Sydney’s inner city is getting a green fix, thanks to a brand-new walking and cycling trail that links the Cooks River in Earlwood with Iron Cove in Balmain.
The Inner West is Sydney’s creative hub, known for its converted warehouses, vibrant street art and community spirit. Now, a new six-kilometre ‘GreenWay corridor ’ is injecting the area with a fresh dose of greenery. Designed to make the region more accessible for walkers and cyclists, the long-awaited project is set to change how locals and visitors move through the vibrant region.
Originally conceived over 20 years ago, the GreenWay has been a grassroots project, with the community campaigning for funding for more than a decade. Now, the corridor is nearing completion, promising to deliver better connectivity, recreation and some much-needed green space.
An artist’s impression of the GreenWay, which is designed to encourage walking and cycling around the Inner West. (Image: Inner West Council)
What is the GreenWay corridor?
The GreenWay stretches from the Cooks River in Earlwood to the Iron Cove foreshore walk in Balmain, linking two major waterways and existing trails in the Inner West. It follows the path of the 130-year-old rail line, transforming it into an exclusive pedestrian and cycling thoroughfare. The Inner West is already home to a surprising amount of natural habitat. The Cooks River in particular consists of expansive mangrove ecosystems, where lizards, snakes and more wildlife are regularly spotted.
The GreenWay corridor runs from the Cooks River to Parramatta River, connecting two of the Inner West’s major foreshore walks. (Image: Inner West Council)
The GreenWay will be lined with new green spaces, including dog parks and conservation zones supporting wetland habitats. Once complete, the corridor will offer a scenic, car-free route through some of the city’s most beloved suburbs and change the way locals and visitors interact with it.
According to NSW Premier Chris Minns, “The GreenWay won’t just link two of Sydney’s most popular walks, it’ll become one in its own right, complete with a shared walking and cycling path, public art, playgrounds and cafes for everyone to enjoy."
The GreenWay will connect different precincts in the Inner West to create a six-kilometre continuous pedestrian trail. (Image: Inner West Council)
Jo Haylen, member for Summer Hill, adds: “The shared pathway has a strong connection to the community and the environment… [and] provides a great space for enjoying the outdoors and travelling across our community."
When will the GreenWay corridor open?
The GreenWay links the Cooks River (pictured) with Iron Cove. (Image: Flickr/Martin7d2)
The project is currently 80 per cent complete. The remaining works focus on linking all six precincts of the trail together, and is set to be completed later this year.
Elizabeth Whitehead is a writer obsessed with all things culture; doesn't matter if it's pop culture or cultures of the world. She graduated with a degree in History from the University of Sydney (after dropping out from Maths). Her bylines span AFAR, Lonely Planet, ELLE, Harper's BAZAAR and Refinery 29. Her work for Australian Traveller was shortlisted for single article of the year at the Mumbrella Publishing Awards 2024. She is very lucky in thrifting, very unlucky in UNO.
The charm of Mildura is hidden in plain sight along the Sturt Highway. The capital of Tropical North Victoria is in a league of its own.
From the moment you arrive in Mildura, the warm air and palm trees invite you to slow down. While most Australians might drive right past it, Mildura is full of surprises. Here you’ll spend one day witnessing over 50,000 years of First Nations history in a UNESCO-listed National Park, and the next dining in a hatted restaurant after wandering through 12,500 fireflies as the outback sunset bursts to life above. From roadside fruit stalls and family-run wineries to houseboats and galleries, it’s time to explore Mildura.
Taste, wander and be surprised in Mildura.
Taste Mildura’s produce
It makes sense to start your trip by addressing the most important question: where to eat. In the beating heart of Australia’s food bowl, sample the local produce directly from the source. And then, of course, experience it through the menu of a hatted chef. Or sandwiched between pillowy slices of Nonna’s ciabatta.
Rows of orchards and olive groves invite you to spend the day traipsing from farm to farm. Taste olives propagated from Calabrian trees brought over in the 40s, oranges picked right from the tree and squeezed into juice and spoons full of honey. Bring the holiday back to your kitchen by stocking your pantry at roadside produce stalls, or calling into the ‘silver shed’ (Sunraysia’s gourmand Mecca).
Thanks to the warm, balmy air and fertile soils, the wineries dotted along these hills produce award-winning local wines. Like Chalmers, a family-run, innovative winery dedicated to making their wines as sustainable as possible. And picturesque Trentham Estate offers views of the snaking Murray River as you sample their vintages.
Venture beyond the gnarled shadows of olive groves and fragrant rows of blossoming fruit trees and you’ll find an otherworldly side to Mildura. With Discover Mildura as your guide, visit Murray River Salt’s Mars-like stacks. The naturally pink salt is formed from an ancient inland sea and evaporated entirely by the sun to create one of the region’s most iconic exports.
Start your day with just-squeezed sunshine.
Hatted dining & Italian history
Mildura is home to a proud community of Calabrians and Sicilians. This, paired with the exceptional local produce, means that you can find paninos on par with those in Italy. The Italian is a Paninoteca serving up made-to-order, hefty, authentic Sicilian paninos. Nonna Rosa’s pork meatballs, slowly cooked in tomato ragu and served in a crusty, fluffy roll topped with gratings of Grana Padano cheese and salsa verde, will call you back to Mildura for the rest of your days.
To find hatted dining in Mildura, simply follow the staircase down into the basement of the historic Mildura Grand Hotel to find Stefano’s. Following the muscle memory and instinct of his Italian roots, he delivers on the principle of ‘cucina povera’. That is, the Italian cooking ideology that turns simple, local ingredients into magic.
Bite into Mildura’s Italian heritage.
Discover a thriving culture scene
The city is alive with culture. Whether it’s painted on the town’s walls, told in ancient yarns, or waiting for you in a gallery.
The Mildura Arts Centre was Australia’s first regional art gallery. Behind the walls of Rio Vista Historic House, you’ll find a lineup of ever-changing exhibitions. The gallery’s wall space pays tribute to the art and songlines of local First Nations People, the region’s awe-inspiring landscapes and more. Outside, on the gallery’s lawn, find 12 contemporary sculptures in the Sculpture Park.
Mildura’s streetscapes are a punch of colour. Swirling strokes of paint blend the winding artery of the Murray River, red dirt and local characters into a story you can see with your own eyes, thanks to the Mildura City Heart’s Mural Art Project. Pick up a copy of the Murals of Mildura guide from the Visitor Information Centre.
Follow the border of NSW and Victoria on a map and you’ll see it hugs the curves of a tiny island on the Murray. That’s Lock Island, where, as the sun and moon trade places, the island comes alive as darkness falls. The island is dotted with 12,500 firefly lights that lead you on a meandering path through the outback sunset. The installation is known as Trail of Lights and was created by the same visionary who dreamt up Field of Light at Uluṟu, Bruce Munro.
Find culture around every corner.
Wonder at ancient landscapes
The landscapes of Mildura feel almost transcendental. The skyline bursts to life with reds, pinks, and deep, sparkly night skies.
The nature will leave you in awe. See hues of pink water changing with the weather at Pink Lakes inside Victoria’s largest national park, Murray Sunset National Oark. Cast a line into Ouyen Lake. Watch the sunset against 70-metre tall red cliffs that reflect the setting sun. Or get the heart racing and sandboard down the Perry Sandhills dunes, formed 40,000 years ago at the end of an ice age.
Just don’t leave without following the twists and turns of the Murray. Stroll or ride along the Shared River Front Path, or jump onboard a boat for a scenic ride.
Your itinerary will be incomplete without a visit to UNESCO World Heritage-listed Mungo National Park. Head out with an Indigenous ranger to witness ancient campsites and footprints, before standing in awe of ancient civilisation near the discovery site of Mungo Man—Australia’s oldest human skeleton at 42,000 years old.
Walk in the footsteps of ancient civilisation.
Meet your home away from home
On equal par with planning your meals and adventures, is finding the perfect place to relax at the end of each day.
Sleep inside a Palm Springs postcard at Kar-Rama. A sleek boutique hotel complete with a butterfly shaped, sun-soaked pool. Here you’re staying right in the heart of Mildura but you’ll feel worlds away. Or if you really wish to connect with nature, a night glamping under the stars at Outback Almonds will have you spellbound.
When in Mildura it’s only right to stay on one of the Murray River’s iconic houseboats. Wake up each day to the calm waters of the Murray lapping outside your window. Enjoy days full of river swims, fishing and exploring. All boats are solar-powered and can be self-skippered or moored along the river.
Stay and play on the Murray in a solar houseboat.
Start planning the perfect getaway at mildura.com .
