Where to park at Walsh Bay

Hickson Road looks like it should be easy to park on, and on a Wednesday it is. On a Friday with a show at the Roslyn Packer Theatre it is not. Here are the car parks in order of how close they are to the pier.

Walsh Bay is a working wharf precinct, not a shopping centre, so there is no big car park attached to it. What there is instead is one car park underneath the piers and a handful more within a short walk, plus metered spots along Hickson Road that disappear the moment anything is on at the theatres.

We do not have a car park of our own. These are the options closest to Elements Bar and Grill on Pier 8/9, nearest first.

Wilson Parking, Pier 8/9

23 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay. Entry from Hickson Road.

The closest by a distance: it is under the same pier the restaurant sits on, so you park and walk up. On a wet night that matters more than the rate does.

Booking a space online with Wilson ahead of time is usually cheaper than the drive-up rate, and on a Friday or Saturday it is the difference between having a space and not. Rates and hours are set by Wilson and change, so check their site on the day rather than trusting a number in a blog post.

Wilson Parking, Bond One

20 Windmill Street, Millers Point.

A short walk uphill from the piers, through Millers Point. Worth trying when Pier 8/9 is full, which happens on performance nights, and it is usually easier to get into on a weekend.

Barangaroo Point car park

25B Hickson Road, Barangaroo.

South along Hickson Road, on the Barangaroo side. It is a longer walk than the first two, about ten minutes, but it is large, and large matters when everything closer has filled. The walk back along the water is a pleasant one after dinner.

Street parking on Hickson Road

There is metered parking along Hickson Road and the streets above it. It is limited, it is time restricted, and it goes early on performance nights at the Roslyn Packer Theatre and the Wharf.

If you do find a space, read the sign properly before you walk away. Some sections are permit holders only, and the restrictions change block by block. A ticket costs more than the car park did.

The case for not driving at all

Circular Quay station is a fifteen minute walk along the water, and it is a nicer fifteen minutes than most walks to a restaurant. The 311 bus runs down Hickson Road. If the night involves a bottle of red, the train is the cheaper answer once the parking and the taxi home are added up.

When parking gets hard at Walsh Bay

The precinct fills around the theatres rather than around dinner. If the Roslyn Packer Theatre or the Wharf has an evening performance, everything close is gone by about half past six, and it stays gone until the interval crowd leaves.

The fix is simple enough: book a space online before you leave, or come twenty minutes earlier and have a drink while the rest of Hickson Road circles.

Getting to us

Elements Bar and Grill is on Pier 8/9 at 23 Hickson Road, with step-free entry from Hickson Road, an accessible bathroom on the dining level and lift access to the pier.

If you are coming from the other direction, the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct dining guide covers what is around the piers, and the guide to dining in The Rocks covers the streets just east of here.

To sort the table first, book online with Dine with Elements or call 1300 ELEMENTS (1300 353 636).