The Brooklyn
of Sydney is
Newtown.

See the 24 venues →Where to stay
The case for Newtown

King Street runs for over a kilometer and every block has a different personality. Thai restaurants give way to record shops, natural wine bars, and tattoo parlors. The murals change seasonally. Students, queers, old-timers, and new parents all share the same footpath, dragging flat whites from shop to shop like the afternoon is a thing to be used up slowly, except on gig nights at the Enmore.

King Street and Enmore Road pack over 600 shopfronts across 9 kilometres, with more than 200 restaurants alone calling the Newtown strip home.
Close contenders

Other cool neighborhoods in Sydney.

Burwood

Burwood is one of Sydney's most concentrated Asian food neighborhoods. Late-trading licenses, exceptional Chinese and Korean cooking, and a Chinatown energy that Inner West suburbs don't touch. Not a nightlife destination. An eating destination.

Marrickville

Marrickville is where Newtown people go when they need cheaper rent and better Vietnamese food. Illawarra Road on a Saturday morning is the real deal.

Chippendale

Chippendale is tiny but punches hard. White Rabbit Gallery anchors the whole suburb, and the laneways around Kensington Street have serious late-night energy.

Three sides of the neighborhood

Where to go in Newtown.

01
Stay

Newtown hotels keep you on or just off the King Street strip.
02
Eat & Drink

King Street's food runs deep.
03
Do & Shop

The Enmore Theatre on Enmore Road is the best mid-size venue in Sydney - art deco from 1908, sticky floors, great sightlines.
All 24 spots mapped out

Newtown, corner to corner.

Open in Maps →
Our 24 top picks

The Newtown guide.

Practical info

Good to know.

The boring numbers that decide whether you stay three days or four.

CurrencyAUD
LanguageEnglish
Cost level $$$$Expensive
Best monthsMarch and April, plus October and November
Local time UTC+10
Plug type Australian plug · 230V/50Hz
Emergency000
Local tip
Skip the Thai places on upper King Street. Walk further south past the station where the locals actually eat.
Oceania · Australia

If you like Sydney, try one of these.

Melbourne
The Brooklyn of
Melbourne
Fitzroy
Australia · Oceania
Bristol
The Brooklyn of
Bristol
Stokes Croft
UK · Europe
Portland
The Brooklyn of
Portland
Alberta Arts District
USA · North America
Auckland
The Brooklyn of
Auckland
Karangahape Road (K'Road)
New Zealand · Oceania
Head to head

How does Sydney stack up?

All comparisons →

Auckland vs Sydney

Oceania

Brisbane vs Sydney

Oceania

Melbourne vs Sydney

Oceania
Common questions

Things to know about Newtown.

What is the Brooklyn of Sydney?
The Brooklyn of Sydney is Newtown. King Street runs for over a kilometer and every block has a different personality. King Street and Enmore Road pack over 600 shopfronts across 9 kilometres, with more than 200 restaurants alone calling the Newtown strip home.
What is the coolest neighborhood in Sydney?
Newtown is widely considered the coolest neighborhood in Sydney. King Street runs for over a kilometer and every block has a different personality. Thai restaurants give way to record shops, natural wine bars, and tattoo parlors. The murals change seasonally. Students, queers, old-timers, and new parents all share the same footpath, dragging flat whites from shop to shop like the afternoon is a thing to be used up slowly, except on gig nights at the Enmore.
What is the hippest neighborhood in Sydney?
Newtown is the hippest neighborhood in Sydney. King Street stretches over a kilometer where Thai kitchens, record shops, and queer-friendly pubs share footpath space with students nursing flat whites between tattoo appointments.
What is the trendiest neighborhood in Sydney?
Newtown is Sydney's trendiest neighborhood right now. Natural wine bars keep multiplying between the old terraces, the murals get repainted each season, and gig nights at the Enmore still set the calendar.
Where do creatives live in Sydney?
Newtown. Students, queers, old-timers and new parents share the same King Street footpath, which runs over a kilometer past record shops, natural wine bars and tattoo parlors. The murals change seasonally. People come for the music, then never leave. The strip carries the city's art and gig culture.
What is the most bohemian neighborhood in Sydney?
Newtown is Sydney's most bohemian neighborhood. Every block of King Street has a different personality - Thai restaurants giving way to vinyl, streetwear and seasonal street art. It is queer-friendly, multicultural and loud on gig nights. Flat whites get dragged shop to shop like the afternoon is meant to be used up slowly.
Where should I stay in Newtown, Sydney?
The best boutique hotels in Newtown include The Erko Hotel, The Urban, and UKO Newtown. Traditional pub hotel on the Newtown-Erskineville border, technically in Erko despite what the postcodes say.
Is Newtown in Sydney safe at night?
Newtown is a lived-in creative neighborhood, not a tourist compound. Bars and restaurants here stay busy late, which keeps streets active. Use normal city awareness.
Is Sydney expensive?
Sydney rates $$$$ on a global travel scale. One of the more expensive cities, but Newtown's independent spots are still better value than the touristic core.
When is the best time to visit Sydney?
March and April are the sweet spot - warm days of 22-26°C, the ocean still swimmable, and the summer humidity gone. October and November give you the spring version of the same. Skip January if heat bothers you, when it can top 35°C with heavy humidity. June to August stays mild but wet, with highs near 17°C and short daylight.

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