The Rocks is where colonial Sydney began, and this easy 90-minute walk peels back the layers beneath the boutiques and pubs. Your guide leads you down hidden laneways and convict-era stairways, sharing tales of the area rough early days, the plague that reshaped it and the fight to save it from demolition. It is the best way to make sense of the oldest corner of the city. Wear comfortable shoes for the cobbles, and stay on afterwards for a pint in one of Australia oldest licensed pubs.