General Information
Time
Zones
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Sydney is in time zone GMT +10, i.e. when it is 00:00 GMT, it is 10:00 at
Sydney. The follow table cross reference the standard time for Sydney
and some major cities in the world:
| Sydney |
Hong Kong
(-2) |
Paris
(-9) |
London
(-10) |
New York
(-15) |
San Francisco
(-18) |
Tokyo
(-1) |
Auckland
(+1) |
| 00:00 |
22:00* |
15:00* |
14:00* |
09:00* |
06:00* |
23:00* |
01:00 |
| 04:00 |
02:00 |
19:00* |
18:00* |
13:00* |
10:00* |
03:00 |
05:00 |
| 08:00 |
06:00 |
23:00* |
22:00* |
17:00* |
14:00* |
07:00 |
09:00 |
| 12:00 |
10:00 |
03:00 |
02:00 |
21:00* |
18:00* |
11:00 |
13:00 |
| 16:00 |
14:00 |
07:00 |
06:00 |
01:00 |
22:00* |
15:00 |
17:00 |
| 20:00 |
18:00 |
11:00 |
10:00 |
05:00 |
2:00 |
19:00 |
21:00 |
* means previous day.
Note that Sydney has summer daylight saving. Between November and
March, Sydney becomes GMT +11. Add one hour to the Sydney time in the
above table. For example, during November to March, when it is 18:00 at
Hong Kong, it is 21:00 at Sydney.
Climate
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Being in the southern hemisphere, Sydney has its summer in December and
winter in June. The follow table shows the average daily minimum/maximum
temperatures and rainfall::
| Month |
Celsius |
Fahrenheit |
Rainfall (mm) |
| January |
19-26 |
66-79 |
102 |
| February |
19-26 |
66-79 |
113 |
| March |
17-25 |
63-77 |
135 |
| April |
17-22 |
63-72 |
135 |
| May |
11-19 |
52-66 |
121 |
| June |
9-17 |
48-63 |
131 |
| July |
8-16 |
46-61 |
100 |
| August |
9-18 |
48-64 |
80 |
| September |
11-20 |
52-68 |
60 |
| October |
13-22 |
55-72 |
78 |
| November |
16-24 |
61-75 |
81 |
| December |
17-25 |
63-77 |
78 |
Under the
Sun
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Sunlight can be very strong in Australia. Appropriate clothing, broad
brimmed hat, sunglasses and sun screen with high protection factor (SPF 15+)
are strongly advised.
On the
Road
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Whether you are a pedestrian or a driver, be aware that Australians drive
on the LEFT hand side of the road. Keep this in mind when you are
crossing roads. Every one in a car must wear seat belt, including
passengers in the rear. Motor cyclists as well as bicycle cyclists are
required by law to wear a helmet.
Do not hitch-hike and do not pick up hitch-hikers. It is dangerous
and should be strongly discouraged.
Electricity
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The voltage in Australia is 240V. Wall socket looks like this 
and takes a flat, two- or three-pin plug. So if you from from overseas,
you are likely to need an adapter and/or transformer.
Useful
Phone Numbers
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Emergency
(police, ambulance & fire brigade) |
000
(112 on digital mobile) |
| Poisons Information Centre |
131126 |
Translating & Interpreting Services
(talk to doctors, police, legal practitioners etc., not for tourist
information or advice) |
131450 |
| Tourist Information Centre |
132077 |
| Weather |
1196 |
| Time |
1194 |
| Directory assistance |
013 |
| Operator assisted calls |
1234 |
See also www.sydneyatoz.com.au for other useful tourist and travel information on Sydney.
