The Rocks Free Walking Tour
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- Click 'Join a tour' for times
- 1½ hours walking tour
- FREE (Pay what you think it's worth)
- Tour starts at Cadmans Cottage (in the waterside courtyard in front of the building)
Uncover The Rocks District
Join us on this Rocks Free Tour and we’ll delve into the history of The Rocks, the site of Australia’s first European settlement. We’ll explore its lane ways, pubs, and historical buildings and share with you its stories of murders, muggings and mysteries.
What we'll cover
– The Rocks’ Laneways
– Historic Pubs and Breweries
– Australia’s Largest Bank Robbery
– The First Hanging in Sydney
– Convicts, Sailors and Rocks’ Characters
– Murders and Mysteries
– Sydney City’s Oldest House
– Observatory Hill
– Foundation Park
– The Rocks Today
– Susannah Place
– The Plague in Sydney
– The Big Dig archaeological site
Join a tour
Please note: We aren’t able to accept groups of 10+ or school / tertiary education groups of any size on the free tours. Instead we offer Private Tours. Separate registration of large groups will not be accepted on the day as it affects the tour for everyone else.
Happy snaps
How are we free?
Our tours are offered on a “pay what you think it’s worth” model so people of any budget are able to turn up and enjoy the tour and discover and learn the stories and history of The Rocks.
Join a Tour
Please note: We aren’t able to accept groups of 10+ or school / tertiary education groups of any size on the free tours. Instead we offer Private Tours. Separate registration of large groups will not be accepted on the day as it affects the tour for everyone else.
At I'm Free we're all about
All I’m Free guides are experienced and knowledgeable locals who are excited to show you around their hometown.
We’re all about being real! Each of us will share with you our honest, local advice about where to explore, eat or drink. We are never paid to promote or advertise to you.
We will share with you the unique and quirky stories of our city as well as the history behind our main attractions.
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Reviews
We think we rock The Rocks, but don’t take our word for it, checkout what others think.
Where to meet
FAQs
We currently require bookings so that we can manage numbers and guide availability.
Nope. Not due to weather, we walk rain, hail or shine!
We do however, take the current health situation very seriously. In the unlikely event that your guide is at all unwell before the tour and we can’t replace the guide at short notice we may have reschedule. Equally if you’re not feeling well please let us know and we’ll be happy to reschedule your booking to another time when you’re feeling 100%.
‘The Rocks at 6pm’ tour ends in the Rocks no more than a 5 minute walk from where we started and your guide will be happy to point you in the right direction to where you need to go.
Unfortunately, no. Our free tours are designed for individuals and small groups. Instead we can organise a private tour for you, so fill in the form on the private tour page and we can organise something for you.
Please don’t book as multiple smaller groups as we will have to turn you away on the day.
Unfortunately not. Our free tours are designed for independent individuals and small groups. Instead we can organise a private tour for you, so fill in the form on the private tour page and we can organise something for you.
The Rocks at 6pm tour starts from the waterside of Cadmans Cottage in the Rocks, between the Overseas Passenger Terminal and the Museum of Contemporary Art. It is also a 5 minute walk from Circular quay train station west along the water front. Click here for Google Maps directions.
Unfortunately due to the historical nature of the Rocks district ‘The Rocks’ tour is not accessible for wheelchairs. We have had plenty of prams join us on the Rocks tour. If you’re happy to carry the pram up a few flights of stairs it is very manageable.
It is a walking tour. This tour is only 2-2.5km (1.2-1.5 miles) in total. Due to the historic nature of The Rocks precinct it does have some stairs and up hills at points. However we walk at a leisurely pace, stopping to speak at regular intervals along the way.
Our tours are designed to be suitable for people of all ages. Over the years we have toured a wide variety of audiences of all ages and backgrounds including many families and children.
At the moment we only offer tours in English.
It can be tricky to find the group once they are under way.
That said we give 5 minutes for people to turn up late and then are at the start point for a few minutes after that.
From there we walk to George St and head a little south (left) before heading west through the Suez canal to Harrington St and north (right) to Argyle St. We then head west (left) along Argyle St to Cambridge St (pedestrianised) where we head south (left) to Susannah Place.
Thank you for thinking of others to create spaces for them to join.
If you need to cancel or change the date of your booking there is a link in your confirmation email that allows you to do that.
If you need to change the number of people in your booking get in touch and we can adjust it for you.
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