http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760 http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760 http://ie2.trivago.com/images/layoutimages/logos/default.png http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i10183210 Mon, 14 Jan 2013 13:45:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773740 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773736 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773734 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773732 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773730 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773728 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773726 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i9773724 Sun, 30 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0200 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5947392 Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:35:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5947388 Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:33:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5947384 Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:32:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5889692 Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:13:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5889690 Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:13:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5889688 Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:13:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5686938 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:57:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5686816 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:41:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/picture-i5686814 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:39:00 +0100 ]]> http://www.trivago.co.uk/manly-347861/beach/manly-beach-1164760/review-o419268 Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:47:00 +0200
The ferry crossing takes half an hour and the ferry sails every 30 minutes. I don't know the regular cost of the trip but it added about Aus $13 to the cost of our train tickets in from the suburbs. The route uses one of the larger green and yellow ferries that ply their trade from the Circular Quay and is worth taking whether you are really interested in Manly or not because you get great views of the Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House and the skyline of the city centre. We had grabbed seats on the open deck at the back of the ferry and took lots of photos on the way out.

We landed at 3.30 pm without too much of a clue about where we were. Leaving the Manly Wharf we headed into the tourist office, mildly intrigued by a big building we'd seen up on the hill that looked like it might be worth a quick visit but the tourist office didn't seem to have anything on the open shelves that looked appealing and the staff were booking hotels for other people so we gave up, left, and followed our noses. I've a notoriously bad sense of direction but luckily my husband had clocked the map and worked out that we only had to follow the main pedestrian street known as the Corso and we'd end up at the beach. If we'd had longer, we'd probably have dithered a bit and looked in the shops but we knew we were running out of daylight.

After a short walk we arrived at the sea-front. Bars and restaurants lined the street along the front and we decided to grab some coffees and cakes and sit on the promenade. We found a café with some fantastic vanilla slices and ate them sitting on a bench with one hand on our cakes and the others waving away the attentions of the seagulls who were anxious to share them with us. The Promenade was broad and spotlessly clean, scattered with little covered shelters for visitors to sit and watch the sea. These were also the favourite bolt-holes of the area's tramps, many of whom had left their worldly belongings tucked beneath the benches. The beach was almost empty due to the colder water temperatures of the mid-winter seas. Compared with Bondi, Manly is a more gentle beach with less rough water and was likely appeal more to swimmers and less to surfers.

From the end of The Corso, we headed right towards a small path that wraps round the end of the bay and passes the Lifesaving Club. The pathway must get busy because it had been divided down the middle by a line with arrows indicating which way to walk / run / cycle / roller-skate along the path. Luckily it was a quiet afternoon and there weren't too many people to fight with for walking space.

The path runs for about ten minutes and eventually ends at a second smaller beach which on the day we visited seemed to have been taken over by young mums and pregnant ladies. Part way along the path there's a small sea-water swimming pool for those who prefer to avoid the waves and keep things nice and safe. At the time of our visit the pool had been drained and was undergoing repairs. The small beach was littered with family groups playing games and a few hardy souls were venturing into the water for a swim. The far side of the small beach was a spit of wooded land where lots of walkers we climbing around over the rocks.

We returned to the main beach as the sun started to go down. We would have liked to stay longer but the path wasn't lit and we knew it would get dark very quickly and we thought there was a good chance to catch the ferry which would give us the best sunset shots on the way home. A short walk down The Corso and we were back at the wharf. We watched some small children playing on the third of Manly's beaches, the one directly beside the wharf, and then jumped on the 5.30pm ferry which was clearly the tourist favourite because the outer decks were filled with people taking photos of the city skyline lit up at night and the floodlit Opera House.

Our visit was very brief - just a couple of hours - but we really enjoyed this quiet and calm seaside town and would have happily spent a lot longer watching the waves, drinking lots of coffee and soaking up the atmosphere. My husband's already decided to live on the beach with the tramps when he retires - I think he's even picked which bench to live on.
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