The Sydney Opera House is one of the most recognisable buildings in the world, and it earns that status. Perched on Bennelong Point with harbour on three sides, the sequence of white shell-like roof forms — actually made of more than a million Swedish ceramic tiles — catches light differently throughout the day, shifting from white to cream to gold as the sun moves. The building was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, just 34 years after it opened.
Inside there are five performance venues, ranging from the 2,679-seat Concert Hall to the intimate Drama Theatre and Playhouse. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra performs in the Concert Hall regularly, and touring productions fill the Opera Theatre year-round. Guided tours run daily from the foyer and are worth doing even for those not attending a performance — the interior is full of architectural surprises that the exterior gives no hint of. The outdoor forecourt is free and open at all times, and watching the ferries arrive against the backdrop of the shells and the harbour bridge is one of those Sydney experiences that is genuinely hard to tire of.