Sydney's history isn't just convicts and colonial buildings. It's unknown secrets, scandals, hidden tunnels, outrageous characters and stories hiding in plain sight. On this tour, we'll uncover the Sydney most visitors walk straight past. Meet your guide and set off on a journey through Sydney’s CBD, a place brimming with secret history. From stories of Aboriginal leaders and convict scandals to warring bell towers, gruesome murders, and the forgotten construction stories of historic landmarks, this tour covers it all. Uncover the city’s formation and explore the lives of its vibrant past residents. Visit the oldest European buildings in the country, delve into Sydney’s subterranean secrets, share the lives of some of the most significant people in Australian history, and discuss the city’s most elaborate architecture. Along the way, hear incredible tales of corruption, fortune, and despair - all of which are largely unknown!
A stunning twin-towered Sandstone building with beautiful carvings and detail.
Sydney's premier stately governmental building, the town hall boasts a massive clock tower, sandstone carved decoration and a stunning white marble staircase - a great photo backdrop!
This is Sydney's biggest historic building. It features copper domes, stained glass windows, two mezzanines and incredible views.
Once Australia's largest building the GPO is an incredibly lavish structure complete with amazing 19th-century carvings of Sydney scenes and people.
This quaint park showcases the anchor of an extremely important ship in Sydney's history and is also the cartographic centre of the city.
A stately building that houses the biggest collection of artefacts relating to a single region in the world.
A significant colonial building, this is the oldest public building in Australia and features Greek-inspired architecture.
A convict stronghold, this colonial fortress is possibly Sydney's most interesting building and features stunning Georgian architecture.
As the largest church in the country, St Mary's is a terrific sandstone behemoth, that is covered in amazing architectural detail.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Sydney's Secrets and Scandals Walking Tour lasts about 2 hours. The itinerary has 9 stops.
Prices start at $29 per person for this Sydney experience, booked through Viator with the price shown before checkout. There is 1 booking option, so the final price depends on the option you choose.
Yes. Cancel at least 1 day before the start for a full refund. Later cancellations are non-refundable.
The meeting point is We meet between St. Andrews Cathedral and Town Hall, next to the round red seat. Hotel pickup is not part of this experience.
The experience is available in EN.
It is a small-group experience with a maximum of 25 participants.
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Wheelchair accessible Transportation options are wheelchair accessible All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
What a great history walk around Sydney. Ned was a fantastic tour guide, taught me so much of Sydney's past, history of buildings that i walked past plently of times without even knowing. He is wealth of knowledge. A must do.
I really enjoyed the history tour of Sydney, it was a great way to learn more about Sydney and its past. The guide Ned knew so much about Sydney, he was friendly and made the tour very interesting. I learnt a lot and would definitely recommend the tour to others.
Amazing walking tour! The guide was extremely knowledgeable, engaging and clearly passionate about Sydney’s history. The stories he told made the tour really interesting and enjoyable from start to finish. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a different way to explore Sydney.
It was such an interesting tour. The pace was great and Ned was so knowledgeable and engaging. We found the tour immensely informative and interesting will definitely be doing the other tours too. Thanks Ned
Really happy with my tour with Ned. Very informative and happy to answer questions.
Think you know Sydney? Think again! This tour is a must do, even for a born and bred Sydney local like me. It captures Sydney as it is, and as it was up to 60000 years ago, with stories, tales, conflict and shenanigans that could only be Australian! Ned was a sensational guide who really knew his stuff.
Thoroughly enjoyed the 2-hour Sydney CBD walking tour on a chilly but sunny Sydney morning. Ned’s knowledge is vast, and it’s only enhanced by his professional, engaging presentation style. He shared intricate tales of how our nation was founded, through the lens of our city, focusing on notable characters and beautiful heritage buildings. His stories were inclusive too — turns out women are an important part of history too, who knew. And his Indigenous stories about some total badass leaders will make you sit up and realise we need fewer old white guy statues and a lot more Indigenous ones. As a Sydney local, I’ve just never looked up. Always too busy rushing from one appointment to the next. Ned made me look. And now I can’t unsee the history etched all around our great city. At a leisurely two-hour pace, I’d recommend this tour to all ages. Bring a hat, a jacket, and a snack for your tour guide. Looking forward to another tour soon.
Ned is such an inspirational young tour guide who is making this activity his main job! He's expanding the range of his tours and is successful sparking young people's interest in history. His storytelling technique is outstanding, infact he's able to charm is public with niche anecdotes about historical characters, some of which can be found on Instagram and other platforms. He's really passionate and friendly! This was my second tour. Looking forward to the third!
I enjoyed this Walking tour ran by Ned it was informative he covered alot of history throughout Sydney (English Colonist, Bennelong, Arthur Phillip, QVB, Lachlan Macquarie, etc)
Wow as a lifelong Sydneysider I wasn't sure I would learn anything new but the entire tour was entertaining, interesting and I definitely learnt a lot of new things! Thoroughly recommend everyone do this tour, from locals to tourists!
| Tour | Duration | Rating | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney's Secrets and Scandals Walking Tour | 2 hours | 5.0 (69) | $29 | |
 Sydney Opera House Official Guided Walking Tour | 1 hour | 4.7 (4,210) | $36 | View |
 Depart Syd: Blue Mountains Best All Inclusive with Local Guide | 10 hours | 4.9 (9,870) | $167 | View |
 Blue Mountain Small Group Tour All Inclusive | 10 hours | 4.9 (5,474) | $164 | View |
 Sydney and Bondi Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off Tour with Optional Cruise | 1h 20min–1h 30min | 4.0 (2,855) | $54 | View |
 Blue Mountains Day Trip from Sydney Including Scenic World | 10 hours | 4.6 (2,644) | $150 | View |
 Blue Mountains Day Tour Including Parramatta River Cruise | 10 hours | 4.7 (1,752) | $75 | View |