Sydney Airport
Lasting Impressions....
"If you didn't have an onward flight the next morning you got a bit hassled, but I didn't see anyone actually getting moved on." (fuchka)
"Before midnight, I was herded into a cold, drafty cage with about 50 other sleepers." (Millie Mann)
"A good tip: drag one of the hard chairs away from the noisy people, tip it backwards against a wall, and you have a semi-comfortable bed." (tranquilo_traveler)
"Your currency (Pounds Sterling, US$, Euro or Yen) will ensure that your stay at the airport won't be too harsh on your pocket. (Unless you're one of the unwashed, dope-smoking backpacker types with your arse hanging out the back of your pants, tough luck - get a job & a haircut)" (PK)
"The person who suggested making a bed by tipping a seat by a wall is genius. I did this and could lie down and stretch my legs." (Fuchka)
Quick Reference Airport Guide
Here is some information that we've picked out of from your reviews. Be sure to read the review pages for the most up-to-date info:
- closes from 11PM - 4AM. People get kicked out of the Domestic terminal. Head for the International side for better luck
- hard seats with armrests
- pleasant and helpful staff
- children's play area
- loud and frequent announcements until 11PM
- internet
A few airport reviews from the archives
by ?
"It was quite an impressive airport when I arrived there for the first time. LOTS of free and good services (free internet stations, a tourist info office with cool people, huge backpacker accommodation corner with up-to-date infos to make (free) phone calls for a place where to sleep (and most of them even offer the free lift to their places). The airport is all-in-all extremely clean and ergonomic. Things get somewhat less shiny when you have to sleep there. It not that bad, it's just that, after 11 pm I guess, the security personnel are moving everyone that stay in the airport overnight to a waiting lounge that's not very comfortable, and they won't shut that &* muzak while you're sleeping! But overall it's a good airport to stay in."
by Nature81, 9/18/2009
Wow, where to start.
~All staff power tripping, rude and obnoxious and condescending.
~EVERYTHING shuts at 8pm.
~YOU have to pay to get on the public train to transfer between the terminals.
~Only the International terminal is open all night and then you get locked in (like an extended prison cell) at 9.30pm, so get there early around 7pm at the latest because what little seats there are (around 35 ish), will get taken up pretty quick. Oh, and everything shuts down here too, so bring snacks.
~Airport personal are pretty arsey when you are sleeping over, they will interrogate you over your flight, if you do not have a flight and your sleeping there, you will not be looked upon nicely. We heard a couple of people have this problem (must have been on standby or something) and they were treated like criminals.
~It was also very noisy. Anything that could make a noise, was deliberately switched on, you had about 3 sirens going off at any one time, if you were lucky it was quiet for 5 mins and then the noise would start again. No wonder Australia used to be a prison colony, as they still builds like prisons.
Also public transport to and from the airport via the city (- goes for pretty much all of Australian airports) are crap. They stop around 7pm. We had trouble with Brisbane. Arrive any later be prepared for a taxi fare.
If you can avoid this airport, please do! Hey, if you can avoid the Australian continent even better. Place very expensive and you have nothing to show for it. Australia is even more expensive than London, to help try and put cost into context! The customs, are particularly rude. Beware, you have been warned!!!
Good Luck
by Kat
"Was not aware (until I got there) that this airport "closes" from about 11pm - 4am. Check in opened at 5am, no point booking a hostel bed and paying for a taxi (public transport does not run in the night) to the airport so went to the pub and got to the airport around 11. Security announced they were coming round to check you have tickets for tomorrow, cue a few people leaving, then they leave you alone once they're sure you're legit.
Thing is, they shut all of the airport up except this crappy little corner downstairs by the train station, with open door in the middle of winter, hard seats with arm rests in the way and not enough for the number of people that were there to lie on. So ended up freezing, curled up in between two arm rests next to a very loud Bosnian family for 6 hours, finally drifted off at about 4am and didn't even get first in the queue for check-in as slept until about 5.30.
Rest of the airport seemed nice, was a bit too exhausted to appreciate it mind. They had my favourite UK weekly magazine that I hadn't found anywhere else in Oz so ended up quite happy.
Why can't they close that downstairs bit and open up a slightly nicer bit to sleep in?"
