Camperdown Suburb Review

Busy central suburb offers a springboard to a lot nearby, but noise, price and traffic are all factors.

Summary: Largely dominated by the impressive University of Sydney complex offset by clusters of terrace-heavy residential in its west, Camperdown’s an inner city Sydney suburb with quite a lot packed into a physically small area. It’s got several major public services and parks – including one of the flagship public spaces in Sydney – and is fringed by diverse suburbs on all sides that each offer something different within walking distance. It’s pricey, encircled by busy roads and doesn’t offer much in terms of shopping or dining itself, but all of that and more is right on its doorstep.

Key stats

Camperdown’s a suburb in which you’ll likely only choose to live if you want to be where the action is. As basically the beginning of where Sydney’s Inner West begins, there’s a lot going on both within and alongside the suburb at most hours of the day every day of the week – whether that be markets, live performances, or some epic dining opportunities.

While most of these don’t actually take place within the arbitrary borders of Camperdown’s suburb lines themselves, the suburb’s east-to-west layout means that any one of these is almost always within one or two streets’ walk away.

There’s no getting around that the main allure / purpose for visiting Camperdown for most is always going to be the University of Sydney, but that’s not as bland as it might sound on the surface.

Sure, it’s student-heavy as a result as cashed-up domestic and international students flock to attend its well-regarded educational offerings, but the architecture of the campus stands alone as a highlight in and of itself.

This is the closest thing to a “Hogwarts” (of Harry Potter fame) that Australia’s ever going to get, with the neo-Gothic architecture of its Quadrangle being highly photogenic. The rest of its grounds largely follow suit, with its tree-lined and immaculately-kept back lanes, streets, sporting fields and other supplementary buildings and halls all being well worth a look.

Victoria Park is its other major drawcard. It’s a significant public green space that’s well-equipped with amenities ranging from its high number of benches for a seat, to its pool facilities and playground equipment, and it still manages to feel peaceful despite being situated right next to a main road.

Add in the expansive facilities of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and its varied small museums and churches, and there’s not much remaining space within Camperdown left over.

All that Remains

What’s left lies largely in its western portion which features a mix of long-lying terraces with the occasional cluster of high-density apartment blocks. These back streets of Camperdown are quiet and leafy enough and often dotted with pretty colourful flowers, although they’re typically fairly narrow, limited in quantity, and parking is hard to come by.

Outside of its handful of major public facilities, Camperdown is a little bare and there’s not too much happening internally.

It’s got a couple of nice little breweries and cafes, the Camperdown Hotel and Alfred Hotel is a solid duo of good pubs, and both Camperdown Park (for sports) and Camperdown Memorial Rest Park (for dogs, picnics, and a bit of history) are yet more great green spaces, but other than that it’s a little bit of an amenity and activity black hole. This is offset by its mix of interesting little cultural attractions, but only somewhat.

Camperdown’s several great park spaces are one of its strengths

It’s fortunate then that the likes of Newtown, Glebe and Ultimo are all so close. You’ve got literally some of the best dining and shopping in Sydney (e.g Broadway, Newtown’s King Street, etc.) within a stone’s throw away from Camperdown, and getting into the city proper for work is also highly convenient.

Traffic here is always going to be an issue given its central location and being bordered/dissected by Parramatta Road and the Princes Highway, which is amplified by the suburb lacking its own dedicated train station.

Sure, you can walk the ~20-25 minutes to Redfern or Macdonaldtown, but it’s not quite the same. Missenden Road which runs north-south through Camperdown is also fairly heavily trafficked and congested.

“Camperdown’s a suburb in which you’ll likely only choose to live if you want to be where the action is.”

Camperdown does see extremely frequent bus services however. While these are often prone to delays due to the high-usage nature of the main roads they operate on, they’re high enough in quantity to rarely have to wait more than a few minutes at a time.

It’s a pretty bustling and noisy suburb as a whole, mostly because of what surrounds it than what goes on inside itself. Police and ambulance sirens are a frequent backdrop, while its position under some major flight paths means aircraft noise is also a notable factor.

For a suburb that’s theoretically largely targeted at students, Camperdown is not exactly affordable. Its relative lack of high-density accommodation coupled with typical inner-Sydney prices means it’s going to be “share house or bust” for most uni attendees who aren’t fortunate enough to be significantly funded by their parents.

As a result, most students will want to choose to live in adjacent suburbs – think Enmore, Newtown, Darlington etc. – and either pay for a single small studio or opt for a room in a share house, then take the bus.

That’s because renting anything other than the absolute minimum is likely going to be financially unviable. Average apartment rental prices hover around $600 per week in Camperdown, while its handful of highly-desirable terraces seldom go on the market and almost always fetch eye-watering prices at auction when they do.

For families, Camperdown is OK if unspectacular. It’s hard to be able to afford a decent amount of living space, yet this is offset somewhat by its many excellent parks.

There’s an extremely good range of educational opportunities nearby as multiple schools are within easy reach, and it’s fairly safe – although prone to large quantities of people passing through and a fair bit of drunken behaviour from nearby nightlife spots.

Some of its back laneways are a little dodgy and dilapidated, with a fair bit of graffiti around that ranges in talent from admirable to worthless.

It’s also home to some public housing which diversifies its otherwise gentrified and international-student demographics somewhat.

The Verdict

Camperdown’s great for those who want to sacrifice some peace, quiet, and open spaces for all the other benefits that living in the thick of a world-class city provides.

There’s nearly endless opportunities for culture, food and drink, and shopping and sightseeing right nearby while its central location means all the rest of the inner city and the Inner West are never very far.

It’s highly education-focused and will become a daily part of students attending its uni’s lives regardless of if they live here or commute, and has just enough of a mix of residential sprinkled in to be viable for cashed-up small families who prefer a lot going on.

It’s back streets provide just enough of a respite from all the hectic activity, although its lack of heavy rail and aircraft noise are strikes against it that will vary in impact depending on which stage of life you’re at.

It’s also far from cheap, and larger families in particular will probably want to look elsewhere for more living space, while driving in and out on a daily basis can also be stressful. It’s thus probably not going to be a very desirable place to live long-term for those looking to “settle down”, although it can definitely provide a fun and active environment for a couple of years worth of renting and enjoying Sydney’s many fruits.

For visitors, it’s well worth spending time in to admire the university grounds and park spaces with their art and historical aspects, and is pretty easy to access from most parts of central Sydney.