stop to watch a short video, but before you yawn it does include a very interesting history lesson on the production and design of the building. As we are Australian's it was great to hear about its recent inclusion into UNESCO's World Heritage sites.
As well as listening and hearing about the building, along the way you are able to go past one of the only locations that allows you to physically touch the tiles that cover the majority of the building. We were informed that the architects choice of an off-white colour helped to remove glare from the sun.
Tiles of the Sydney Opera House
Touching the Opera House
You end the tour in the Concert Hall which is the largest venue and houses 2,679 guests - it is a grand site to see in person. This is where major events take place. For an intriguing night out they offer movie festivals in which they remove the soundtrack to a film, such as The Lord of the Rings, and bring in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra to perform the soundtrack live as you watch the movie (we are now dying to go to one of these events).
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In the end we can't go past writing this post without highly recommending the tour. Even if you are looking for more action-oriented tours or think a tour of a building would be boring, we still recommend you give it a shot. You will learn so much about this symbol of Australia to share on your travels.
Opera House at Night
What to do after: Go down to the Opera bar, grab a few beers and watch the sunset with the beautiful Opera House and Harbour Bridge as your surroundings.
Where we booked:Sydney Opera House Tour
Cost: $AUD37 per person
What iconic buildings have you been inside?
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