Think of Surry Hills as the softer-focus sequel to Oxford Street: still very much part of the queer heartland, just with more sunlight, better coffee and dogs in bandannas. Crown and Bourke Streets are your main catwalks – lined with cafes, wine bars and design stores where couples wander hand-in-hand between brunch and pre-drinks.

The suburb’s social nucleus is The Beresford, a sprawling pub on Bourke Street with a leafy courtyard and upstairs dance floor that becomes a weekly ritual on Beresford Sundays – expect handsome crowds, pop anthems and a sea of tank tops spilling into the garden as the afternoon blurs into night. Around it, an ecosystem of small, queer-friendly bars and eateries makes Surry Hills an easy base: you’re a short walk from Oxford Street’s clubs, but it’s just as tempting to linger over Negronis and share plates on Crown Street instead.

By day, Surry Hills shows off its creative side – galleries, studios and fashion boutiques tucked into old warehouses and terraces. On the first Saturday of the month, Surry Hills Markets in Shannon Reserve turn the neighbourhood into an open-air treasure hunt of vintage, zines and local makers. It’s the kind of area where rainbow families, leather jackets and yoga gear all share the same park bench, and where queerness feels less like a scene and more like the default setting.