Taronga Zoo and Bradleys Head: Native Australian Wildlife, Harbour Views and Bushwalk

Opened on its current Mosman hillside in October 1916 after relocating from Moore Park, Taronga Zoo occupies a terraced amphitheatre of coastal bushland on the northern shore of Sydney Harbour directly opposite the city skyline. Taking its name from the Aboriginal word taronga meaning "beautiful view", the non-profit conservation zoo is home to more than five thousand animals across 350 species and sits directly alongside the protected eucalypt forests and sandstone coves of Sydney Harbour National Park at Bradleys Head.

Getting to the top entrance first (the downhill strategy)

Because Taronga Zoo is built down a steep slope from Bradleys Head Road at the top of the ridge to the ferry wharf at the water's edge, walking uphill from the bottom gate is exhausting in warm weather. Instead, board the twelve-minute F2 public ferry from Wharf 4 at Circular Quay (covered in our Opal transit guide) to Taronga Zoo Wharf, then immediately catch the connecting Route 100 public bus from the wharf turnaround up to the historic domed 1916 Main Top Entrance on Bradleys Head Road. Starting at the top gate allows you to stroll gently downhill along shaded paths toward the harbour all day before stepping directly onto the return ferry at the lower gate.

Australian native wildlife and skyline viewpoints

Give priority to the native Australian habitats that cannot be seen outside Oceania, along with the hillside enclosures that frame the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge across the water:

• Nura Diya Australia and Koala Walk: Walk through open bushland habitats housing eastern grey kangaroos, red kangaroos, red-necked wallabies, common wombats, Tasmanian devils, dingoes, and koalas resting at eye level in eucalyptus branches, plus the darkened nocturnal house where duck-billed platypuses forage in freshwater stream tanks and short-beaked echidnas search for ants.
• The Giraffe Terrace: Taronga's most famous vista sits at the African savannah enclosure, where reticulated giraffes look out over the blue waters of Port Jackson with the CBD skyscrapers and Harbour Bridge directly behind them.
• Free-Flight Bird Show and Seals for the Wild: Two outdoor amphitheatres overlooking the harbour host daily educational presentations showcasing Andean condors, red-tailed black cockatoos, bark-owl flights, and Australian sea lions; check the official zoo map on arrival for presentation times.

Walking the Bradleys Head to Chowder Bay foreshore track

Even if you do not enter the zoo, the F2 ferry wharf is the starting point for one of Sydney's finest quiet bushwalks. Turn right (east) outside Taronga Zoo Wharf onto the free Sydney Harbour National Park foreshore trail, which winds for 4.5 kilometres through Sydney red gums (Angophora costata) with twisted rust-coloured trunks around Athol Bay to the sandstone promontory of Bradleys Head (featuring an 1840s convict-quarried stone jetty, 1871 sandstone fortification tunnels, and the preserved tripod mast of the light cruiser HMAS Sydney) before continuing past Taylors Bay to the historic timber barracks and waterfront cafes of Chowder Bay at Clifton Gardens. From Chowder Bay, public buses return to Mosman and Taronga Zoo Wharf.

How much time to allow and what to bring

Allow three to four hours for Taronga Zoo itself, or a full six-hour day if you combine the zoo exhibits with the coastal bushwalk out to Bradleys Head and Chowder Bay. Bring a refillable water bottle, comfortable walking shoes for the sloped pathways, and sun protection for the exposed harbour lookouts.