There was a time when Martin Place was all about shoe shiners and corporate coffee stops. But with venues like The International, Centro 86, Morena and the boundary-pushing City Recital Hall breathing new life into the area, those days are behind us. The CBD heartland (and Sydney Metro superhub) has been quietly glowing up over the past few years, and today, it’s officially launching its rebrand. MP District is Martin Place 2.0: a cultural corridor connecting Sydneysiders to some of the best venues in the city, all with the help of a nifty online tool known as a “cultural concierge”. Intrigued? Us too.
First up, let's cover the area itself. MP District stretches from George Street to Macquarie Street, and incorporates some of the Time Out team’s favourite CBD venues (we’re guessing they might be your favourites too). MP District members include two of the city’s very best cultural institutions (Theatre Royal Sydney and the City Recital Hall), Time Out Sydney's cocktail bar of the year Centro 86 and the magnificent new multi-level venue The International. The precinct is also home to some of the city’s most historic buildings including the 151-year-old General Post Office (GPO) and the State Library of NSW.
To help Sydneysiders make the most of the close proximity of these Sydney icons, MP District has launched a first-of-its-kind ‘cultural concierge’ tool. The online tool allows you to follow curated trails through this buzzing pocket of the city, or create your own itinerary based on what you hope to see, do, drink and eat. Want to score a deal at happy hour, then catch a show, then get a late-night bite? Or keen to explore some art, eat lunch somewhere new and round out your day with some retail therapy? The cultural concierge tool will map out your evening for you, helping you to milk Sydney’s newest precinct for all it’s worth.
Located on the traditional lands of the Gadigal people, MP District is essentially a new chapter for this section of Sydney’s CBD – turning what was once a relatively soulless corporate corner of the city into a connected, vibrant destination in its own right.
Janson Hews, MP District President, explained “MP District is more than a place to pass through, it’s a precinct to linger in, connect and return to.”
You can learn more about MP District and try the cultural concierge service for yourself via the MP District website. See you in the CBD.
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