I had not travelled to Australia in a long time, so when I was planning my work sabbatical, I thought we should head to the southern hemisphere to visit the many friends we have down under.

Our first stop was Sydney, the iconic city famous for its harbor and Opera House. Yet I really did not want to stay in town, but rather experience the seaside life. So we picked Manly, a well known town about 20m ferry ride from Sydney Harbour.

Historic seaside charme

While Bondi is the super famous, trendy surfers’ paradise, Manly is perhaps less touristy but also extremely well located. It has a wind swep, huge beautiful beach with surfing and swimming as well as a much quieter, net protected, swim beach on the opposite side a of a pretty peninsula.

The Corso is a historic pedestrianized street that connects the two sea fronts, and it’s full of period architecture with colorful two story buildings, shops, bakeries and boutique hotels. Besides the corse, there are plenty of little alleys and side streets to discover.

Here are some of my favorite things to do in Manly

Grab a specialty coffee

Australian coffee culture is famous, and while Melbourne seems to be at the top of the game, Manly was actually where I enjoyed the best flat whites while in the country. My absolute n1 was at Calibrate Coffee on Whistler St, just to the side of the Corso. Perfectly balanced and very smooth, and great service (to be honest I had great service everywhere in Australia!). I also enjoyed some fab brews at small Silo Espresso on Sydney Road, at hidden from sight trendy at Little Legends: Lot61 Roasters on Rialto Lane and finally at mouthwatering bakery Rollers Bakehouse.

Eat a mouthwatering gelato

It was hot when we visited, in the 30s, so ice cream was a must. We had some at small chain Messina (we found branches in Canberra and Melbourne too) but the best one was surely at Anita, right on the Corso. The queues here attest to the quality of the gelato and my gosh so many flavors to choose from including some ‘pre paired’ such as Peanut Butter & Chocolate.

Join a fitness class

As a Class Pass user, I was delighted that this is active in Australia too and Manly is extremely fitness focused. There are gyms and studios literally on every street, from yoga and pilates to martial arts and weight lifting. I tried to take part into the local culture by joining a reformer pilates which I very much enjoyed. I do believe that joining a local fitness class is a great way to feel ‘local’ for a little bit!

Learn to surf

Disclaimer: I did NOT try to surf, instead I went scuba diving but for those younger and more adventurous Manly and the surrounding beaches offer plenty of opportunities to learn to surf. My son did a few hours with a friend who lives locally and has been surfing all his life on Curl Curl beach which is a stunning stretch of white powdery sand just north of Manly where the surf is beginner friendly. All over Manly you will find surf shops offering lessons for all levels.

Visit an Op Shop

We absolutely loved how Australia does charity shops! They are called “Op shop”, op for opportunity. These are mainly huge, enormous, warehouse size stores with so much inside and of such great quality and condition! Plus the prices are incredibly affordable. I bought a pair of new motorcycle gloves for A$6 (about £3) and my son picked up plenty of toys for a mere A$1 each! So many bargains. In Manly there are also some really cool vintage stores especially in the alleyways around the Corso; we loved visiting Desire Books & Records where we bought second hand vinyls and books.

Conclusion

If you are planning to visit Sydney, I couldn’t recommend Manly more. It’s so quick and easy to travel into town, but you get to experience a different, beach style vibe and quirky shops and coffee.