Kris's Alternative Guide to Sydney: King Street, Newtown

---

King Street, Newtown

Newtown is the hands-down boho capital of Sydney. If Newtown isn’t alternative enough for you, not musical or artsy enough, then take the first bus or plane out of the Harbour City – because this is as good as it gets.

There are many cool places to eat, listen to music, drink coffee and a range of other things in Newtown. But I won’t name them all here, because first up it deserves to stand on this list alone. Just stopping by King Street and walking past the cafes, shops and bars is cool enough to start. See a bookstore that looks interesting? Step in. Smell some nice food? Grab a bite. Hear some chill music? Sit down and have a listen.

If I’m bored or whatnot, King Street has often been my default place to pop past, as I’ll generally find something worthwhile and creative to pass the time. There’s been a bit said and written about Newtown’s gentrification. Like other famous boho paradises around the world such as Greenwich Village, what tends to happen is that urban-but-not-quite-bohemian types hoard in and the price of everything inevitably rises, pushing out the very artists who made it interesting in the first place. Will this happen to Newtown? Or is it happening already? Yes and no. There are signs of gentrification. There are more chain stores and brand name clothing than there used to be. There are the drunkards who come in on Friday and Saturday nights and piss on the streets. But there’s still no McDonalds, nor will there ever be. There’s still the people with green hair walking down the streets. There’s still the soul music emanating from the bars at night. Newtown is still weird, still Newtown and still boho. If you come to Sydney, it’s a must-visit.

Want to see more? King Street, Newtown was chosen as the location for Coldplay's latest single, Sky Full of Stars (yeah I was pretty proud):

---