population: 3,719,000 people (1995) 61.5% of NSW population

Sydney was start- and endpoint of my first Australia journey. I arrived on the 15th of Oct. 1996 after 21.5 hours of flying time from Frankfurt via Bangkok and Manila.
If you like to stay relatively close to the center, Kings Cross is a good place with the largest concentration of hostels. The average price is about 4 to 6 $ higher than in the small cities. What I heard from other backpackers and from my experience, Eva's Backpacker is one of the best-run hostels in Kings Cross, not to say in Sydney.
The Sydney Rail System, including the vast suburban rail network, is easy to use (compared with the Munich-city-rail-system). If you stay about 5 days in Sydney and you like to visit Manly as well, ask for the Green Ticket, which valids 5 days and includes the inner city suburb rails and the ferry to Manly. The price was about $26.-. Don't forget, there's a lot to see in Sydney and the distances are sometimes quite big. On foot you'll get hot soles...

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	Queen Victoria Building, the city's most sumptuous shopping complex, worth to visit...	Sydney lookout, view from Darling Harbour
	Sydney Opera House, view from Harbour Bridge Tower	Cicular Quay and The Rocks on the right hand side
	Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge, view from the ferry to Manly	Manly Beach
	Bondi Beach