The King Street and Enmore Road corner, Victorian shopfronts under a clear sky

Vakrieger / CC BY-SA 4.0

Where to stay in Newtown

King Street, two kilometres of bookshops, bars, Thai restaurants and op shops in the inner west, with terraces behind it and a train station in the middle. The cheapest area on this list and the least like the postcard — no harbour, no beach, and the most ordinary Sydney life a visitor is likely to see. Glebe, next door, is not part of it: the two do not touch, and Camperdown and Forest Lodge sit between them.

Price level · Budget

Sydney

Area scorecard

Scored 0–10 by Where Stay Guide. No overall total: every traveller weights these differently.

Sightseeing: 5.0
Walkability: 8.0
Transport: 7.5
Food: 8.5
Nightlife: 8.0
Quietness: 5.0
Families: 5.0
Value: 8.5
Airport / station: 7.0
First trip: 5.5

Best for

Travellers watching what they spend
Longer stays
Anyone who would rather be in a neighbourhood than near a landmark

Choose elsewhere if

This is a short first visit
You came for the harbour or the beach
You want quiet — King Street is loud until late

Our picks in Newtown

Best for a lower rate

The Urban Newtown

Our pick for the inner west because it is a block from the Enmore Theatre and a short walk from King Street, which is the two kilometres of bookshops, bars and restaurants that are the reason to stay out here at all.