Are you looking for the magical Jacaranda Street in Sydney? Want to know where are the best places to see the jacaranda trees in Sydney? You’ll find all the information here!
The famous purple jacaranda blossoms can only mean one thing in Sydney – spring is here!
In a similar way to how the cherry blossom flowers are anticipated in Japan, residents of Sydney love the purple jacaranda flowers and associate the arrival of the jacaranda with the end of winter.
The jacaranda season with the purple flower rain is often hailed as the most beautiful blooming season in Sydney and in fact the whole of Australia.
Jacaranda blossom season happens every year, however, it only lasts for a few weeks: during the last couple of weeks of October to mid-November when it peaks.
During this time many streets become awash with purple flowers as they bloom, and you’ll find pockets of jacaranda spread out all over Sydney and its suburbs.
Late in the jacaranda season, the purple flowers start to fall off the trees, and it really is like purple rain! A carpet of purple petals covers the streets, whilst there are still lots of purple flowers in the trees.
Then after the jacaranda season is over, green foliage forms on the trees until the next season.
Visit literally any suburb in Sydney and you’ll come across jacaranda trees, however, some suburbs do have more jacaranda trees than others.
Here in this guide, you will find the best places to spot jacaranda in the street in Sydney!
Best Place to see Jacaranda Trees in Sydney in spring:
Kirribilli (Sydney Lower North Shore)
One street in particular that becomes a sea of purple jacaranda haze in late October/November is McDougall Street in the upmarket neighbourhood of Kirribilli, located on the lower north shore of Sydney.
McDougall Street in Kirribilli is known as the Jacaranda Street in Sydney! For the couple of weeks that jacaranda flowers are in bloom here at McDougall Street, it becomes one of the most popular photo spots in Sydney.
There are so many beautiful photo opportunities you can get here in the tree-lined jacaranda flowers tunnel of Macdougall Street in Kirribilli, and it is the best place to see jacaranda flowers in full bloom in Sydney!
What makes the jacaranda at Mcdougall Street in Kirribilli so special and the best place to see jacaranda in Sydney is that the whole street is lined with jacaranda trees in one giant canopy or tunnel of purple flowers.
This is in contrast to lots of other places in Sydney where you’ll just find one or two trees – you won’t find so many jacaranda trees concentrated together in such a photogenic way.
The jacaranda blooms are the heaviest here in McDougall Street, and when the petals fall to the ground the whole street is covered in purple, making it like a magical purple wonderland and definitely the best place in Sydney to photograph the jacaranda flowers!
To get to Kirribilli you can take the ferry to North Sydney Wharf from Circular Quay, or take the train to Milson’s Point.
Kirribilli is located just north of the Harbour Bridge and MacDougall Street is located next to Milson Park, where you can also get some nice photos of the jacaranda trees.
Bear in mind McDougall Street is a residential street so please be respectful of the people living here.
You will also want to get to McDougall Street in Kirribilli early (around 7 a.m.!) if you want to get pictures of the jacaranda trees without other people in as it gets full of tourists later on!
Of course, with McDougall Street being the best place in the whole of Sydney to see the jacaranda trees, it also makes it extremely popular with snap-happy tourists, and many people flock here wanting to get their perfect pictures of the jacaranda tree tunnel.
Also very important: please watch out for the cars when you are here – they can come down the road quite fast so try not to stay in the middle of the street when you are taking photographs.
Get out of the road when a car is approaching, never expect a driver to wait for you to finish taking your jacaranda photographs, this is incredibly disrespectful.
The residents of the street have been very patient with the influx of visitors during the jacaranda season, but understandably tensions do seem to be running a little thin among some of them.
From morning until night for a few weeks a year, hoards of people swarm onto their street, taking over the road trying to get the perfect Instagrammable photo, and making it hard for the locals to get anywhere.
Due to this behaviour, often locals will honk their horns when they are driving, and I think it is important to offer alternatives to the jacaranda flowers street in Kirribilli.
Whilst McDougall Street in Kirribilli is the number one best place in Sydney to see the jacaranda flowers, there are plenty of other places to see jacaranda in Sydney.
Some of them are not residential areas, and there are even some Jacaranda Festivals you can attend to really get in the spirit!
Alternative Places in Sydney’s Lower North Shore To See Jacaranda Trees
Lavender Bay
Lavender Bay is another popular place in the Sydney Lower North Shore area to see the jacaranda flowers.
Head to the Heritage Listed Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Garden and you’ll find many people here trying to get the perfect jacaranda photo for their Instagram.
From Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Garden, you can get an incredible view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Harbour Foreshore and all the jacaranda trees.
Other places in the Sydney North Shore that have some jacaranda flower trees but are a lot quieter are Wollstonecraft, Waverton, Greenwich, Woolwich and Hunters Hill.
Hunters Hill
The jacarandas in Hunters Hill are so popular and visually stunning that the Hunters Hill Trust organises a Jacaranda Walk every year through the best streets in the suburb.
Start at the Hunters Hill Club and make your way down towards Woolwich.
Woolwich
Woolwich is also home to many jacaranda trees and one of the best places to see them in bloom.
Start at The Old School House, wander down Woolwich Road, through Kellys Bush Park and to the Old Woolwich Dock to see the best of Woolwich’s jacaranda display and enjoy the Harbour views along the Parramatta River.
Other Places In Sydney To Enjoy The Purple Jacaranda Flowers
Jacaranda In Eastern Suburbs Sydney:
The Eastern Suburbs of Sydney is another great place to go jacaranda spotting. You’ll find jacaranda trees in places including Paddington, Double Bay, Woollahra and Vaucluse (courtyard of Vaucluse House).
You can easily stroll between these suburbs and visit them all in one afternoon.
Paddington
Paddington turns into a sea of purple in October/November during jacaranda season. Jacaranda trees line many of the suburban streets in Paddington, but the best places in Paddington to find jacaranda include:
- Oxford Street – just outside of the Victoria Barracks and on the Victoria Barracks lawn
- Glenmore Road heading towards Five Ways (this intersection is the best place in Paddington to see jacaranda!).
Woollahra
The best places in Woollahra – just a short walk from Bondi Junction, to find jacaranda include:
- Fletcher Street
- Bathurst Street
- Edward Street
- Russell Street
- Manning Road
Double Bay
The best places in Double Bay to find jacaranda include:
- Pearce Street
- Bay Street
- Court Road
With most of the jacaranda trees in Woollahra and Double Bay, you’ll just find the odd ones sprinkled around in residential streets – sometimes in the street or sometimes in people’s gardens.
Pearce Street in Double Bay however has a few jacaranda trees all in a row that make for nice photos.
Jacaranda in Sydney City CBD
Botanic Gardens & Circular Quay
Not only will you find jacaranda trees in the suburbs of Sydney, you’ll also find them in the City Centre!
The Royal Botanic Gardens in the CBD is home to many jacaranda trees dating back from the 1850s – making them some of the oldest (and largest!) jacaranda trees in the whole of Australia!
The Royal Botanic Gardens is a stunning place to wander around, and if you line up your shot right you can capture the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background of your jacaranda photo.
You’ll also find some blooming jacaranda trees on the western side of Circular Quay in First Fleet Park – between the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Ferry Terminal.
You can get some great photos of the rows of jacaranda trees in Circular Quay with the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background from the Cahill Expressway.
The cobblestone streets of The Rocks is also host to a number of jacaranda trees.
There is also a sprinkle of jacaranda trees outside Sydney’s Town Hall and down Macquarie Street.
Cathedral Street, Wooloomooloo
At Cathedral Street in Wooloomooloo just east of Hyde Park in Sydney CBD, you’ll find a row of jacaranda trees lining the street.
Through a gap in the trees you can see the iconic Sydney Centrepoint Tower poking through, which makes for a great photograph.
Camden – Jacaranda in South West Sydney
Camden is a lovely suburb about an hour’s drive from Sydney CBD.
During the 1920s, 39 jacaranda trees were planted here and now every November, Camden hosts the annual Camden Jacaranda Festival to celebrate these beautiful flowers.
Camden is the best place in South West Sydney to see the purple jacaranda flowers! You’ll find the stunning jacaranda trees along Argyle Street in the centre of town.
Second only to McDougall Street in Kirribilli in terms of the best place in Sydney to see the jacaranda, the jacaranda tree canopy in Argyle Street in Camden is truly stunning and definitely worth a trip.
At the Jacaranda Festival, there are food stalls, markets, live music, fireworks, and Christmas Tree lighting lining the street, so it’s a really nice place to spend a couple of hours.
Stay tuned for the 2023 Camden Jacaranda Festival dates.
Inner West of Sydney
The University of Sydney Campus located in the Inner West of Sydney is another great place to see the jacaranda in Sydney.
It can get busy here at The University of Sydney (weekdays especially) as the jacaranda display here is so stunning.
But at least you don’t have to worry about traffic as these jacarandas aren’t in the middle of the street, they’re in the middle of the pedestrianised campus. You’ll find the jacaranda trees all over campus!
Other places in the Inner West of Sydney to see the jacaranda flowers include Camperdown, Glebe (by the market), Newtown and Erskineville if you want a quieter place to see the jacaranda.
Inner East of Sydney
Head to Tote Park Playground in Zetland to see a gorgeous row of jacaranda trees.
Parramatta – Jacaranda in West Sydney
Within the City Of Parramatta, you will find so many beautiful jacaranda trees. Parramatta Park and Noller Park are both home to many jacaranda trees.
In Parramatta Park you’ll find the area near Little Coogee is the best place to enjoy the many jacaranda. You’ll also find lots of sprinkles of jacaranda trees in front of people’s houses and in their back gardens.
Also, make sure to head to nearby Elizabeth Farm in Rosehill – the jacaranda here are stunning!
Other Places in NSW to Find Jacaranda
Grafton
Grafton, which is located about 7 hours north of Sydney on the north coast of NSW is the jacaranda capital of Australia and hosts the iconic Jacaranda Festival every year, which is Australia’s longest-running flower festival.
More than 2,000 Jacaranda trees burst with colourful purple flowers and many people come to Grafton just to see these beautiful flowers.
This is honestly the best place in the whole of New South Wales to see the jacaranda trees in full bloom and it makes for some incredible photographs!
This year, the Jacaranda Festival will run from Friday October 27th to Sunday November 5th 2023 in Grafton.
Things to bear in mind when visiting a Jacaranda Street in Sydney:
– When it is wet, the jacaranda petals on the street can get VERY slippery so please be careful if you come to see the jacaranda after it has rained.
– Please be mindful when taking photographs of jacaranda trees that are in front of residential properties. Especially if you will be on the road taking photos, be very careful of oncoming traffic.
I would avoid coming at peak times to avoid the crowds and traffic, so it is easier and much quicker to get your shot.
In recent years, many more people have been standing in the middle of the road to get their shot, causing dismay and sometimes chaos amongst the drivers and the council.
Please be careful and considerate to others, and don’t put your life in danger just to get ‘the shot’.
- If you visit the jacaranda trees at a busy time, be prepared that lots of other people will be there. Be patient and let people get their photos.It is a lot easier if you visit with a friend as you can take photos for each other amongst the jacaranda bloom, but it is still possible to take photos of yourself when travelling alone – you just need to be a bit more patient and bring a tripod.
- It is better to see the jacaranda trees later on in the season (in November) as opposed to early on (in October), as there is more purple as the leaves are both on the trees and on the floor, creating a carpet of purple and the jacaranda petals falling gently like purple rain.
Why Is There So Much Jacaranda In Sydney?
The prevalence of so many beautiful jacaranda trees in Sydney, and the firm hold the jacaranda has over Sydney during November each year would have you believe it is a native plant of Australia, but it actually originates from Brazil!
There are a few stories as to why there are so many jacaranda trees in Sydney – one being that a Hospital Matron gave jacaranda seedlings to newborn mothers to plant once they left the hospital.
Another story goes that returning war soldiers were given jacaranda seeds to plant once they returned home.
The more plausible reason however seems to be that the jacaranda trees were introduced during the beautification process of the early 20th Century and around the war years, with some being introduced as late as the 1960s.
During the jacaranda’s early days in Sydney, it was considered one of the rarest yet most beautiful trees as it seemed notoriously difficult to grow from cuttings.
Later it was discovered though, that jacaranda grows readily from freshly fallen seeds.
Other Places in Australia To See The Jacaranda Trees
Sydney isn’t the only city in Australia to host the jacaranda trees. You’ll find them everywhere, including the main cities of Brisbane, Perth, Melbourne and Adelaide.
Due to the temperature differences, jacaranda season starts earlier in Brisbane – in October, and in December in Melbourne.
Brisbane
The jacaranda trees bloom a few weeks earlier in October in Brisbane compared to Sydney.
The city is covered in purple, in particular the South Bank is a lovely place to see the jacaranda and the pink bougainvillaea flower together as well as the University of Queensland campus hosting several stunning jacaranda trees.
You’ll also find jacaranda trees at Woolloongabba, the Botanic Gardens and in New Farm Park there is a fabulous jacaranda tunnel which you must visit!
Adelaide
The jacaranda season in Adelaide starts roughly a month later than the jacaranda season in Sydney. The jacaranda flowers start to bloom in November and then reach peak season in December.
The Adelaide suburbs of Goodwood, Unley and Millswood, which are located south of the Botanic Gardens are host to some beautiful jacaranda trees, as well as Allinga Street in Glenside, which becomes awash with a purple canopy of jacarandas.
Perth
The jacaranda season in Perth is similar to that in Adelaide – it starts roughly a month later than the jacaranda season in Sydney, blooming in November and then reaching its peak season in December.
Head to the suburb of Applecross, south of the river, to see incredible jacaranda-lined streets. If you have a drone you can get a great shot with the stunning jacaranda lined street in the foreground and the CBD in the background.
Alternatively, head to the suburbs of Subiaco and Inglewood, located north of the river where you’ll also find beautiful jacaranda trees.
Melbourne
Jacarandas bloom in December in Melbourne. Head over to the University of Melbourne and The Botanic Gardens to see the jacaranda trees in full bloom.
So there we go, the best places to see jacaranda trees in Sydney, as well as the whole of Australia!
Have you been jacaranda hunting yet, and have you found any other jacaranda streets across Sydney? Let me know in the comments below!