Sydney Harbor Bridge

16 Workers Died Building the Coat Hanger

Sydney Harbour Bridge took nine years to build (1923-1932) and employed approximately 1,400 workers. Sixteen of them were killed during construction. The steel arch, 503 metres long and 134 metres above mean high water at its peak, was the largest steel arch bridge in the world when it opened and still is by span. It has been affectionately called the Coat Hanger since roughly the year it opened, which is a reasonable assessment of its silhouette.

The bridge operates simultaneously as a working road and rail crossing – about 160,000 vehicles cross daily – and as one of Sydney’s major tourist attractions. The BridgeClimb operator takes paying groups up the steel arches every day in all weather. This combination of functional infrastructure and tourism spectacle is a peculiarly Sydney arrangement, and it works.

BridgeClimb: Honest Numbers

BridgeClimb guided climbs reach the summit arch at 134 metres above the harbour. The full summit climb takes 3.5 hours and involves approximately 1,332 steps crossing the outer arch (not the roadway). You are clipped to a safety rail throughout. No bags, no loose items; cameras are provided or available for purchase at the finish. Prices run AUD 174-403 per person depending on time of day and day of week. Twilight and dawn climbs at the premium end offer better light quality on the harbour; daytime climbs are cheaper.

The view from the top is what you’re paying for: the Opera House shell roofs below and to the east, the CBD skyline to the west, the harbour arms extending in both directions, and on clear days the Blue Mountains 50 kilometres away. If you are going to spend money on one tourist activity in Sydney, this is a defensible choice.

Children must be at least 8 years old and 1.2 metres tall. The bridge is windy on almost all days; all-weather suits are provided.

The Free Option

Walking across the bridge is free. The pedestrian and cycle path runs on the east (Opera House) side and is accessible from the Rocks or Milsons Point. The walk end to end takes about 20 minutes. The views from pedestrian height are excellent, not equivalent to the arch summit but a genuine experience with a genuine view. This is the correct option for people for whom AUD 200-400 is not how they want to spend their day.

The Pylon Lookout in the southeast pylon: AUD 19 admission, 200 steps, good views at roughly half the arch height. The museum in the lower levels covers the construction history – the engineering problem of building the world’s largest steel structure simultaneously from both sides without computer modelling is genuinely interesting, and the photographs of the falsework scaffolding used during construction are remarkable.

The Rocks and the Harbour

The Rocks neighbourhood below the bridge’s southern approach is Sydney’s oldest European settlement. The narrow colonial streets, weekend market on George Street, and the Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel on Kent Street (claiming continuous operation since 1843) give it more character than most of the surrounding tourist infrastructure. The beer is brewed on the premises.

The Circular Quay ferry hub is the most practical way to explore the harbour. The Manly Ferry (30 minutes, under AUD 10) passes through the heads of the harbour with the bridge behind you and the Pacific ahead – one of the better short ferry journeys in the world for the money. Taronga Zoo on the north shore headland (12 minutes by ferry) is as much about the harbour view back to the CBD as the animals, and the Sky Safari cable car from the lower entrance gives a view back to the bridge at a fraction of the BridgeClimb cost.

The Opera Bar at Circular Quay is the obvious choice for a drink with a view of both the bridge and the Opera House. Everyone else knows this too; arrive at 4pm on a weekday to avoid the weekend evening crowds and the accompanying noise and prices.