Gladesville Suburb Review

Highly leafy yet still well-equipped suburb on the north shore strikes a balance between pretty, peaceful streetscapes and a bit more bustle when you desire it.

Summary: Well-equipped, safe and convenient – and with the added benefit of water views – Gladesville is a suburb that sits just outside “inner” Sydney yet is still close enough to provide all the benefits of easy city access when required. Home to an extensive array of amenities and a reasonably diverse housing profile that skews upper-end, Gladesville is also highly leafy with countless parks, reserves and little hidden walks amongst peaceful streets which bely its otherwise central physical location.

This is a suburb that can be both quiet when you need it, yet has enough action for those seeking it, to be quite versatile overall with only a couple of factors – such as high property prices, lack of rail connectivity and some slight aircraft noise – that work together to hold it back. Outside of these, Gladesville checks a ton of boxes, and rates as a highly desirable overall as a place to live.

Key stats

As far as Lower North Shore suburbs go, it’s hard to find one that’s more diverse and balanced than Gladesville.

High-end, lower-end, busy and quiet, impeccable greenery and small pockets of warehousing and semi-concrete-jungle; all of these can be found within Gladesville’s borders, allowing for a pretty solid selection of potential lifestyles and amenities all within the one suburb.

This gives it a flexibility to both cater to those without eye-watering budgets, while those who prefer (and have the money for) luxurious living also have numerous options for upper-tier housing – and both gain the advantage of enjoying Gladesville’s conveniently central location that puts it within a pretty equal striking distance of most of the best parts of Sydney.

Gladesville’s physical location on the central part of the Lower North Shore means that none of the major drawcards of the city and its surrounds are too far out of reach, whether that be the shopping and family oriented amenities of the Ryde area, the work and education hubs around Macquarie Park, the dining & culture of the Inner West, and of course the CBD itself.

Its most obvious initial flaw for some will be that it lacks a train station and heavy rail connectivity, and while this is a valid knock, the suburb makes up for it in other ways.

Being carved in two by Victoria Road means that one of the city’s key arterial roads is on the immediate doorstep of Gladesville’s residents, with a potential drive of around 15 minutes into the city during non-peak.

Of course, ‘non-peak’ is something of a mythical, ideal fantasy world we all wish we could deal with regularly.

Realistically, the heavy traffic on the road and chokepoints of its bridges on the way into the CBD when bus lanes drop off makes it closer to 30-40 minutes – which still isn’t bad by Sydney standards. Gladesville also sees plentiful bus services, with a range of lines running into Town Hall, and is augmented by ferry services that run from nearby Huntleys Point (technically not “in” Gladesville) through to Circular Quay in just over 30 minutes as well.

Victoria Road is probably the ‘lowlight’ of Gladesville in general, as it is for many of the suburbs along this corridor. It’s busy and traffic-heavy, and is the only real portion of the suburb that could be considered slightly ‘gritty’, with its auto and smash repair and handful of abandoned storefronts.

That’s because elsewhere, Gladesville ranks as one of the greenest areas you’re likely to come across this close to the city, and its most obvious immediate standout feature.

Pound for pound, Gladesville is one of the leafiest and most park-rich suburbs for a still-developed slice of suburbia within striking distance of the CBD.

This is a spot that certainly lives up to its name, with the sheer quantity of parks, reserves, ovals, sporting fields, hidden walking tracks, and everything in between truly extensive and entirely different from its commonly-driven-through section along the highway.

Combined with the peaceful and manicured streetscape of many of its higher-end back streets, and it brings to mind the likes of Wollstonecraft or Putney – just with a ton more actual stuff to see and do nearby.

In particular, its slices of waterfront parkland that slope down towards the Parramatta River are wonderful and offer plenty of room for a walk, picnic, or to kick the ball around.

This starts at its historic sandstone Gladesville Hospital grounds and leads down to the Parramatta River Regional Park which boasts a large sporting grounds facing the boat-dotted waters, and plenty of space for kids and pets to run around.

It continues with trails that wind their way further around to spots like Banjo Paterson Park and its associated charming and historic cottage-style Banjo Paterson Restaurant, with playground equipment and a popular spot for family barbecues.

Add in Bill Mitchell Park…

… Bremner Park, Peel Park and Monash Park on the other side of the highway for more sporting ground spaces, plus the Field of Mars reserve and a number of other mixed little corner reserves and parks, and there’s a wide array of green spaces to choose from regardless of which part of Gladesville you live in.

Its only real “downside” nature-wise is a lack of access to beaches; the closest option is probably Balmoral, which is a fair hike (and pretty arduous drive) away to reach.

This green aspect carries over to Gladesville’s streetscape in general, particularly its lower-density residential streets further back from the highway on either side.

Tree cover in these parts of Gladesville is also great, and there are countless manicured streets with artisan-level hedge upkeep, pretty landscaped gardens, and streets without a spot of litter tainting their surfaces.

The most extreme examples of this premium aspect can be seen as you edge closer to the water, where the housing profile immediately becomes luxurious, culminating in streets with enormous historic sandstone homes, or multi-level modern glass builds leading down to yacht clubs and other signs of affluence.

When things get to the point of where schools have their own boat sheds, you know you’re in a spot in which the money truly flows.

It’s easy to forget how close this is to more developed areas just a couple of streets away, making it easy to get a dose of peace and quiet while still having plentiful amenities at your fingertips.

And amenities, Gladesville has in spades. Unlike many Sydney suburbs with upper-tier elements, Gladesville is neither sterile nor limited to only high-end dining or purely mansion-filled streetscapes – there’s a fair bit to see and do here, as well.

Amenity-wise, Gladesville’s tend to come in two main forms – its multiple roadside, strip-style retail areas, and its more concentrated clusters of shops within actual centres.

The majority of these are located in two main “chunks” of dining and retail along Victoria Road; the first, older area to the south filled with dining and mixed services, and the newer amenities (including an ALDI supermarket) which have sprouted up around the ground floor areas of its more modern apartment blocks a little further up the road.

While Gladesville isn’t a massively-dense spot for cafes or al fresco dining, it still does quite well in this regard, with a decent little array of cuisines and cafes – including fast food – along the highway that adds to its already good level of versatility.

More nice little local places to eat can also be found other non-main streets, while for those living on the west side its handy little Foodworks on the border with Tennyson Point also provides an extra spot to grab essentials in a pinch.

Its ‘centrepiece’ is the Gladesville Shopping Village, which is a little, oldschool-style Sydney shopping village that feels a bit dated but has yet more of your staple needs covered, including a Coles and other mixed, smaller-scale stores and retail inside.

Elsewhere, its hub of shops along Pittwater Road, which include supermarkets, cafes and a couple of restaurants is not huge but also a more classy and enjoyable slice of activity, with an upbeat and communal atmosphere.

All of these work in harmony to ensure no spot to live in Gladesville is too far from key amenities.

Gladesville’s also home to a token enormous Bunnings for your typical mass-produced home improvement needs, gyms and medical clinics, a large pet store, and a range of other mixed services that run the gamut of everything you’d need outside of a large-scale department store.

Add all of these together – and with Top Ryde just a bit further up the road – and Gladesville performs well in terms of shopping and dining, and general convenience.

This extends over to the entertainment/drink side of the equation as well.

The suburb boasts a trio of pubs and pub-like venues to cater to various different atmospheres and demographics, which is very solid for a suburb of its size.

The Bayview Gladesville is the go-to large scale heritage pub that’s both charming and historic from the outside and offers quality meals and plenty of screens to watch sports or live music within, as well as outdoor seating; the Gladesville RSL is your traditional no-fuss bistro and gaming room type local; and Sporties lives up to its name with facilities for bowls, darts, and reasonably priced food and drinks.

For workers, Gladesville also is home to a couple of smaller pockets of industrial and warehousing estates mainly clustered around areas like College Street and its north-western border with Ryde.

They’re home to a fairly diverse array of businesses such as auto repair, plumbing, logistics and various other sectors and provide opportunities for jobs within Gladesville itself – handy for those who choose to live and work in the same suburb, and eliminate the commute altogether.

Families will likely also find plenty to like about Gladesville, for a few main reasons. The first is that its parks – in addition to the raw greenery they offer – are almost all equipped with either average to good levels of playground equipment for kids to burn off energy on.

Banjo Paterson Park is the biggest example of this, however almost every ‘section’ of housing in Gladesville has a park with at least a small degree of swings and slides within walking distance.

Its educational offerings are another plus, as Gladesville is home to a pretty extensive array of schooling and childcare options for a suburb of its size.

Between its multiple public and denominational schools – both public and private, and covering all levels of education – along with an extended array of extra choice in neighbouring Ryde, Putney, Hunters Hill or down at Riverside, this a pretty desirable area for those raising children.

Safety also plays a role in this. Gladesville places in the bottom third of crime rates across Sydney clocking in at 0.07% per capita, putting it alongside other ‘prestige’ suburbs such as Balgowlah, Hunters Hill, Woollahra and a handful of others.

The streets themselves mostly ‘feel’ safe and peaceful as well, with its parks mostly well-lit and its handful of slightly grittier areas limited to immediately around Victoria Road.

While Gladesville’s back streets are largely peaceful at ground level, it can be a little different when considering things happening overhead. That’s because Gladesville cops a fair bit of aircraft noise, making for one of its few Achilles Heels.

The flight path that hovers over Gladesville is fairly heavily trafficked, and planes are quite frequent; fortunately they don’t flight as low here as over many suburbs in the Inner West and so aren’t as loud, however it’s still a factor to consider if you’re sensitive to noise and don’t have access to double-glazing.

In terms of terrain, Gladesville can be fairly hilly in spots given that topographically it slopes down towards the water in general.

This means about half of the suburb can put a bit of a burn in the calves, however it’s generally well-equipped with neat and tidy footpaths and pleasant to walk in otherwise without necessarily having to rely on a car to get everywhere.

Housing-wise, Gladesville’s general atmosphere of versatility still holds true. It boasts a pretty diverse housing profile that provides a good array of choice at both the high and lower ends of the market.

As with many higher-end suburbs in Sydney, there’s a notable gap between freestanding houses and higher-density offerings in terms of price here, and this is particularly obvious in Gladesville given that most of its detached houses are either near the water or on large blocks in leafy and pretty streets.

“Gladesville’s physical location on the central part of the Lower North Shore means that none of the major drawcards of the city and its surrounds are too far out of reach.”

Multi-level waterfront and water-adjacent properties are grand and blow out their prices to several million dollars, however Gladesville also boasts a pretty decent selection of mid-tier housing with some newer complexes of townhouses and an increasing number of subdivided modern duplexes as well.

These also tend towards the higher end of the market and are appropriately pricey in line with the rest of its non-apartment homes – the median house price in Gladesville currently sits around the $1.9 million mark, and this is mostly for the smaller and more minimal 3-bedroom offerings.

There’s also some decent apartment diversity to choose from, including a fairly large collection of older apartments along areas like Ashburn Place, as well as the modern apartment blocks along the northern end of Victoria Road.

These rent for quite reasonable prices by Sydney standards and represent pretty good value considering Gladesville’s location, and around the $450 per week mark can get you a decent entry-level two bedder that makes for a solid springboard for commuting to key work hubs.

The Verdict

Gladesville’s balanced level of amenities, greenery and location make it an extremely solid “all-round” suburb of Sydney that trends towards the upmarket, but still provides enough pockets of affordability to take advantage of its positives without having to blow the bank account.

Its waterfront green areas are a standout, and its premium-feeling back streets are well-kept and create an atmosphere that’s pleasant, comfortable and safe to be in overall. It offers a greater quantity of amenities than you might think, with some form of essential store or retail within walking distance of every part of the suburb, while its physical position relative to most of the key areas of the city make it a spot that makes it viable for people who work in pretty much any of the major hubs of central Sydney.

Its detached housing is undeniably pretty on the whole however definitely skews towards the expensive end; if you can afford it, there’s a lot to like in terms of water views or leafy streets, good schools and playground areas for the kids, and nearly endless parks and green spaces that make for a lush and leafy place to call home.

Its decent supply of apartments make for a good choice for renters or first-time movers to Sydney who aren’t quite sure yet where to base themselves in the long term; plonking yourself here for a year or two gives you flexibility to access most of Sydney relatively easily, for a decently affordable rental price given the suburb’s quality.

The Victoria Road traffic morass is the standard bottleneck that all suburbs running along it have to deal with, but fortunately Gladesville’s central location means that you hopefully at least won’t have to deal with it for too long of a morning or evening.

Other than this, the housing price factor, its heavy rail disconnect (maybe a dealbreaker for some) and its slight issues with aircraft noise, Gladesville has no other real negatives, while its surprisingly extensive array of amenities makes for a place that’s very convenient and self-sufficient overall as well – with lovely green streetscapes as an added bonus.