📍Everybody Pack A Snack! Here’s The 12 Best Secret Sydney Picnic Spots For Your Next Parkside Escape.

WONDERING WHAT THE BEST SECRET SYDNEY PICNIC SPOTS ARE AWAY FROM THE CROWDS?

Sydney is an iconic world-class destination famous for its magnificent harbour and being home to some of the most striking architectural landmarks on the planet. And there’s no better way to appreciate its breathtaking beauty than by taking time to visit one of its many foreshore parks, lookout reserves and historic landmarks where you can pull out the picnic blanket and have an unforgettable romantic outdoor dining experience with your significant other or get together with friends and family while taking in the gorgeous views.

You can do hotspots such as the Sydney Botanic Gardens, Barangaroo Reserve and Dawes Point Park, which are some of the city’s top-tier places to go if you don’t mind busy. But, if you’re looking for somewhere peaceful and quiet without sacrificing scenery, there’s absolutely no shortage of epic locations to do that too.

From sprawling waterfront lawns next to stunning sandstone cliffs to hidden heritage reserves and everything in between, here are the best and most beautiful and underrated secret picnic spots in Sydney I’ve discovered during my many visits, which are gorgeous to visit during the day, sunrise, sunset and even at night!

Best of all, most of them are within close distance of public transport stops, which is perfect, seeing as how hard and expensive it is to drive and park in a destination as jam-packed as this one.

1. Blues Point & Henry Lawson Reserve.
MaMahons Point.

One of the most incredible under-the-radar places to picnic in Sydney near the world-famous Harbour Bridge are the side-by-side waterfront lawns of Blues Point Reserve and Henry Lawson Reserve.

What makes these two such exceptional foreshore parks is that the midway point between is likely the only on-land location open to the public where you can see this breathtaking architectural icon at its most perpendicular, allowing you to appreciate the sheer magnitude of the world-famous structure in all its unskewed glory. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, the equally revered Sydney Opera House sits majestically underneath it in such a compositionally sound place that is almost too perfect to be coincidental.

It is a gorgeous sight to behold, made even more impressive by the fact that the views of both these breathtaking landmarks are completely uninterrupted, making it an unforgettable, jaw-dropping place for a romantic blanket picnic with your significant other. Things get even better if it’s planned during the transitional period of twilight, where the soft sunset glow illuminates everything in a gorgeous golden cast before nighttime arrives and the city lights turn on, transforming an already epic view into something even more magical.  

And because these places are rarely overcrowded despite being so close to the heart of the action, it’s also a great place to have a fun photoshoot with these landmarks as the background or take things even further with both of those things and plan a photographer to capture your proposal that you can have here without much of an audience.

2. Illoura Reserve.
Balmain East.

Hidden alongside the Balmain East ferry terminal, one of the least visited stops on the F4 (Cross Harbour: Pyrmont Bay to Watson’s Bay) & F3 (Parramatta River: Circular Quay to Parramatta) routes lies a spectacular hidden picnicking gem: Illoura Reserve.

Although it’s conveniently only a few minutes’ ferry ride from all the inner-city action, this beautiful, underrated harbourside park feels worlds away from all that chaotic hustle and bustle, offering a peaceful sanctuary with absolutely no shortage of scenery.

We’re talking gorgeous uninterrupted views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Barangaroo Reserve (one of Sydney’s most popular picnic spots) and the skyscrapers of eastern Darling Harbour, so it’s a sweet deal, especially in the afternoon bathed in sunset hues and at night with all the twinkling city lights

As for the park itself, the grassy areas and trees provide plenty of great shady places for laying down a blanket and a few benches and stone barriers to keep off the ground, while it’s a convenient location, and super accessibility makes it easy to take what you need across and even enjoy a last-minute, spur-of-the-moment date night, romantic hangout or even a quick solo escape.

3. Cremorne Reserve.
North Sydney.

Undecided about the scenery you want? Well, there’s one hidden picnic spot in Sydney that effortlessly combines its low-key, under-the-radar status with plenty of jaw-dropping views within easy reach of the Circular Quay: Cremorne Reserve. Accessible from the Cremorne Point Ferry Wharf on the harbour’s northern side, this long and narrow V-shape nature strip that follows a luxury residential suburb offers a unique duality that packs an unforgettable visual punch on both sides! 

The western side has elite-level views overlooking the city’s trifecta of instantly recognisable icons, the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House and Eye Tower, with the CBD skyscrapers populating the areas in between. This culminates in one of this top-tier destination’s best viewpoints without big crowds breathing down your neck, which you can enjoy from as close by as the benches at the grassy clearing just to the left of the wharf, perfect for romantic picnics day and night. Additionally, the nearby park features a playground to cater to families, and the area’s only public toilet block for when nature calls.

The place gets even better if you include a micro-adventure to the reserve’s very tip, where the Robertsons Point Lighthouse resides. The walk itself has some lovely areas where you can set up, such as natural rocks with scenic views nestled amongst the trees or at the bench overlooking the tiny beacon. But where it earns its place as my favourite find within this spectacular hidden gem is because not only does it offer the same breathtaking views mentioned above, but it is also framed by gorgeous little cliffs that you have to climb down using a steep ladder, which just adds a whole ‘nother dimension to the landscape. Not to mention, you also get some stunning views looking back into the cove. 

But wait, there’s more. Further up is another secret place that even the locals might not know about: MacCallum Seawater Pool. It’s totally free to swim day and night, and it will have you feeling like a local living in luxury, thanks to being right by the water’s edge and sharing similar incredible postcard views of this world-famous harbour.

Meanwhile, the eastern side offers a different view of Sydney, one that is also beautiful, but in a more relaxing and residential way, perfect for a change of scenery. The walk between Cremorne Point and Old Cremorne Ferry Wharves, in particular, is lovely with aquatic views overlooking the private luxury boats docked in the cove and gorgeous, well-maintained, high-end heritage houses densely covering the landscape on all sides. This includes unfenced properties beside the walkway, providing a great close-up insight into the architectural history and luxury lifestyle of past and present homeowners.

Along this stretch, there are even more grassy patches and benches between the pathway and the water where you can unpack, place down a blanket and absorb the views, offering picnickers a ton of choice between the two sides. And with so much to offer along this one tiny strip of land, it’s worth turning it into a relaxing half-day adventure, picnic included.

Note: Cremorne Point Ferry Wharf is currently closed (2025), so you will need to go to and leave from Old Cremorne.

4. Hodgsons Lookout Park & Kurraba Reserve.

Another sneaky place to picnic that delivers epically on iconic Sydney Harbour scenery that virtually no one knows about is the tiny Hodgsons Lookout Park. Also located on the North Shore, the main part of this underrated hidden gem is situated on a small block of land in the middle of a residential cul-de-sac and features a gorgeous peek-a-boo view of the Harbour Bridge, which you can see sitting at the table from its western side, making it a great gathering spot. It also features a playground under a thick canopy of trees and a decent-sized grassy area, making it one of the best places to picnic in Sydney for families with young kids.

But that’s not all. There’s also its neighbour, Kurraba Reserve, where things get even better to earn their elite-level status on this list. It sits just across the road and features a fenced lookout that offers magnificent, uninterrupted views of the city’s flagship landmarks, building on the Harbour Bridge scenery to include the Opera House, Eye Tower and inner city skyscrapers, offering one of the best perspectives of this famous destination from this side of the pond and a phenomenal photo backdrop. Plus, there’s also a grassy area with several benches right next to it, sharing the same epic scenery, making it one of the best uncrowded and intimate spots for romantic couples’ picnics day or night!

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5. Sub Base Platypus.
North Sydney.

One of the most unexpected places to picnic in Sydney is at Sub Base Platypus in North Sydney. It was formerly a super-secretive Royal Australian Naval Base that once housed submarines and manufactured torpedoes and, for decades, was completely off-limits to the public. Now it’s one of several fascinating historical locations throughout the city that has been thoughtfully reworked into a unique public space, while still retaining many of its distinct heritage features.

This one has become a gorgeous foreshore precinct and working hub hidden away, sight unseen, in Neutral Bay — making the scenic mini-park, with several sheltered picnic tables and a beautiful courtyard, an excellent place for low-key picnics. It’s especially ideal if you’re looking to cook up a storm on your outdoor dining adventure, as it’s one of the few locations around Sydney Harbour that actually has BBQs.

All of this makes a great pre- or post-lude to roaming the rest of the fascinating site, which has preserved several of the original buildings from its past lives. One of the most interesting is the clifftop Torpedo Factory, which features gorgeous panoramic views that perfectly showcase why this location in Neutral Bay had such strategic significance, plus interpretive signs that share insights into its operational heyday. Then there’s the Exhauster House, an inaccessible relic of the original gas works facility, which has been built directly into the sheer cliff face, an unexpectedly jaw-dropping sight that strikingly blends nature and architecture in a way that’s impossible to ignore.

Best of all? The place doesn’t close when the sun goes down, and with the North Sydney ferry running to and from Circular Quay surprisingly late, this awesome, under-the-radar picnic spot is also one of the most unique places for a romantic picnic and urban-exploration date night that you’re significant other won’t soon forget.

6. Georges Head Lookout. (Gunners Barracks.)

Why stick close to the CBD when you can journey out to the Middle Harbour and discover epic gems like George’s Head Lookout? Located near some of my favourite unexpectedly awesome secret heritage finds, Chowder Bay and the Gunners Barracks, this unforgettable viewpoint precinct is just the epic icing on the cake.

Originally built as one of the city’s many military defence posts to guard against naval invasions, you can see everything from this breathtaking panoramic viewpoint — from the harbour’s entrance, framed by North and South Head, that provided triangulation for the city’s defence, to the unequivocally jaw-dropping views of Sydney’s unforgettable skyline. It perfectly showcases why this place was the ultimate fortification location. From this one view, you can see both the area they were defending and what they were protecting, which just makes it even more unique.

What’s even cooler about this spot is that the defence force fortifications are right there at the lookout to explore, as well as plenty of grassy space, allowing you to picnic at this spectacularly scenic spot and explore these fascinating heritage ruins, making visiting this place so much more fascinating.

Another plus is that it’s open 24/7, making it a great place to plan a sunset and twilight picnic, making it perfect for unique romantic date nights with a side adventure of heritage exploration in old ruins. Just bring torches to get around safely once it gets dark.

7. Tania Park.
Balgowlah Heights.

If you’re looking for one of the best Sydney picnic spots to take your energetic family or burn off energy, then Tania Park in Balgowlah Heights is a top-tier choice. Perched above the picturesque cliffs of Dobroyd Head, this spacious suburban park features a massive oval that’s perfect for running around and playing ball games, BBQs for cooking up a storm and sheltered tables for eating in the shade. Plus, there’s also a playground to engage and entertain the kids even more and an off-leash dog area, so your furry, four-legged friends can join too, so it really ticks all the family-friendly boxes.

What’s also cool about this place is that it isn’t just an ordinary suburban park. It’s also home to some epic harbour views, which is why it is on this list! The views aren’t directly visible from the oval, but from two vantage points next to the road circumnavigating it. The Arabanoo Lookout has gorgeous views overlooking the iconic outer Sydney suburb of Manly. Meanwhile, the unnamed roadside clearing overlooks the entrance of the harbour between North and South Head, where two of the aforementioned fortifications lie, making it a great place for nature adventures and photography.

Things only get better from there, because these two places are near the trailheads for the walks with Dobroyd Head, which is home to some of the harbour’s best under-the-radar hiking tracks, offering even more incredible seascape scenery from its three official lookouts. But I’ll tell you something else. Take the little side path to the southwest where the Dobroyd Head and Beaty St Tracks meet below Fairfax Lookout, and it’ll take you down a narrow, rough, unmaintained pathway to the super low-key Crater Cove Huts, a series of rustic old shacks sitting above the sea cliffs for one of the best secret hidden gems you’ll find in Sydney.

8. Clifton Gardens Reserve.
Mosman.

Craving a refreshing beach swim to complement your harbourside picnic? Then the Clifton Gardens Reserve provides the perfect setting to do just that. The peaceful and expansive park lies tucked away within a picturesque cove at Mosman and features a golden sand beach and wide-netted swimming enclosure perfect for splashing around in on hot spring and summer days and making sandcastles, a big grassy area for laying lay blankets, BBQs for creating magic on the cooktop, and a small playground and basketball court, making it an excellent place for families, friends and couples to enjoy eating outdoors.

Even more intriguingly, it resides next to one of the most fascinating and little-known heritage precincts in Sydney’s storied history: Chowder Bay. Like several other places on this list, (and even more off of it), it was once a key part of the naval defence system used to maintain the lineup of underwater mines that were strung below the water across the entrance to the harbour between Manly and Watsons Bay, but is now a recreational heritage precinct. Roaming the old grounds, which include the old barracks, depots and stone storehouses, was another of my favourite secret Sydney finds along with the Gunners Barracks and Georges Head Lookout, which is within short walking distance of this place, so they’re excellent places to visit in one incredible outing.

9. Bradleys Head Amphitheatre.
Mosman.

When it comes to dramatic waterfront picnic spots with gorgeous Port Jackson views, Bradleys Head Amphitheatre is amongst the Middle Harbour’s best. Perched at the southernmost tip of the peninsula-like headland just southeast of Taronga Zoo, it is the perfect place for couples to lie down a blanket and toast their beautiful relationship, as this place has gorgeous distant views of all the iconic landmarks that make this city the world-class destination it is. We’re talking about the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House and Eye Tower, along with all the towering CBD skyscrapers. It’s a sweet deal that extends into the night as this place doesn’t close, making it great for nighttime picnics featuring pretty city lights.

But don’t just come for the views, of which there are several others nearby, as Bradleys Head is yet another site rich in military history. It was also once a key defensive point of the harbour, with the nearby mast from the HMAS Sydney now standing proudly as a naval memorial and several visitable fortification ruins nearby, plus a walk down to the beach on the other side, which would also make a lovely scenic picnic spot looking out at the harbour entrance.

10. Neilson Park.
Vancluse.

Over on the outer banks of the harbour, Neilson Park in Vaucluse is one of Eastern Sydney’s best secret picnic spots. This is because it is harder to reach by public transport and overshadowed by other epic attractions nearby, such as South Head, The Gap National Park and Macquarie Lighthouse.

But if you do go there, you’ll be rewarded with plenty of natural terrain to set up your picnic, with different scenery to choose from depending on where you are within the park. You can go the short distance from Greycliffe Avenue to find a shady place on the manicured lawns along Promenade Road footbath or go a bit further to Shark Beach if you want to swim, or follow one of the trails close to shore and look for a side path to discover perfect rock that has views of the inner city skyline. There’s also the Steel Point Fortification on the headland west of the beach for a blend of nature, scenery and history and Greycliffe House a heritage-listed Gothic Revival residence built in the 185os from the city’s colonial past, just to add even more interest to your pre- or post-picnic wanderings.

11. Eastern Apron Park.
Cockatoo Island.

Do you have a penchant for scenic views, gritty history and doing things differently, and want to incorporate that into your intimate outdoor dining experience? Well then, one place you will absolutely not want to miss out on picnicking at in Sydney is Eastern Apron Park.

Located on Cockatoo Island, home to one of Australia’s first penal colonies, nothing says I love you more than going to prison for you. Or if you’re with others, with you. Because if you’re going down, they are too. Going out as a team! Luckily, these days, island life isn’t quite as brutal as it once was, and these days you can enjoy a peaceful picnic on the lawn overlooking the water and the beautiful arches of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

This is an excellent way to start or finish your visit to this must-visit heritage attraction, as Cockatoo Island of the city’s most fascinating and remarkably well-maintained historical sites, providing visitors with a glimpse into the lives of the incarcerated and the hellscape they endured during those early settlement days. After the convict gaol closed, the island went on to spend 134 years as a key shipbuilding and repair facility, and many of the buildings, structures and architecture that exist there today are remnants of those two distinctly different periods in the city’s storied history, making it a fascinating open-aired time capsule.

What’s even cooler about this place is that if you think you’ll love doing time here, you don’t even have to leave! As part of the transformation from a prison and dockyard to a museum and recreational picnic destination, the island has converted several heritage structures into is that it has also turned some of its heritage structures into some of Sydney’s most unique accommodations featuring breathtaking views in all directions, including straight back towards the inner city skyline. You can even bring your tent for some truly unforgettable on-site camping, the closest place to the heart of Sydney you can do this!

12. Woolwich Dock and Parklands.

On the mainland, just across the water from Cockatoo Island, lies another under-the-radar picnic gem that shares just as much steeped in shipbuilding history: the Woolwich Dock and Parklands. Originally constructed in the early 1900s as a working dry dock, it’s now a peaceful green space and public foreshore precinct where you can picnic beside one of Sydney’s most intact industrial heritage sites, which includes a massive stone-cut trench surrounded by vertical sandstone walls, which looks especially epic when yachts are moored inside.

The surrounding lawns and waterfront benches at the neighbouring parklands are perfect for casual picnics with views stretching across the Parramatta River and nearby islands, including the aforementioned Cockatoo Island, and distantly, the Sydney Opera House, perfect for families and couples looking for somewhere a little more unique and off-the-radar to enjoy eating outdoors.

What To Pack For An Unforgettable Picnic.

• Picnic blanket with a waterproof base.
• Portable picnic basket/cooler/esky.
• Plates, cups & cutlery..
• Pans & utensils (for BBQs.)
• Hand wash or hand sanitiser.
• Tissues & rubbish bags.
• Ice Packs.
• Cleaning equipment.
• Sunscreen & Hats.
• Self-standing umbrella.
• Bug spray (just in case.)
• A book, games and or sports equipment.
• A torch or headlamp (sunset and twilight picnics)

Sydney Harbour’s Best Secret Picnic Spots Map.

From Kurraba Reserves’ jaw-dropping inner city views to Sub Base Platypus transformed military relics to Cockatoo Island’s prison-turned-museum and park, there’s absolutely no shortage of exceptional hidden picnic spots in Sydney for couples, families and friends craving a quiet and under-the-radar dining escape.

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