15 Top Picnic Places To Take Your Beach Tent In Sydney Australia

To help you out, we've compiled a list of the 15 finest picnic places. Go forth and take advantage of our iconic and gorgeous Sydney landscapes right from the comfort of your beach tent! You deserve it, it's been a long and somewhat lonely winter...

1.) Bradleys Head

Why not pitch your beach tent at Bradleys Head, a famous fishing and picnic site in Sydney Harbour National Park? It also has a gorgeous view of the Sydney CDB skyline, the Opera House, and the Harbour Bridge. 

It is a very popular spot for families and groups, so I'd recommend getting there early to ensure you nab the perfect spot for your beach tent.  

2.) Bradfield

Bradfield Park in Kirribilli, located beneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge, is a lovely place for an intimate picnic inside your beach tent.

Bradfield Park has beautiful views of Circular Quay. Hopefully the cruising industry commences again soon as the huge cruise ships usually pass by. My kids enjoyed waving to the voyagers leaving through Sydney Heads. 

3.) Wendy's Secret Garden 

Wendy's Secret Garden, Lavender Bay, is a lush green paradise with wild plants, fig-trees, flowers, and a flourishing bird colony. It's actually one of the worst secrets in Sydney, it's well celebrated. 

Wendy Whitely chose to create a garden when her ex-husband, Australian artist Brett Whiteley, died in 1992. Wendy has been preserving and decorating the garden for us all to enjoy since her husband and child's ashes were buried there. It's a fascinating story, she actually cleared the public site and began creating the garden without permission... 

Why not pitch your beach tent and google the history - or just enjoy a sandwich, and relax in the garden?

4.) Berry Island 

Berry Island Reserve has a small bushwalking trail, picnic spots, and a fenced play area near Wollstonecraft.

Berry Island, now a peninsula, was formerly an island in Sydney Harbour. A man-made grassed space directly connects it to Wollstonecraft.

Bonus! Dogs are welcome at Berry Island Reserve, although they must be on a leash. My puppy and kids love this spot! 

5.) Cockatoo Island 

You can escape to the heart of Sydney Harbour! Cockatoo Island is a historic World Heritage Listed island with several excellent picnic sites. Catching the public ferry is the easiest way to get there.

Explore the island's well-preserved heritage. Carry your camera to catch the magnificence and rawness of Cockatoo Island. 

Pitch your beach tent and enjoy the unbeatable views of the Harbour. They offer both BBQ facilities and cafes. 

6.) Ballast Point Park

 Ballast Point Park is a 2.6ha recreational park near Birchgrove on the Balmain Peninsula. The Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority inaugurated the park in July 2009, featuring walking pathways, a playground, grills, picnic spaces, and bicycle access.

The park's raw vibe, coupled with its stunning features and picturesque surroundings, makes it a fun location to relax.

Ballast Point Park lies at the end of Ballast Point Road in Birchgrove, on the Balmain Peninsula, with spectacular views of Sydney Harbour.

 7.) Glebe Beach

Bicentennial Park in Glebe was established in 1988 to celebrate 200 years of European colonisation in Australia.

While you're there, stroll down the Glebe Foreshore from Bicentennial Park to Pyrmont's Sydney Fish Market through Rozelle Bay and Blackwattle Bay.

 8.) Pirrama

Take your beach tent to Pirrama Park, a lovely harbourside park in Pyrmont, ideal for an afternoon picnic.

This award-winning park has wide grassy spaces, a contemporary playground, public restrooms, adjacent cafés, and excellent picnic and BBQ facilities. The park was formerly a water police station before being acquired by the City of Sydney in 2005 and converted into a beautiful park.

 9.) Barangaroo Park

Barangaroo Reserve is a 6-hectare park on Sydney Harbour with a huge man-made hill in the centre. It currently has over 75,000 native Sydney trees, palms, ferns, shrubs, and other species planted.

Barangaroo Reserve is a great location for an afternoon picnic in the beach tent with its numerous terraced gardens and walking trails wrapping around the hill.

 10.) Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden

The Royal Botanic Garden has been one of the world's most significant botanical institutes since 1816. Pick a place in the park to pitch your beach tent and relax for a day surrounded by beautiful plants, trees and flowers. The scenes of the Opera House and the City Skyline are never dull. The kids will love the open spaces to run around in and exploring the gardens. 

 11.) Park Yarranabbe

Yarranabbe Park at Darling Point offers stunning views of Garden Island, the Sydney CBD skyline, and the Harbour Bridge.

Yarranabbe Park has plenty of park seats, big trees, and stunning harbour views. There are no tables, so ensure you bring your beach tent. This is a wonderful picnic option for locals and tourists alike! 

12.) Robertson Park

Robertson Park in Watsons Bay is a great location to spend a day with the family, with plenty of picnic tables, a gated playground, and delicious culinary choices. While you're there, do the short but beautiful Watsons Bay circuit walk around South Head. Doyles on the Wharf take away do fabulous fish and chippies! 

13.) Hungry Point

Hungry Point Reserve is one of the attractions of the Cronulla beachfront walking trail. In 2019, Hungry Point Reserve became a public park, including a large car park, seats, picnic tables, and grassy spaces. This lovely Sutherland Shire spot is perfect for picnics! 

Port Hacking, Bundeena and Gunnamatta Bay are all visible from here. Open up your beach tent window door and windows to take advantage of the views.

14.) Wattamolla Picnic Site

It is positioned in the Royal National Park and features BBQs, covered and open tables, bins, and running water.

The picnic area is a pleasant place to take a break in your beach tent and have a delicious meal in the great outdoors.

This area may rapidly fill up during summer weekends, so arrive early to enjoy a fantastic day out in Wattamolla.

15.) Picnic Area at Koonjeree

Lane Cove National Park is a massive enclave of beautiful wilderness located just 20 minutes northwest of Sydney. It surrounds the banks of the Lane Cove River, which drains into Sydney Harbour.

This national park has many good picnic sites, but the Koonjeree Picnic Area's most popular is situated in the park's eastern section, near Chatswood West.

We hope you get out there and visit these great places with your nearest and dearest for intimate picnics.

>> See a recent SUNPLAY Australia beach tent review 

>> See our beach tent video demonstration 

Visit www.sunplayaustralia.com for more information 

Trip Advisor Cover a whole range of places to picnic and visit in Sydney, plus the other main attractions. Click here on the TRIP ADVISOR site to find out more on Sydney's sites.