Sydney has 10 spots named in the world’s best rooftop bars

Posted on 23 August 2022

A new report ranks the best rooftop bars in the world – Sydney has 10 spots in the top 200.

The rooftop bar index by Mandoemedia.com ranks 200 of the world’s rooftop bars based on customer experience, price, and social media shares to reveal the best place to grab a drink with a view.

The following places in Sydney ranked in the top 200 rooftop bars in the world:

Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel
Coogee Pavilion
The Glenmore
The Golden Sheaf
SoCal
Royal Hotel Paddington
The Light Brigade
Bridgeview Hotel
Strawberry Hills Hotel
Corridor

Some key findings for Sydney:

Sydney has 10 bars ranked in the top 200 rooftop bars list
43% of the Australian bars that made the list are in Sydney
The Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel bar in Sydney was the highest placed Australian bar, ranking 10th overall
In terms of price, Strawberry Hills Hotel in Sydney is ranked best in Australia & 9th in the world
For customer experience, Corridor was the highest placed Sydney bar it ranked 5th for Australia and 94th globally
Coogee Pavillion ranked 2nd in the world for the number of social shares on Instagram (23927). Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel came in 10th globally for this metric

Sydney bars ranked very highly in this report. These are the ones that did the best:

Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel Bar

The Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel Bar sits on the edge of a beautiful beach, with views of the city and ferry terminal. So, there is always something interesting to look at and photograph.

The Bar´s open kitchen serves European and seafood-inspired dishes. The bar opens very early and closes late making it a popular place for breakfast, lunch, dinner and nights out.

Coogee Pavilion Bar

The four bars that make up the rooftop Coogee Pavilion are just a minute’s walk from Bondi beach. The top floor has a wrap-around balcony, with spectacular ocean views. If the rooftop bars are a little crowded there is the option to dine or eat on one of the other two floors.

The Glenmore

Since 1921, the iconic Glenmore has been a Sydney favourite. This restaurant bar offers stellar views of Sydney Harbour. It is a great place to get a panoramic view of the Sydney Opera House.

They offer a choice of dining experiences as well as cocktails and a huge selection of beers and wines.

Some key findings for Australia:

Australia took 23 spots in the list, 11.5% of the total.
5 bars in Australia ranked within the top 40 rooftop bars in the world
When it comes to customer experience, Eagles Nest, in Brisbane was the best-rated rooftop bar in Australia and ranked 20th worldwide.
Two Australian bars appeared in the top 10 for the number of shares on Insta – Coogee Pavilion and Watsons Bay Boutique Hotel, which are both in Sydney
Two Australian bars ranked in the top 10 for the cost of wine metric – Rooftop Bar, Melbourne and Strawberry Hills Hotel, Sydney and

The Top 3 Rooftop Bars In The World

1. AkaAza Bar in Bangkok (pictured above)

A chill rooftop pool bar with panoramic views over Bangkok’s skyline, located on the 26th floor of the Amara Hotel. AkaAza ranked number one after scoring highly across the board. When it came to price, a bottle of wine would set you back a reasonable A$40.80 while nearly 5,000 posts on Instagram let you know you’ve come to the right place for an incredible view of the city, and an impressive 86.6% of people left an ‘excellent’ review on Tripadvisor, making AkaAza the ultimate rooftop bar experience.

2. The Rooftop at Serras in Barcelona

The Rooftop at Serras is a casual restaurant terrace with a cocktail bar and spectacular views over the marina in Barceloneta. Scoring higher than Bangkok’s AkaAza Bar in terms of price and reviews, with a bottle of wine costing just A$33, and a ludicrously high percentage of ‘excellent’ reviews on Tripadvisor of 93.50%, it only falls below AkaAza for the number of posts tagged on Instagram with a respectable 2,061 posts on the social media platform.

3. Terraza at The Principal in Madrid

Set in the heart of Madrid in a garden-like environment with an incredible view of the city and buildings, Terraza makes the top 3 in the rooftop index for its surprising affordability, with a bottle of wine costing A$30, a high customer satisfaction rating of 81.92%, and just under 2,000 shares on Instagram.