Ultimate Travel Secrets

Once I booked our trip to Australia, the Sydney BridgeClimb was at the top of my list to research.  I had no idea there would be so many options to choose from.  So then my question was, “Which Sydney BridgeClimb is the Best?”

I mean, a Bridge Climb is a Bridge Climb, right?

Wrong. So wrong.

Let me break down the choices in an easy format for you. There are 3 types of Bridge Climbs:

1. The Express Summit Bridge Climb
2. The Sampler Bridge Climb
3. The Summit Bridge Climb

The Express

The Express Summit Bridge Climb takes about 2 hours 15 minutes to complete.  You do get to go to the summit of the bridge on this one!  There are just some short cuts and some of the photo ops and stories about the bridge have been cut and its a faster pace than the other 2 climbs. You will climb through the heart of the bridge and then take the inner arch to get up to the summit.

The purpose of the Express Climb is to hit all of the highlights so you are in and out as quickly as is possible.  This climb is perfect if you are short on time or are one of those people who just wants to say they did the Climb but aren’t as interested in the history or taking your time with the views.  There are about 1002 steps on the Express Climb.

FYI, it is the exact same price as the 3.5 hour climb to the top.

There is a maximum of 14 people in each group of climbers. Children ages 8-15 are allowed.  They must be at least 1.2m (3.94 feet) tall and there’s a maximum of 3 children per adult climber.  Anyone over the age of 15 is considered an adult.

The Sampler

The Sampler Bridge Climb does not go to the summit of the bridge.  This Climb is a short 556 steps and goes to a quarter point of the bridge. It takes about 1.5 hours to complete.

This Climb is ideal for people who are nervous about going to the very top of the bridge.  It is a bit less in cost than the others (see Pricing section below) but you do sacrifice some of the scenery and, of course the thrill of  going to the top of the bridge.

The Summit

The Summit Bridge Climb is certainly the most popular of the climbs.  It is the one that I chose to do.  It is 1,332 steps. This Bridge Climb is about 3.5 hours and really is more experience driven.

Your guide takes you through a lot of cool stories about the bridge via a headset (which is nice because then you don’t miss any of the commentary!) There is plenty of time to take in the spectacular views, ask questions, have your guide take pics and maybe even catch your breath!  You are able to actually take a bit of time to enjoy the Bridge experience to its full extent.

Just a quick side note here:  I had a special request of our guide.  I wanted several shots of just me so I could use them for these posts and around social media.  But I also wanted some of my husband and me together.  Our guide was happy to do that.  So if you see a background view where you would like a photo taken or you want extra shots taken, be sure to ask!

The staff here at the BridgeClimb were some of the friendliest and accommodating people I encountered on our entire Australia trip!

Times to Go on Your Sydney BridgeClimb

There are Bridge Climbs available throughout the day and into the evening.  It kind of depends on what you value most as to which one you choose. In other words, would you rather see Sydney night time views with all of the sparkling lights or Sydney daytime views with the sun & gorgeous surroundings?  Or would you like a little of day and dusk? Decisions, decisions, right?

My big thing was to see all of the spectacular views from the top in the full day sun so I chose an 11:30am time slot to do the climb.  I figured we would be at the summit by 12:45-1:00pm time frame and that was about right.

Honestly, I thought long and hard about a sunset climb instead of the day climb because I knew it would be just gorgeous.  If I go to do it again, that will definitely be my next choice!  FYI, the sunset climb was the most expensive one that I saw when I was booking.

They do have some special climbs throughout the year and custom climbs (ie: weddings, birthdays, etc.) can also be arranged.  At the time I booked at the end of July, they had a special climb on Sunday afternoon.  When you got to the summit, there was live music and you could watch the sunset.  I thought that would be so cool!! But sadly it didn’t fit into our schedule this time.

Pricing

The pricing is mostly based on the time of day you decide you want to do your climb.  As of late 2019, the current pricing for Sampler is $174 AUD per person and the climbs to the top range from $268-$403 AUS per person.  Children are $148 and $188 respectively.  If you are looking to save money, definitely check out the different rates according to time of the climb.

If you are from the US, it’s an opportune time to visit Australia and do the Bridge Climb because the exchange rate is great right now!

Booking Your Sydney BridgeClimb

In their summer months (December-February) it can get very crowded and if you don’t book ahead, you just have to take what they have available.  Even in the height of winter when we were there, we had a full group of 14.

I’m not really a huge “book ahead of time” person but I would definitely recommend making a reservation if there is more than 1 or 2 in your party, you have a certain day or time in mind or you have limited time in Sydney.  You definitely don’t want to miss this exciting Sydney experience!

Cool Sydney Bridge Facts

• The Bridge is 134m (440 ft) high and 1149m (3,770 ft) long
• The Bridge has 6 million rivets
• It was constructed using 52,800 tons of steel
• The Sydney Bridge Climb is 1 of 3 bridge climbs in the world.  The other 2 are the Story Bridge in Brisbane and the Auckland Harbour Bridge in Auckland, NZ
• More than 4 million people have climbed the Bridge since 1998 when it opened as a Bridge Climb to the public

So the only question left is: Which Sydney BridgeClimb is the best one for you?!

Want to know more about what to expect from your Sydney Bridge Climb?  Check out this post.

Comment Below on which Climb you think you will like the best!