Australia · State of New South Wales · Sydney
Potts Point, Sydney — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Potts Point is a small, densely populated suburb on a ridge in inner-city Sydney, about 2 kilometres east of the central business district. It is known for its streets of art-deco and Victorian apartment buildings and for the cafes, wine bars and restaurants along Macleay Street. The El Alamein Fountain marks its edge with Kings Cross. Potts Point sits within the City of Sydney.
About Potts Point
Where to stay in Potts Point
Where you base yourself shapes the visit — here's the character of each area.
Staying in Potts Point puts you among converted art-deco apartments and small hotels a short walk from the nightlife of Kings Cross. Beds book up fast. Dining along Macleay Street, wine bars, cafes and restaurants, is the main draw, and the harbour and Sydney CBD are both close.
The suburb suits visitors who want an inner-city base rather than a hotel strip, with rooms ranging from boutique guesthouses to serviced apartments. For a wider choice of beds, look to the Sydney CBD two kilometres west.
About Potts Point
What are the main landmarks in Potts Point?
Potts Point's best-known landmark is the El Alamein Fountain, a dandelion-shaped fountain in the Fitzroy Gardens at the head of Macleay Street. The streets themselves are the real sight. Rows of 1920s and 1930s art-deco apartment blocks line Macleay Street and Victoria Street.
At the base of the western escarpment, the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf reaches into the bay, and the fountain marks the start of Kings Cross.
What is the history of Potts Point?
Potts Point takes its name from Joseph Hyde Potts, an early colonial official who held land on the ridge. Grand villas came first. Through the nineteenth century it was one of Sydney's most exclusive addresses, its houses looking out over the harbour.
From the 1910s the large estates were subdivided, and blocks of flats, many in the art-deco style, replaced the mansions along Macleay Street and Victoria Street. That building boom gave the suburb the dense apartment character it still carries, and its later fortunes became tied to neighbouring Kings Cross.
Where is Potts Point?
The suburb occupies a narrow ridge between Woolloomooloo Bay to the west and Elizabeth Bay to the east. Macleay Street and Victoria Street run its length, ending at the El Alamein Fountain where Potts Point meets Kings Cross. Below the western escarpment lies the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf. Darlinghurst adjoins it to the south.
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Updated July 2026