Sydney and Melbourne, or just one?
Both, if a weekUnder six days, pick one. They are 90 minutes apart.
Both, if you have six days or more. One, if you have fewer. They are an hour and a half apart by air, which makes them the only pair of Australian cities that fits inside a week. Three days each is the split. Below six days the flight and the two hotel changes eat too much of it. What separates them: Sydney is the harbour and the beaches, and its day out is the Blue Mountains from $139. Melbourne is the food, the laneways and the trams, and its day out is the Great Ocean Road from $139.
Checked on 6 October 2026.
This comes up more than any other Australian comparison, and the answer turns on one number: how many days you have. Below six, doing both costs you more than it gives.
By how long you have
| You have | Do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 3 or 4 days | One city | A flight and a second hotel takes most of a day out of four |
| 5 days | One city, properly | Three in the city and two on day trips beats four and a travel day |
| 6 to 8 days | Both, three days each | This is where it starts working |
| 10 days or more | Both, plus Tasmania | Hobart is an hour from Melbourne and a different country again |
| 2 weeks | Both, then head north | The east coast run leaves from Sydney |
What each one is for
- Sydneyis outdoors. The harbour, the bridge, the ferries and a string of beaches you can walk between. Its day out is the Blue Mountains, an hour and a half west.
- Melbourneis indoors. Coffee, laneways, galleries, bars and the best food in the country. Its day out is the Great Ocean Road.
- Sydney is better in a short tripbecause what it is for is visible from the first morning.
- Melbourne rewards longer.It doesn't announce itself, and three days is about when it starts to.
The day trips, which cost the same from each
| Trip | From where | Effort | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Day Blue Mountains Tour | Sydney / Sydney | — | $139 |
| 1 Day Great Ocean Road + Rainforest Tour | Melbourne / Melbourne | — | $139 |
| 1 Day Phillip Island and Penguins | Melbourne / Melbourne | — | $149 |
| 1 Day Hunter Valley Wine Tour | Sydney / Sydney | — | $164 |
All four collect from city accommodation. Neither city needs a car.
If you pick one
- First time in Australia, and want the postcard: Sydney.The harbour does what you hoped it would.
- Been before, or you travel for food: Melbourne.
- Travelling with children: Melbourne.Phillip Island's penguin parade is the most reliably loved day out near either city.
- Going north afterwards: Sydney.The east coast run starts there, so you're not paying for a flight to begin it.
Getting between them
Flying is quickest and usually cheapest on one of the busiest air routes in the world. The overnight coach and the XPT train both take eleven to twelve hours. Driving is nine on the Hume with nothing on it, or three days on the coast road if the drive is the point. There is a fuller comparison on our cheapest way from Melbourne to Sydney page.
Doing both, then carrying on
If the two cities turn into a longer trip, the run from Melbourne to Cairns takes 21 days and includes Sydney, Byron Bay, K'gari, the Whitsundays and the reef, with the bus passes and every night booked before you travel.
21 Days Melbourne to Cairnsfrom $274921 days, 20 nightsHostel, Boat, Camping21 days. Melbourne to Cairns, via SydneyView trip21 Days Cairns to Melbournefrom $274921 days, 20 nightsHostel, Boat, Camping21 days — the same run southboundView trip
14 Days Sydney to Cairns Budgetfrom $199914 days, 13 nightsHostel, Boat, Camping14 days. Sydney to CairnsView tripWhere this comes from. Trip lengths, effort ratings, start points and prices are each trip's own details as held on its page here, and prices update on their own. Flight time is the scheduled Sydney to Melbourne sector.