The Rocks Tour: Discover Sydney's Colonial History

Uncover the scallywag stories of convicts, soldiers, sailors, rum, and rebellions on a walking tour of Sydney’s colonial birthplace, The Rocks. Led by vibrant historians, this tour brings history to life through storytelling and visual imagery.

Duration: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Journey Walks - Meet you guide at our Journey Walks starting point in front of Customs House at Circular Quay for an introduction. Your guide will be located on right hand side of the building if facing the entrance with a CONVICT HISTORY tour folder.
What's Included
  • 2.5 hour walking tour of 20 historic sites
  • Tour ends in The Rocks with local pub and cafe recommendations
  • Visual aids including historic photos, maps, and portraits
  • Inside visit at Customs House with Sydney scale model view
  • Expert guidance from a local crime historian
What's Not Included
  • Food is not included on this tour, but your tour guide will have fantastic local recommendations
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Get ready for a riveting journey through Sydney’s historical epicenter, The Rocks, in this engaging walking tour. You and your fellow explorers will dive into intriguing tales of convicts, military personnel, seamen, and revolts fueled by rum. Dynamic historians will lead the tour, engaging you with compelling narratives, vivid visuals, and…

Location
Customs House
Alfred Street
This tour meets in front of CUSTOMS HOUSE (31 Alfred Street Circular Quay). Your guide will be located outside the building on right hand-side if facing the entrance. Your guide will have a white tour folder that says CONVICT HISTORY TOUR and will check you in.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
5.0
(288 Ratings)
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Brenda_r
Feb 14, 2025
Excellent historical tour - Very interesting tour Lots of history filled with stories about people. Excellent tour. Choose this with confidence.
Review provided by Viator
Belandmatt
Feb 1, 2025
Amazing tour, value for money , exceptional guide . - This tour was org aside for my parents as a Christmas gift . The following is the feedback they gave me. My parents have lived in Sydney the best part of 50+ years . They were so pleased with the experience . Max who ran the tour group was knowledgeable beyond his years , he told the stories , showed different locations of where and when events had happened during settlement , places my parents who have visited for years didn’t know held the history they did . The tour ran for 2.5hrs so when broken down it is exceptional value for money and well worth it . My parents left wanting more and had spoken to Max about some of the other tours , this time we will be booking as a family with brothers and grandchildren so that our kids learn a lot about the city they live in that would t be taught in school.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Diptraveller
Jan 10, 2025
A masterclass on Sydney history - A true masterclass on Sydney’s early history and the history of The Rocks. It shows what a great difference it makes to employ a real historian as your guide. I just wished we had done the tour on the first day of our stay in Sydney - it would have made my whole experience of the city even more enjoyable. My only advice would be for them to change the name of the tour: the convicts tour does not give the dimensions of how good it actually is. It is a tour about convicts, but it is more than that — it really intertwines personal stories of convicts with the wider history of Sydney and Australia.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennifer_g
Dec 29, 2024
Brilliant tour must do - Amazing guide she was brilliant patient and full of information. I would highly recommend taking this tour earlier in stay to appreciate the historic sites. My 15 and 18 year old sons LOVED IT !
Review provided by Viator
Kim_t
Dec 25, 2024
Fun and informative tour. - Really enjoyed this walking tour with Beck. She was very knowledgeable and interesting. A great way to start exploring Sydney!
Review provided by Viator
Tour747554
Dec 8, 2024
Top experience - Brilliant experience, so much information about the Rocks and its history, learned loads Max definitely knows his stuff and has an eng as going friendly approach Loved it would highly recommend
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ladclane
Dec 6, 2024
Brilliant and interesting - It was a brilliant walking tour. So informative. Our guide Max was so knowledgeable. He pointed out things that you would walk by a million times and not know they were there. Really enjoyed it. Highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tylerpaduraru
Oct 7, 2024
informative experience of the historical city centre - We had a great walk with Beck who covered much of the historical centre of Sydney. It was a lot of fun and we only regret that we did not book this tour at the start of our trip as it provided a lot of information about places we had already visited on our own. It is astonishing that the city managed to prosper given all the challenges the early settlers faced!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tour23225940201
Sep 12, 2024
Bec is an amazing guide! - Bec had so so many interesting stories. We so enjoyed her tour. She was mindful of my sore knees and chose our path with that in mind. I'd highly recommend any tour she does. Her knowledge is extensive. I loved how she added in some personal stories. Great tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Happiness25838822673
Dec 29, 2024
A walk through the Rocks - Overall the tour was fine. Nothing really stands out for us as memorable or engaging, it was just a nice walk through the Rocks. The day we chose was particularly busy so a little difficult to move around
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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