There are so many things to do in Sydney. If you’re only here for a week, exploring the city and surrounding beaches is a good idea. For those lucky others that have more than a week in this beautiful city, I suggest going on day trips from Sydney to see more of Australia. One day trip I highly recommend is a trip to the Blue Mountains. I went to the Blue Mountains on a day tour and had an excellent experience.
Trip Up to the Blue Mountains
The tour left early in the morning, around 7:00, to give us the entire day in the mountains. During the trip up, our guide told us the history of the Blue Mountains as well as where the name originated. The Blue Mountains are known as ‘blue’ because they give off blue haze due to the oil from the Eucalyptus trees in the area. When the sun hit the oil, it gives off a blue color.
Our first stop was at a smaller park where we hiked to a small waterfall. It was pretty much a warm up for the day! Most of the other day tours include a visit to Wentworth Falls along the way, but our guide wanted to spend the time showing us more of the Blue Mountains and his favorite viewing areas instead. I was disappointed at first, but by the end of the day I was happy to see some less visited scenic points of the Blue Mountains.
The second place we went to was Elysian Rock. It was our first view of the spectacular Blue Mountains. This location is close to the Leura train station. We went down a small path to the opening. There are two trails to the left and right to get to the lookout points. After we all took plenty of pictures we went and had lunch in the quaint mountain town of Leura. There are plenty of shops to peak into if you eat a quick lunch.
Scenic World
The next stop after lunch was the main event: Scenic World! This is the hub of the tourist section of the Blue Mountains, and it’s a perfect collection of multiple views and treks. One section that our group did not visit was Echo Point. This view is before the entrance to Scenic World and I would add it to your list since it gives you a fantastic view of the 3 Sisters – I will definitely go on my next trip.
From the entrance of Scenic World you take two different Skyways (cable cars) down to the bottom. The sight is breathtaking. The cable cars not only give a great view of the Blue Mountains, but of the 3 Sisters as well.
At the bottom of Scenic World you can take a short hike in the valley. One interesting thing I really enjoyed where the white trees (Blue Mountain Gum) that popped through all of the green every now and then during the trek. Although the best thing was the Scenic Railway trip backup to the top! This is the steepest railway in the world at a 52 degree incline. It was very intense, but a lot of fun.
One of my favorite vantage points at Scenic World was Mary’s Lookout. It’s located at the Top Station of Scenic World. Here you can grab food and drinks as well as souvenirs. We all rested and then moved on to the next part of the tour.
Other Lookouts
Our group visited three different spots after Scenic World. The first was Eagle Hawk Lookout, a stunning viewpoint on the other side of Scenic World. The sun had set too much to take a good picture, but otherwise it was a picturesque spot. The lookout is a mere trail off the road, so it isn’t hard to get to.
The next place we visited was Cahills and Boars Head Lookout. This mountain range was my favorite. The trails make you realize how high up in the mountains you are and the view is incredible.
Lincoln Rock
The third, and last, place viewing spot we went to was my absolute favorite: Lincoln Rock. It gives a spectacular view of the Blue Mountains and we took incredible pictures on the cliffs.
It was extremely windy (so much in fact that in one of my pictures my hair is standing straight up!) so we did have to be careful when we were near the edges of the rock.
We took a different route on the way back to Sydney. Instead of jumping back in the van, we took a boat cruise home. It was a nice and relaxing end to the busy day!
Overall the trip was amazing. The all day tour was, in my opinion, the best possible way to see multiple parts of the Blue Mountains in one day. The tour guide was knowledgeable and funny. He gave us such good information about the area and all of the trails we went on. The tour was a great way to see the Blue Mountains from different vantage points outside of only going to Scenic World.
