Darlinghurst Is The Most Fabulous Of All Gaybourhoods In Sydney

If you’re visiting Sydney and looking for the best ‘gaybourhoods’ to check out and soak up the ambience of the stunning harbour city, you really can’t go past the most fabulous of all, Darlinghurst, which includes the world-famous queer ‘Golden Mile’ Oxford Street.

And while the whispers of its demise over the years have been persistent, this Australian institution and mecca for all things queer is experiencing somewhat of a return to its ‘heydays’.

Start your morning with one of the many breakfast options. No matter where you choose to indulge your caffeine addiction, you’ll be treated to a veritable parade of the morning after party-goers blinking off the indulgences and conquests of last night, in what some in the heterosexual community might call the ‘walk of shame” but which we in the rainbow-flag flying set call the ‘strut of satisfaction’.   

The true beauty of Darlinghurst, especially in the warmer months of the year, is that it’s not all nightclub lines and drag shows – there is plenty to do during the day too! 

You’ve got to check out the Sydney institution that is The Bookshop Darlinghurst, on Oxford Street – you can easily while away a few hours, totally lost amongst the amazing array of books, magazines, calendars and DVDs, offering a safe space of knowledge, solitude and self-discovery amongst the tightly packed shelves – a touchstone for many curious cats for over 40 years now!

Once you’re all hot and bothered from perusing Tom of Finland at The Bookshop,  the saunas of Sydney are there to lend a helping hand, a friendly place to make some new friends and conveniently, Darlinghurst has one right there! 

Sydney Sauna is fresh from a recent refresh and upgrade and boasts an array of different spaces to explore, including a steam room, dry sauna, spa, maze, tv room, and mirrored sling room with private rooms available too if that list of experiences just made you feel a bit overwhelmed!

Shopping! There are plenty of sexy shopping locations to be explored, with some retailers surviving against all odds to be devotedly serving their customers for decades with some becoming gay icons in their own rights. Daly Male opened in 1985 and moved to Oxford Street in 1989, staying on the same strip since and still offering an extensive collection of affordable, high-quality fashion, party wear and accessories. 

If you’re looking for something to add to your wardrobe that’s a bit more geared toward nighttime activity, the Sax brand is synonymous with sex and has been measuring up novices for their first leather harness since 1980 – fast forward over 40 years and they’ve expanded their brand to include fetish gear and find themselves shipping their high-quality products worldwide every day. 

And to add to the stash on the bedside table, The Toolshed is an adult store with the goods and lots of them, including sex toys, vibrators, lingerie and lubricants. 

Once it’s time for dinner, Darlinghurst will have something to scratch whatever itch it is you’ve got and for all budgets, with cuisine including Italian, Japanese, and Mexican among others – even The Columbian’s fried chicken, served on their newly renovated roof deck is getting a name for itself! 

Post-dinner drinks at Ching-a-Lings just down the road on Oxford street will keep you in good spirits with fortification in the cocktail form before you decide to brave the madness of the recently reopened Sydney institution, ARQ. After two years of absence, this legendary nightclub has had a multi-million dollar nip and tuck and re-opened to Sydney party-goers at the end of 2022 to much fanfare and excitement! There are some other iconic gay bars and queer clubs in this gaybourhood, including The Oxford Hotel, the Stonewall Hotel, Universal,  Palm on Oxford, The Beacham, Burdekin, and Kinselas. 

Even if you’re an LGBTQI+ visitor to our harbour city but you’re not staying in the hustle and bustle of Darlinghurst, it is so easy to get here! The leafy oasis that is Hyde Park sits at one end of Oxford street and houses two train stations, Museum & St James. Just alight at either one (Museum is closest) and stroll on over to experience gay Sydney at its most historic.