Chinese Garden of Friendship, Sydney, Australia

I must admit, when we first planned our trip to Sydney, visiting a Chinese garden was not something I expected to find myself at. But it was fairly high on TripAdvisor's top things to do, so whilst we were in the city, we spent an hour or so there.

And it was definitely worth doing.

The Chinese Friendship Garden is located in central Sydney, close to Darling Harbour and about a 10-15 minute walk from Town Hall Station. The Garden itself is walled so feels miles away from the towering CBD of Sydney.

The garden was built in 1988 to symbolise the relationship between Sydney and it's Chinese sister city, Guangzhou. 

It's made up of walkways surrounding lakes, waterfalls and streams - many of which feature gorgeous water lilies and rock features. Despite being fairly small, you could easily spend a good few hours wandering the gardens and end your visit with a cup of tea overlooking the main lake. The garden as a whole is so well designed and made up of hilly areas with pagodas (for a gorgeous view), and tucked away lantern lined corridors. 

We went at around 12pm which unfortunately was boiling hot and meant the gardens were fairly busy so I'd suggest getting there first thing so you don't get too hot! 

The garden is priced at AUS$6 (GBP£3)* for an adult. 

*Prices correct as of January 2018.