City walk Sydney — Eastern Suburbs, New South Wales, Australia

Sydney's Bondi to Coogee Coastal Walk

About six kilometres of clifftop path linking Sydney's most famous beaches — Bondi, Tamarama, Bronte, Clovelly and Coogee — past ocean pools, a cliffside cemetery and sandstone headlands the whole way.

Sydney's Bondi to Coogee Coastal Walk — Photo: Nick Ang · CC BY-SA 4.0

Duration: 1 days
Distance: 6 km
Difficulty: Easy
Best season: Year-round; best in the warmer months (September–April)

The Bondi to Coogee walk is Sydney’s signature coastal stroll: a paved, well-marked clifftop path that strings together five beaches and a run of dramatic sandstone headlands in about six kilometres. It is easy enough for families yet delivers non-stop ocean views, sea pools carved into the rocks, surfers below and, in winter, migrating whales offshore.

Allow two to three hours at a relaxed pace, more if you stop to swim or linger over a coffee.

Getting there. From the city centre take a train to Bondi Junction, then bus 333 or 380 to Bondi Beach, where the walk begins at the southern end of the sand. From Coogee, buses run back to the city and to Bondi Junction.

Permits & tickets. None — the walk is free and open at all hours. The ocean pools along the way (Bondi Icebergs, Bronte Baths, Wylie’s-style rock pools) may charge a small fee or keep their own hours.

Good to know:

There is very little shade — bring a hat, water and sunscreen, and start early on hot days.
Every beach has toilets and drinking fountains, so it is easy to break the walk into shorter stretches.
Do it south-to-north (Coogee to Bondi) if you’d rather finish at Bondi’s cafes and buses.

Day 1

Bondi to Coogee along the cliffs

Bondi Beach → Coogee Beach 6 km

A continuous clifftop route south from Bondi Beach to Coogee, dipping down to each beach and climbing back onto the headlands between them.

Segments

Bondi Beach to Tamarama 1.2 km

Bondi Beach (south end) → Tamarama Beach

Paved clifftop path

Start above the Bondi Icebergs sea pool at the southern end of Bondi Beach and follow the path around Mackenzies Point and through Marks Park — the open-air gallery of the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition each spring — down to the small, stylish cove of Tamarama, nicknamed 'Glamarama'. About 25 minutes.
Tamarama to Bronte 0.7 km

Tamarama Beach → Bronte Beach

Paved path and steps

A short grassy walk along the clifftop drops you into Bronte, a family favourite set in a shady park with cafes, a surf beach and the century-old Bronte Baths ocean pool cut into the southern rocks. About 15 minutes.

About this place

Tamarama is a beachside eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Tamarama is 6 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council.
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Photo: portengaround · CC BY-SA 2.0
Bronte to Waverley Cemetery 0.9 km

Bronte Beach → Waverley Cemetery

Clifftop boardwalk

Climb south out of Bronte onto the boardwalk that skirts the heritage-listed Waverley Cemetery, opened in 1877 and famous for its ranks of white Victorian and Edwardian marble monuments perched dramatically above the sea. About 20 minutes.

About this place

The Waverley Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery on top of the cliffs at Bronte in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Opened in 1877 and built by R. Watkins and P. Beddie, the cemetery is noted for its largely intact Victorian and Edwardian monuments. It is regularly cited as being one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the world. The cemetery contains the graves of many significant Australians including the poet Henry Lawson. Also known as General Cemetery Waverley, it was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 28 October 2016.
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Photo: Kgbo · CC BY-SA 4.0
Waverley Cemetery to Clovelly 1.3 km

Waverley Cemetery → Clovelly Beach

Paved path and steps

Past the cemetery the path rounds Calga Reserve and Burrows Park to Clovelly, a long narrow bay flanked by concrete decks. Its calm, clear water makes it one of Sydney's best easy snorkelling and swimming spots. About 25 minutes.

About this place

Clovelly is a small beach-side suburb in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Clovelly is located 8 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district.
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Photo: FlyingKoala · CC BY 4.0
Clovelly to Gordons Bay 0.6 km

Clovelly Beach → Gordons Bay

Rocky coast track

A quieter, rougher stretch of track leads around the headland to Gordons Bay, a small boat-dotted cove and protected aquatic reserve with an underwater nature trail popular with snorkellers and divers. About 12 minutes.
Gordons Bay to Coogee 1 km

Gordons Bay → Coogee Beach

Clifftop path

The final stretch climbs over Dolphin Point, with its memorial to the 2002 Bali bombings, and drops onto the wide, sheltered arc of Coogee Beach — the end of the walk, with plenty of cafes and buses back to the city. About 20 minutes.

About this place

Coogee is a beachside suburb in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, eight kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district.
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Photo: Sardaka · CC BY-SA 4.0