How to have a Back to the Future-inspired weekend in Sydney

If you’ve scored a ticket to Back to the Future: The Musical or are seeking the old-school vibes of the cult-classic films, Sydney can help you turn back time. Here’s how to have a retro weekend in Sydney.

Destination NSW

Nov 2025 - 2 min read

Check in to a heritage-listed hotel

If you’re a fan of the original films, heading to Back to the Future: The Musical, or both, Sydney offers lots of opportunities to get a bit retro. If you need a place to stay, 25hours Hotel The Olympia in Paddington celebrates the building’s heritage as a grand theatre and has a collection of VHS tapes you can borrow and watch in your room.

Medium Dreamers king room at 25hours Hotel The Olympia, Paddington - Credit: 25h Olympia

25hours Hotel The Olympia, Paddington - Credit: 25hours Hotel The Olympia

Shop for vintage threads

Once you’re settled in, you could rent a bike from the front desk and cruise Sydney’s streets channelling your inner Marty McFly on his trusty BMX. Make your way to Surry Hills to hit the vintage shops and find some era-blending pieces for your wardrobe. Zoo Emporium is a go-to for retro clothes, bags, jewellery and more accessories.

Friends shopping in Surry Hills - outside Zoo Emporium

Zoo Vintage Emporium, Surry Hills

Refuel and play pool

If you’ve worked up an appetite, slide into Surly’s for some American-style bites and vibes with delicious barbecue platters, burgers and wings. You can also have a hit of pool or get competitive on the free-to-play shuffleboard table, pop-a-shot basketball hoops or corn hole game.

Surly's American Tavern, Surry Hills - Credit: Yeah Rad

Take your seat

Following a feast like this, you might want to take it slow, cycling back to the hotel and chilling out before getting ready for the main event. Back to the Future: The Musical at Sydney Lyric Theatre offers a fresh twist on the much-loved film franchise. After the show, you’re in prime position for a harbourside stroll before retiring for the night at the hotel.

Sydney Lyric Theatre - Credit: Damien Ford, Sydney Lyric Theatre

Start the day at a diner

For breakfast the next morning, head to Happyfield in Haberfield for the brightest start to your day. This design-savvy spin on an American diner is full to the brim with sunny charm and features a menu rich with nostalgia-sparking dishes. Think: the fluffiest pancakes stacked high, brekkie burgers, milkshakes and more.

Happyfield, Haberfield - Credit: Happyfield

Find your vinyl connection

From there, you can venture to Newtown for more vintage shopping. Music-lovers will want to earmark Repressed Records for new and second-hand vinyl and, if you’re still seeking your ultimate retro fashion piece, you’ll find a lot to tempt you here. Walk down King Street to Enmore and check out Route 66, which is never short of cowboy-style pieces reminiscent of Marty and Doc’s time in the wild west.

King Street ,Newtown - Credit: King Street

Play the day away

For a break from shopping, duck into Astro’s Arcade Bar to tuck into a pizza and play old-school pinball machines, retro games and racing simulations. Or head out to Skyline Drive-In Blacktown to experience the ultimate nostalgia dose from Sydney’s last drive-in cinema. Showing a mix of retro classics and Hollywood blockbusters, the cinema also has a ’50s-style diner offering burgers, hotdogs and, of course, popcorn. It’s an ideal way to cap off your time-turning Sydney weekend.