Darling Harbour

Darling Harbour, in Sydney

Darling Harbour is one of the most lively districts of Sydney, a former industrial port become a high place of promenade and leisure by the water. The Sydney audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this bay that gathers museums, aquarium and attractions, whose name recalls a British governor but also the Aboriginal Eora people, who called it Tumbalong.

From Cockle Bay to the district of leisure

The district of Darling Harbour is one of the most lively of the city. Besides its port, that promises fine walks by the water, it is here that some of the greatest attractions of Sydney are concentrated: the National Maritime Museum, the aquarium, the wax museum of Madame Tussauds or the Wildlife Sydney Zoo, where koalas and kangaroos offer an immersion in Australian nature. The district bears the name of the lieutenant-general Ralph Darling, governor of New South Wales between 1825 and 1831. But formerly, it was called Cockle Bay, and it is not by chance. When the Europeans arrived here in the eighteenth century, this part of Sydney was inhabited by the Aboriginal Eora people, who had named it Tumbalong, which means seafood. Let us evoke this ancient presence with respect: the Eora occupied these lands for millennia. The colonists quickly noticed that the banks were covered with shells of all kinds; cockle meaning shell in English, you understand the origin of this name. An industrial port and a place of maritime innovation over the twentieth century, Darling Harbour declined little by little before being entirely renovated in the 1980s to become an attractive and touristic district. Today, its pedestrian quays, its restaurants and its gardens make it a much appreciated place of promenade, lively until the evening. A historic bay and a district of leisure, Darling Harbour is a fine stop of the discovery of Sydney.

What to see

Here you discover one of the most lively districts of Sydney, a former industrial port renovated in the 1980s, that gathers the National Maritime Museum, the aquarium, Madame Tussauds and the Wildlife Sydney Zoo; named after the governor Ralph Darling, it was once Cockle Bay, land of the Aboriginal Eora people who called it Tumbalong. Darling Harbour is a district of leisure of Sydney. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

Darling Harbour lies on the edge of the centre of Sydney, reachable on foot, by transport or by the quays. It is a district freely accessible, animated by museums, attractions, restaurants and promenades by the water; each attraction follows its own hours and conditions, which vary. You discover it during a stroll along the port.

Why was Darling Harbour of Sydney called Cockle Bay?

Because its banks were covered with shells of all kinds, cockle meaning shell in English; the Aboriginal Eora people, who occupied these lands for millennia, called it for their part Tumbalong, that is seafood. The district then received the name of the governor Ralph Darling, before becoming, after its renovation of the 1980s, a high place of leisure.

Where is Darling Harbour in Sydney?

On the edge of the centre of Sydney, along the port, in Australia.