Raised in the Central West of New South Wales, ultramarathon runner and homelessness advocate Nedd Brockmann now calls Sydney home. As you might expect from an endurance athlete who ran almost 4,000 kilometres from Perth to Bondi in 2022 (raising $2.5 million for charity in the process), Nedd’s idea of a perfect Sydney day involves lacing up his trainers and pounding the city’s pavements. Let Nedd lead the way on a running tour of Sydney’s beautiful harbour foreshore, followed by downtime at his favourite recovery centre and a protein-rich dinner at a chic inner-city diner.
Hit the ground running
As someone who has run from coast to coast across Australia, Nedd believes “the best way to get around and visit a new place is by running. You can walk, you can cycle – it’s still a great way to see a city – but you also get a good workout by running along the harbour here in Sydney.”
Join an early morning Harbour Sights Running Tour by Fit City Tours and stride after stride you’ll get to see Sydneysiders start their days as you run through the Royal Botanic Garden, past the Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay and The Rocks, enjoying spectacular views of the harbour as you run across Sydney Harbour Bridge to the leafy harbourside suburb of Kirribilli.
If this nine-kilometre tour is a bit much for you, you might like to try one of Nedd’s favourite running circuits in the sprawling Centennial Parklands, around a 10-minute drive east of the city centre. “I’m all about getting uncomfortable and having a go. Running around Centennial Park might be a first for everyone, so it’s a really cool thing to do.” Nedd gets goosebumps “quite regularly in Centennial Park, because we’re so lucky and it’s such a privilege to be able to run in that park – it feels like a warm hug every time I enter it.”
Alternatively, Nedd suggests running along the waterfront promenades of the Darling Harbour entertainment and dining precinct. “It’s the most picturesque harbour in the world, so you can’t beat the views. It would be remiss of me to not say how flat Darling Harbour is, because I hate hills and flat is good for me.”
Wherever you choose to go in the harbour city, Nedd recommends getting out and about first thing in the morning. “What I love most about Sydney is that when I wake up at 4.30am I can get out, take my dog to Centennial Park and head to the beach for a swim,” he says, “then go to amazing cafes, amazing restaurants and have an awesome community around me as well.”
Fit City Tours, Bennelong Point Credit: Destination NSW
Fit City Tours, a fast-paced team of locals passionate about sharing our love of Sydney with you. There's nothing they love more than working up a sweat while guiding guests on adventures that take us places most natives wouldn't even know about. DESTINATION NSW USAGE ONLY
Fit City Tours, Bennelong Point Credit: Destination NSW
Fit City Tours, a fast-paced team of locals passionate about sharing our love of Sydney with you. There's nothing they love more than working up a sweat while guiding guests on adventures that take us places most natives wouldn't even know about. DESTINATION NSW USAGE ONLY
Darling Harbour, Sydney Credit: Destination NSW
City views featuring King Street Wharf, Cockle Bay, Darling Harbour and the Sydney CBD.
Darling Harbour, Sydney Credit: Destination NSW
City views featuring King Street Wharf, Cockle Bay, Darling Harbour and the Sydney CBD.
Sweat it all out
The next stop on Nedd’s ideal day in Sydney is treating sore muscles to a revitalising recovery session at Capybara Bathing. A stylish modern bathhouse in the inner-city suburb of Surry Hills, Capybara Bathing offers a magnesium-infused thermal bath for tired limbs, a hot-stone sauna and a hammam for boosting circulation and sweating out toxins, and cold plunges for reducing inflammation, as well as aquatic therapies and sound bathing.
“There are so many amazing recovery centres in Sydney but I love Capybara,” says Nedd. “They have an ice bath, saunas, you name it. I love a sauna, I love an ice bath: you can’t beat the feeling you get when you finish an ice bath. Recovery centres are amazing: they’re a great way to break up the day.”
Sink your teeth into some protein
At the end of an active day in Sydney, you’ll be ready to feast on a hearty meal. Nedd’s a fan of celebrity chef Luke Mangan’s French-Japanese fusion restaurant Luc-San in Potts Point.
“Heading to a place like Luc-San in Potts Point to enjoy a nice steak is a great way to top off a great day in Sydney,” says Nedd. “The sirloin at Luc-San is incredible – it comes with charred cabbage and tempura enoki mushrooms and it’s supposed to be a sharing plate, but if you burn through the calories like I do you may want the whole steak for yourself!”
Capybara Bathhouse, Surry Hills Credit: Destination NSW
Couple relaxes in the Capybara Bathing, Surry Hills
Capybara Bathhouse, Surry Hills Credit: Destination NSW
Couple relaxes in the Capybara Bathing, Surry Hills
Luc-San Restaurant, Potts Point EMBARGOED FOR MEDIA Credit: Destination NSW
Guests enjoy delicious wine and meals at Luc-San Restaurant, Potts Point. EMBARGOED FOR MEDIA
Luc-San Restaurant, Potts Point EMBARGOED FOR MEDIA Credit: Destination NSW
Guests enjoy delicious wine and meals at Luc-San Restaurant, Potts Point. EMBARGOED FOR MEDIA
Soak up Sydney
“If you had 24 hours in Sydney,” says Nedd, “I’d recommend waking up before the sun, heading down to Clovelly Beach. Watch that beautiful sunrise over the cliffs, get in the water and have a dip to start your day. Then grab a coffee and head for a run in Centennial Park – or, if you’re in the city, run around the harbour.”
“Next, I’d head to Piña in Potts Point, get a beautiful breakfast and hang out there.” The colourful Potts Point precinct is a great spot for people-watching: “I grew up in Forbes in the Central West of New South Wales and moved to Sydney,” says Nedd, “so seeing the difference between people in the country and the city is quite a cool thing.”
“Then I’d walk across Sydney Harbour Bridge and train at a beautiful gym – there are gyms everywhere – and have a fantastic meal. And probably grab another coffee in there somewhere too.”
“Basically, I’d just soak up this beautiful city and all it has to offer.”
Inspired by Nedd’s itinerary? You can book all three of his curated selections as a Feeling Drop package of Sydney experiences via sydney.com
Note to editors: Feeling Drops are collections of bookable Sydney experiences curated by NSW Icons of Culture.
Clovelly beach Credit: Andrew Gregory; Destination NSW
Clovelly beach and ocean pool, Eastern suburbs Sydney
Clovelly beach Credit: Andrew Gregory; Destination NSW
Clovelly beach and ocean pool, Eastern suburbs Sydney
Kings Cross Hotel, Potts Point Credit: Destination NSW
The Kings Cross Hotel, Potts Point lit up for Mardi Gras weekend in Sydney.
Kings Cross Hotel, Potts Point Credit: Destination NSW
The Kings Cross Hotel, Potts Point lit up for Mardi Gras weekend in Sydney.
More Inspirational Stories
Comedian, cultural commentator, content creator and the author of the best-selling book All I Ever Wanted Was To Be Hot, Lucinda “Froomes” Price may wear many hats, but what remains constant is her enduring love of Sydney. Here, Lucinda shares her top three picks for a Froomes-worthy stay in Sydney, from peeking backstage at the Sydney Opera House to people-watching at the uber-cool Ace Hotel and meeting marvellous underwater creatures.
Learn the secrets of a Sydney icon
For an experience with a twist, Lucinda suggests seeing the city’s most famous building from a different angle. “I’ve performed on stage at the Sydney Opera House, I’ve gone to so many shows there and it’s just the most incredible venue to see live music and performances,” she says. “It’s my favourite architectural wonder in Australia, so the opportunity to go backstage is a treat.”
Join the Sydney Opera House’s early-morning Backstage Tour and you too can step through the stage doors and explore the hidden passageways of this globally renowned performing-arts institution, before enjoying an exclusive breakfast in the backstage Green Room, hallowed ground normally reserved for singers, dancers and musicians to prepare to perform on stage.
“The Sydney Opera House is way more incredible inside than people realise,” says Lucinda. “It’s incredible from the outside, it’s incredible from the inside and I honestly think it will blow your socks off.”
The 2.5-hour backstage tour starts at 7am, before preparations for the day’s live performances get underway. Lucinda recommends taking the morning tour and coming back later in the day to soak up the atmosphere when it’s wine o’clock. “Whenever people come to Sydney, I recommend they go to the Sydney Opera House and sit at Opera Bar, have a drink, look at the Sydney Harbour Bridge, look at the Sails and soak it all in. I feel brand new every time I do that and it never gets old.”
The Backstage Tour, Sydney Opera House Credit: Destination NSW
Visitors enjoy the Backstage Tour at Sydney Opera House. DESTINATION NSW USAGE ONLY
The Backstage Tour, Sydney Opera House Credit: Destination NSW
Visitors enjoy the Backstage Tour at Sydney Opera House. DESTINATION NSW USAGE ONLY
Opera Bar, Sydney Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying champagne with harbour views at Opera Bar, Sydney.
Opera Bar, Sydney Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying champagne with harbour views at Opera Bar, Sydney.
Explore beyond the beaches
If you want to see a different side of Sydney’s famous coastline, Lucinda recommends strapping on a snorkelling mask, slipping on flippers and sliding under the waves. “I love snorkelling, because it’s one thing to swim at Sydney beaches and it’s a whole other one to be able to see who you’re swimming with,” she says. “There’s such a difference at every single beach: you’ll see different creatures, you’ll get a different vibe and I think that’s really wonderful.”
Join Ecotreasures’ Manly Snorkel Tour to explore the colourful marine life in the Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve to the south of Manly Beach. Wade into the water from Shelly Beach and dive beneath the surface to find the likes of weedy seadragons, rays, leatherjackets and wobbegongs cruising the bar. You might even see a turtle.
“I’m a massive snorkelling fan and I think the water in Sydney is glorious wherever you go,” says Lucinda. Besides Manly’s Cabbage Tree Bay Aquatic Reserve, Lucinda loves exploring the rock platforms at the northern end of Bondi Beach. “The last time I had goosebumps in Sydney was going snorkelling off the North Bondi rocks and seeing a real-life blue groper,” she says, marvelling at the memory of meeting one of these large, bright-blue fish. “It was like a whole other world under there.”
Make the Ace your base
After a morning spent exploring the inner workings of the Sydney Opera House and an afternoon of snorkelling, Lucinda’s tip for an evening of great wining and dining – and people-watching – is to head to the Ace Hotel in stylish Surry Hills.
“The Ace to me is the sexy heart of Sydney,” says Lucinda. “You can go there for a drink and people-watch, you can go to [the Ace’s acclaimed rooftop restaurant] Kiln, which is delicious, or you can stay there and you’re right in the thick of things.”
“What I love most about this city is the fact that it does feel like the cosmopolitan hub of Australia,” says Lucinda. “I’m not thinking: ‘Oh, I wish I was in LA or New York.’ I feel like Sydney has its own thing going on – and it has the beaches too, so it’s a win-win.”
“Every time I go to the Ace, there’s something new and exciting going on … you just feel like you’re in a very cosmopolitan zone,” she adds. “A staycation at the Ace is my favourite thing to do.”
Ecotreasures, Manly Credit: Destination NSW
Ecotreasures is a locally owned advanced eco-tourism accredited experience provider. Since 2010, they have guided experiences on Sydney's Northern Beaches and surrounding areas. Their mission is to inspire you about conservation and the happiness it provides to humans and wildlife.
Ecotreasures, Manly Credit: Destination NSW
Ecotreasures is a locally owned advanced eco-tourism accredited experience provider. Since 2010, they have guided experiences on Sydney's Northern Beaches and surrounding areas. Their mission is to inspire you about conservation and the happiness it provides to humans and wildlife.
Ace Hotel, Surry Hills Credit: Destination NSW
Delicious meals at the Ace Hotel, Surry Hills
Ace Hotel, Surry Hills Credit: Destination NSW
Delicious meals at the Ace Hotel, Surry Hills
Sip champagne and see a band
Beyond her big three tips, Lucinda has firm views on what visitors and locals alike can do to make the most of this global city, including checking out Sydney’s live music scene: “There’s always some sort of gig on every night of the week, be it a small indie act or bigger ones at the Sydney Opera House; there’s always something to see in Sydney.”
And if someone only had 24 hours in town? “I’d say there are three non-negotiables that you must do. You’ve got to visit Bondi Beach and go to Bondi Icebergs for champagne and oysters. Then you must go to Newtown and check out Bar Planet – it’s a martini bar and you can do some vintage shopping beforehand. And the third thing is you’ve got to go to the Sydney Opera House, look across the water at Sydney Harbour Bridge and Luna Park and soak up what makes Sydney, Sydney.”
Inspired by Lucinda’s itinerary? You can book all three of her curated selections as a Feeling Drop of Sydney experiences via sydney.com
Note to editors: Feeling Drops are collections of bookable Sydney experiences curated by NSW Icons of Culture.
King Street, Newtown Credit: Destination NSW
Young people walking down King Street in Newtown
King Street, Newtown Credit: Destination NSW
Young people walking down King Street in Newtown
Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Bondi Credit: Destination NSW
A delicious seafood platter served at the Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Bondi.
Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Bondi Credit: Destination NSW
A delicious seafood platter served at the Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, Bondi.