Info about this attraction is misleading because it is normally FREE unless there is a special exhibition included in your tour, e.g. the Archibald prize entrants in May. On our visit we enjoyed a guided free tour of about 45 minutes, brunch in the Cafe, and bought some souvenirs in the comprehensive gift shop. It was a Monday, but very busy and oh so noisy with lots of school groups. Apart from the guided tour, the noise cacophony bouncing off parquentry floors and hard surfaces was very unpleasant. Some soothing music through noise-cancelling headphones would have provided a much more relaxing experience to go with the wonderful art and sculptures on display. Did love the Australian masterpieces though - Tom Roberts, McCubbin, John Glover, Streeton, Boyd, Dobell, etc, and a few of the Archibald Prize winners that are permanently on display such as Dobell's Margaret Olley. Will be back......but next time possibly with one of those golf tourament signs to hold up which says Quiet Please!!

A huge collection. Walking from the botanical gardens behind the Opera House, you can enjoy beautiful views of the seaside and greenery as you arrive at the new building (annex). This building was designed by a duo of Japanese architects (SANAA), and you'll feel the same style as the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, which was also designed by SANAA. Both the annex and main building are beautiful buildings, but the artworks are also huge, including contemporary art, Aboriginal art, and art from all over the world, not just Australia. There are also some Japanese works in the main building's collection. While there is a fee for some of the special exhibitions, most can be enjoyed for free (this really shows the dignity and depth of Sydney's cityscape). If you take your time looking around, you could easily spend a whole day just here.

This is a beautiful gallery. So much to look at and admire and I loved that they put a lot of art work together to maximise your viewing rather than have to walk far between installations. There is a mix of old masters, contemporary and Aboriginal works often in the same place which I really liked the juxtaposition of. In the grand courts which is the original building they hung the paintings off hanging rails in some spaces which makes sense to protect the historic walls. I hadn’t seen this in a gallery before. My favourite was Michael Parekowhai’s huge statue of Captain Cook which I’d seen before in Auckland (probably I’m biased being a kiwi but it’s fabulous!) It’s open every day which is great as some galleries/museums close on either Monday or Tuesday. We only spent an hour or so as I had hubby with me who was less of an art fan and it was almost lunchtime. We didn’t make it to the newer seperate building but hopefully will be back again next year.

This is probably the best museum for Western Art in Asia. Of course you cannot use the same standard as the Met or the Louvre to benchmark against. But this is most definitely a very well curated and laid out museum with an eclectic display of art covering many genres. It beats many second tier museums in Europe. It is a very good use of 2-3 hours to visit both the North and South galleries. Best of all, entry is free of charge. The surrounding environment in the Botanic Gardens is SK a bonus. Kudos to the NSW government for making this free and maximising enjoyment for all.

This gallery is free to visit and feels like Sydney’s principal art museum. The Grand Courts galleries contain lots of large formate pictures from the 19th century, mostly from Australia and England. The gallery was buying art in the 1800s and somehow managed to buy paintings mostly from European and British artists who have been forgotten. Bad luck. There is a great Cezanne; good Monet, Whistler and Pissarro. In the art gallery’s early days, the focus seems to have been on acquiring pre Raphaelites and they did buy some great ones if that’s your thing. More interesting to me was the paintings from Australian artists, most of whom were new to me and very nice to see. The European old masters fit into a few galleries and were nice enough if not especially great; I suspect this is the only collection of old masters in Sydney so it’s nice that the gallery gives some space where people can learn about art history. Good Bronzino, good Moroni and a great Reynolds. The 20th century modern galleries were uneven but there are nice paintings by Modigliani and a great Bacon. The Asian collection seemed weak but the Yiribana galleries for aboriginal art seemed impressive. The building is lovely and stately. The new addition is impressive. And best of all it’s free!

I would double check the hours and make sure that this isn’t just the spring thing, but what a treat to wander around the art gallery at night! And I don’t know if this is common on every Wednesday night, but they let us eat in the members’ cafeteria. What’s to love? Big spacious rooms that allow for large format pieces. The museum showcases Australian art as well as international art. The building itself is impressive. Wonderful older architecture. Two buildings to explore: Naala Badu (north building) and Naala Nura (south building). Don’t miss the exterior sculptures! Did I mention they were open until 10 PM on Wednesdays? And that they have spots for buying champagne and wine?

This is overall a good gallery, but not without exception. Their curators' labelling needs urgent attention. The name of Australia's near neighbour is New Zealand, not Aotearoa New Zealand. Who are they to incorrectly name another nation? If New Zealand were to formally change its name, then this would be acceptable, but no such change has taken place. This led me to question the accuracy of all information provided about artists' pieces. Not good enough.

We went to the new section of the art gallery Naala Badu (North Building). There were multiple free workshops on for kids for Hive as part of Sydney Festival. There are some wonderful exhibitions which we all enjoyed and brunch in Mod dining. The workshops our grand-daughter sampled included Shadow house, Dreaming on the Picnic blanket and flight of fancy. Best transport option is the Met train to Martin Place and walk via domain. Tip some of the workshop activities start at 9am (before the standard 10am opening) get there early and enjoy those before it gets crowded.

A great museum with a lot to see, and it's completely free. From famous painters like Vincent van Gogh to modern art, everything is there. Open until 10 p.m. on Wednesdays. I can definitely recommend it and I would plan at least 2 hours.

Really interesting for all the ages. A big deal also because it's free! Great museum, with all types of art, from the classic to the modern. A must see in Sydney, good to spend an afternoon when it's raining.