Kirribilli Loop
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Summary
An easy harbourside loop through Kirribilli and Milsons Point, linking foreshore paths, gardens and some of Sydney’s most iconic harbour views.
Distance 4.5 km
Time 1–2 hours
Steps 6,000
Level of Difficulty Easy -
Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House and city skyline views
Kirribilli foreshore and Lady Gowrie Lookout
Luna Park and historic North Sydney Olympic Pool precinct
Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Garden
Kirribilli village cafés and monthly markets
Spring jacarandas along Carabella Street and nearby Milson Park
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Foreshore paths can be busy on weekends and during market days.
Several stairways link streets to the foreshore and gardens.
Kirribilli Markets operate monthly near Milsons Point (2nd Sunday, 4th Saturday).
North Sydney Olympic Pool and Ripples Café are expected to reopen in early 2026 following redevelopment.
Ferries, trains and buses all service the start/end area
Extend the trail with a walk over the Harbour Bridge
This walk is beautiful, a picture postcard around almost every corner, and you’ll find many Sydney landmarks along the way. And it's an easy walk too - a few stairways but nothing too difficult.
Beginning at Kirribilli Wharf, the route winds through quiet harbourfront streets and parks beneath the Harbour Bridge, around Luna Park and Lavender Bay, and back via Kirribilli village.
WALKING THE TRAIL
Kirribilli Wharf to Lady Gowrie Lookout
The walk begins at Kirribilli Wharf. When you leave the ferry you’ll pass the popular Celsius Cafe which serves breakfast and lunch. If you plan to make an early stop here, be prepared to queue.
Climb the steps to Holbrook Avenue then turn left into Carabella Street. At the end of the street, looming large is Admiralty House, the official Sydney residence of the Governor-General. Next door is Kirribilli House, the Prime Minister’s Sydney residence since 1956.
The high sandstone walls of Kirribilli House lead down to the end of the street and Lady Gowrie lookout. Named for the wife of former GG Baron Gowrie, it is a peaceful little park where you can sit and enjoy the flower-filled terraced gardens while watching the comings and goings of harbour traffic, including huge cruise ships that resemble floating apartment blocks.
Head back up the stairs and walk down Kirribilli Avenue to Waruda Avenue where you’ll turn left. Take the next right into Waruda Street and you’ll come to Dr Mary Booth lookout and a park, before which you’ll turn left to take a set of stairs down to the foreshore.
Along the foreshore
The Kirribilli foreshore lies directly opposite Sydney Cove where settlement was established in 1788. As you look across the water at the busy harbour and rising skyline on the opposite shore you can only imagine what the first Australians made of the commotion that came with white settlement. This peaceful spot, frequented by picnickers and shaded by grand figs, looks directly at the Opera House and Harbour Bridge and is a favourite haunt for photographers seeking that perfect Sydney shot.
Follow the path under the bridge past Ripples Café and around to North Sydney Olympic Pool*, an Art Deco complex which opened in 1936 for the Empire Games. There can't be too many public pools around with a better view than this.
Just past the pool is the iconic entrance to Luna Park. This colourful amusement park first opened in 1935 and still brings in the crowds on weekends and school holidays.
Luna Park to Wendy’s Secret Garden
Continue along the boardwalk skirting Luna Park. Scattered among the foliage are small sculptural figures from Australian children’s stories — Blinky Bill, the Magic Pudding and May Gibbs’ Gumnut Babies — part of North Sydney’s public art trail and the work of local artist Peter Kingston.
Also here is a bronze memorial to the seven victims of the 1979 Ghost Train fire at Luna Park. The piece, designed by cartoonist Micheal Leunig and sculpted by Kingston, features Leunig's beloved Mr Curly. The names of the deceased are engraved on the sandstone plinth.
At the end of the boardwalk, turn right and climb the stairs to Wendy Whiteley’s (not so) Secret Garden. When I first visited this garden some years ago, I fancy I saw fairies hiding under a mushroom shaped shrub. Admittedly, I was with a three and four year old at the time, but so much the better if you can explore this garden in the company of a child. Take time out for a picnic or just wander along the many meandering paths with their withered branch handrails, whimsical sculptures and secret nooks.
Lavender Bay to Kirribilli Village
Leaving the garden, take the path and steps toward Lavender Street. Turning right into Lavender Street, head up the hill toward Milsons Point station. At the roundabout, cross over Alfred St and walk through the shady park toward the station entrance.
Walk past the entrance to the station taking instead the next left and going under the bridge. If you're walking on the weekend you may be lucky enough to have timed your travels to coincide with a Kirribilli Market Day. There are two markets held each month: The Art, Design & Fashion Market, held on the second Sunday of the month and The General Market, held on the fourth Saturday of the month.
Exiting the tunnel you will come out on to Broughton Street, near the pedestrian entrance to the Harbour Bridge. This is a good place for a food stop if you’re hungry as there are plenty of cafés and takeaway options nearby.
Return to Kirribilli Wharf
Continue the loop by turning left down Bligh or Fitzroy Street, then right onto Carabella Street for the final stretch. On the left of the street you will pass Loreto Kirribilli, a private school for girls established in 1892.
As you descend the hill, crossing Peel St and heading back toward the ferry, you’ll pass under some beautiful jacaranda trees whose spring blooms draw a crowd to the area.
A left turn into Holbrook Avenue will take you back to the start.
*North Sydney pool and the adjoining Ripples Cafe were both closed for renovation at time of editing. Both are due to re-open in early 2026.