The strip of Darlinghurst Road from William Street to MacLeay Street has long been Australia’s centre of hedonism with strip clubs, sex shops, blatant drug use and prostitution. There has been a lot of effort in recent years to clean it up, most notably by the lock-out laws which restrict entry to licensed venues to before 1:30 AM and last drinks at 3 AM.

Love them or hate them, the laws are changing the suburb. The sex shops and strip clubs are still there, but cafes and restaurants and also moving in, so it doesn’t feel quite as lawless as it once did. The area has always contained a lot of tourist accommodation and the many backpacker hostels in the area give it more of a touristy vibe.

History

The nearby naval base in Woolloomooloo meant hundreds of servicemen flocked to the area on the weekends in search of entertainment, which spurred the development of the red-light district. The area soon developed a bohemian vibe as artists were drawn to the area thanks to its proximity to the city yet undesirable status (a tale as old as time). Illegal casinos, brothels, police corruption and Australia’s first safe injecting room have all been centred in the Cross. 

The social problems have prompted efforts to clean it up in recent years. The lock-out laws ban entry to licenced venues after 1:30AM and call last drinks at 3AM. These laws have led to a number of nightclubs closing down, paving the way for redevelopment (some claim this was the original intention of the laws). The lockout laws were originally enforced for most of inner-city Sydney, but in 2019 were dropped for all areas except King’s Cross. Love it or hate it, there is a gradual gentrification of King’s Cross, eroding the culture that was once there.