Blue Mountains
Mountains · Nature · Adventurous · Good for couples
The Blue Mountains are about 90 minutes from Sydney, on Darug and Gundungurra Country, and they feel a world away. The World Heritage-listed wilderness here is made for walking: follow bush tracks to waterfalls, stop at lookouts over vast valleys, and watch the Three Sisters at Echo Point change colour as the light moves through the day. If you want more of a thrill, go abseiling or canyoning. If you'd rather slow down, retreat to a cosy cottage with a fire. In spring, the village of Leura comes alive with cold-climate gardens in bloom. You can drive, or take the train from Central straight into Katoomba and explore from there.
A weekend here might look like
- Morning: Scenic World - Four ways into the Jamison Valley, on one ticket. The Scenic Railway drops 52 degrees down the cliffside, the steepest passenger railway in the world, and it's over fast but properly thrilling. The Cableway carries you back up, and the yellow Skyway glides across the gorge with Katoomba Falls on one side and the Three Sisters on the other. At the bottom, a long elevated boardwalk winds through rainforest past the remains of the old coal-mining works. You can ride each as often as you like, so do the railway twice and sit somewhere different. Allow two to three hours, and book online ahead, because sessions sell out.
- Lunch: Bowery - Katoomba's old St Andrew's Church, built in 1914 on Waratah Street, now a bright, high-ceilinged dining room with timber-lined ceilings, church windows and an eclectic mix of vintage prints. From the team behind Avalon, it's a proper all-day local: brunch, lunch and dinner, modern Australian built on seasonal produce, with hearty mains and smaller plates to share. Local wines, craft beer and good cocktails, communal tables inside and umbrellas out in the leafy courtyard. Relaxed rather than formal, and the service is what people rave about.
- Afternoon: Three Sisters - The Blue Mountains' most famous sight, and rightly so. Three weathered sandstone peaks rise nearly a kilometre above sea level from the cliffs of the Jamison Valley, changing colour from ochre to red as the light shifts through the day. Echo Point Lookout puts you right on the escarpment edge, with Mount Solitary and the Ruined Castle in view as well, and there's a visitor centre and an easy, family-friendly path out towards the Sisters themselves. If you want more, the Giant Stairway drops almost a thousand steps to the valley floor. Free to visit, and floodlit in the evenings.
More to explore
- Blue Mountains Botanic Garden Mount Tomah - Cool-climate gardens a thousand metres up on Bells Line of Road, and free to enter. Twenty-eight hectares of curated garden sit inside a World Heritage area, with another 244 hectares of wilderness around them: rock gardens, conifers and alpine beds, sequoias, ponds and water features, proteas and waratahs, all well labelled and threaded with easy paths, benches and summer houses. The views over the mountains are as good as the plants. There's a café and a visitor centre terrace, barbecues and lawns for a picnic, and plenty of parking. Different in every season, so come back.
- BLAQ - The dining room at the Kyah hotel in Blackheath, and a genuine destination in its own right rather than a place for house guests. A dazzling bar anchors the space, with double-height glass walls looking out to a century-old cherry tree and an open fire going when it's cold. The menu leans Mediterranean and shared: jamon and manchego croquettes, confit duck cigars, whole eggplant with labneh, grilled octopus, WA scampi, Murray cod. Strong cocktails, with a big list of regional wines. Book ahead.
- Avalon Restaurant - Hidden behind an unassuming door on Katoomba Street, up through the 1930s Savoy Theatre foyer, Avalon occupies the old dress circle. Inside it's all quirky retro finds and art-deco charm, with windows looking out over Leura village and the Jamison Valley. The kitchen works out of the old projection room, turning out hearty global dishes, while the former refreshment lounge is now a cosy cocktail bar with retro tunes and live jazz on Fridays. Big portions, strong cocktails, and good care taken with gluten-free and vegan diners. Book a window table if you can.
- 2773 Cafe - The first proper stop on the way up, or the last on the way down, in Glenbrook at the foot of the mountains. A long, varied all-day menu covers breakfast through to wood-fired pizza, with gluten-free options and decent coffee. Sit inside, under cover, or fully outside in the sun, with heaters and blankets when it's cold. Kids are the real winners: a play area with a cubby and slide, plus a small animal yard out the back with a pig, chickens, ducks and rabbits. Dogs welcome too. Book on weekends, because it fills.
- Sparrows Leura - A small, busy local café in Leura that opens at 6am, which makes it the answer for an early start before the lookouts. Everything sweet is baked on site, from Portuguese tarts and pear friands to bread and butter pudding, and the savoury side is done properly too: house-made sausage rolls, a steak sandwich people rave about, bacon and egg rolls, and thoughtful breakfasts. Little Marionette coffee, ask about the specials, and grab the house chutney to take home. Dogs are welcome at the tables outside. Not a big room, so expect a buzz.