Today, I picked up a friend at Sydney Domestic Airport. He just flew from Adelaide for having a vacation in Sydney. Few days ago, I also picked up a friend at Sydney International Airport. He just came from Indonesia and he's going to start his study at the University of Sydney. As their friend who has lived in Sydney for a year, I have an obligation to pick them up and take them to their destination at Sydney. When the first time I came to Sydney, I was alone and didn't know much about Sydney's transport. So, this time, I am gonna help my friends so they can travel around Sydney comfortably.
There are several ways to get into or to travel from Sydney Airport. You can take taxi, uber, or train. The nearest bus stops are more than a kilometre away so you need extra time to walk. Taxi in Sydney is so expensive. The first time I came to Sydney, I just used a taxi to take me from the Sydney Airport to the university. It charged me $60. But it is super practical. However, the taxi drivers sometimes may not be familiar with your destination. So you expect some extra cost for getting lost and finding your destination, especially if you are new in the city.
There are train serves directly to the airport, but it costs significantly higher than the regular fare. If you get off at the station before the airport station, or get off at the station after the airport station, the cost is only around $2. But if you get off at the airport station, it costs $16!!! Sixty dollars may be much cheaper than taxi, but if you travel with your family, it can be so expensive.
So what I did when I picked up my friends was I got off at the station before or after the airport. The nearest station to the Sydney International Airport is Wolli Creek. It is about 1.5 km walk. The pathway is really good and travel bag friendly. There were not too many road crossing and we'll walk across a small park. It is a really comfortable walk. The nearest station to the Sydney Domestic Airport is Tempe. There were a lot of work road on pedestrian way at that time, so it was not really nice to walk from Tempe to the Sydney Domestic Airport. Not only the work road, there were also too many intersections we have to cross, so it will be uncomfortable if you bring large travel bags.
Traveling from the airport to the city can also use uber. Uber cars are not permitted to take passenger in the airport, so we have to walk a little bit further outside to catch the car. Uber cars are parked at the pool beside the airport, so it does not take a long time for the car to come after we order it. If we order the uber car from the Sydney International Airport, the car will pick us up at the express pick-up zone inside the airport area. It is only five minutes walk from the arrival gate. If we order the uber car from Sydney Domestic Airport, the car will pick us up at Stamford Plaza. We have to walk a little bit further since the plaza is not part of the airport area. But do not worry since the driver will be patiently waiting for us to arrive. The cost of uber is significantly cheaper than taxi. It is only about $20 to the city, plus $8 extra cost for uber airport service.
