Yeah, this station was nowhere near as charming as some of the other stations located in the Blue…read moreMountains. Then again I suspect that this had something to do with us getting closer to the city, and also being that this area was probably newer, and more built up, than some of the other places that I had visited. Look, it had decent facilities, and trains are sort of regular, but it certainly isn't a place that I'd make an effort to go and visit.

Lawson is a small town of 2,400 people 88 km west of Sydney in the Upper Blue Mountains. The…read morenamesake, William Lawson was a member of the expedition of Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Charles Wentworth who pioneered a route across the Great Dividing Range. One of the first settlements in the mountains, the area was first known as 24 Mile Hollow and then as Christmas Swamp (how nice!). When the local Blue Mountain Inn was opened in 1848, the locals renamed their township as Blue Mountain, probably while drunk at the time. In 1867 when the train line was extended to the area, the new train station was named Blue Mountain. However, having a town called Blue Mountain on the Blue Mountains became confusing, and the township's name was later changed to Lawson in honour of the explorer William Lawson. It's nice up here, though cold in winter. The bushwalk in Lawson has a trailhead off Honour Ave, a short walk from Lawson station. The walk can be done in 2 hours and includes four waterfalls: Adelina Falls, Cataract Falls, Federal Falls and Junction Falls.

We visited at the end of October, and, unfortunately, on a chilly, rainy, foggy day. Scenic World…read morewas a good starting location to see the Blue Mountains. We took the cable to the bottom of the canyon, walked the longer path of the boardwalk, then got on the Federal Pass to the Giant Staircase. The trail is well maintained. As it rained our whole time there, the trail had only a few puddles despite all the water. It's not very difficult until the staircase. We went up the staircase, and given the conditions, I'm very glad we were going that direction. The steps and railings can get slippery in the rain and some of the rock formed steps are not as level as I'd like them, so going up felt safer. We walked along the Prince Henry Cliff Walk to get to the Scenic World SkyTram to get back to the main building. Unfortunately, anything that was over 30 yards in front of us was a sea of fog. We still enjoyed the experience. For travel, we took the train from Sydney, walked to Scenic World from the train station and took the bus back to the train station. Very easy to figure out.

I came here as part of a Blue Mountains tour package. The package included a stop at the…read moreFeatherdale Wildlife Park. We did stop to look at the "Three Sisters Mountain " range before coming here. I found Scenic World to be a huge tourist trap. It's wall to wall people and the rides require long waits for mediocre rides. The rides are short and boring. Since I was so bored I went to the little restaurant outside and got a small latte and bag of chips. It was $16 AUD which seemed like another sign of a tourist trap. I would have rather spent more time at the zoo or taking a short hike. Definitely skip this if your time in Sydney is limited.

Leura station opened in 1890. From the street you take the stairs down to the island platform. A…read moremountain town feel at this small station. There's something a little stark about the main street of Katoomba. But you don't get that feeling on Leura's main street of Leura Mall. We would sometimes get off the mountain train here instead of Katoomba and walk down to Echo Point and beyond. A triffle further of a walk, but more pleasant in leaps and bounds. A whole different experience really. There's been some battles to keep this town quaint, but the people with the white hats seem to be winning. Eternal vigilance in a quiet town to keep it quiet. The historic streetscape has been largely preserved, and the median is planted with cherry trees. Leura is also known as 'the Garden Village' and every October springs the Leura Gardens Festival. There's also the Leura Village Fair at that time. Photography is a big thing around here. A friend used to work at the photography store here.

Opened on February 24, 1964, this is just a cute little station next after Glenbrook going west up…read morethe mountain. Stairs only. It's on a sharp curve in the train line to help get up the steep Lapstone Hill. A platform on each side of the two tracks. In off-peak there is one train per hour each way on the Blue Mountains line. "Come on, come on, we're gonna miss the train." More often in peak travelling times. If you miss your train, you can kill some time by taking the short walk from Lapstone train station going east down to the Lapstone Lookout to see the Nepean River. I think it is 1.5 km out and back. You have an hour till the train, yah? Lapstone is 64 km west of Sydney. Population: 1,000. It's name Lapstone is derived from the smooth water-worn stones in the area. Glenbrook creek is here and water comes down the steep hill carrying river pebbles. These stones look like those used by cobblers in the olden days who would hold the stones between their legs to work the leather when making shoes. A stone in the lap is a lap stone, yah?

I have to admit that this station is awesome, though for the size of the station compared to the…read moresize of the town, it does feel somewhat out of proportion. However, as a railway station, it is actually pretty awesome, despite the fact that it really isn't the most accessible one. Oh, apparently there used to even be a bar here, if the signs are anything to go by, but I suspect that it has long since been closed and is now basically a heritage-listed regional station. However, it is still really worth to trip up here just to check it out.

Absolutely a picturesque view! Words often don't due nature as beautiful of this any justice. If…read moreyou love nature and you find yourself nearnearby, then definitely visit and be awed by nature. While you're here, see if you can spot the waterfall.

There is just something amazing about the views that you get from the Blue Mountains. I suspect…read morethat it has a lot to do with you basically starting at the top of the mountain and going for your hikes from there, which is basically the opposite of most other mountainous regions that I know, where you basically start at the bottom had literally have to make your way up to the top. What is even better about this place is that there is a bus that takes you from the railway station to the entrance to the park, so you don't actually have to walk all that far. However, the catch is that the bus doesn't come all that often. I'll have to come back, even if it is just to walk into the valley, and out again.

Terrible experience. Foggy all day long, and we couldn't see a thing. The route drivers said to…read morestay on the bus route and be patient because the fog would clear. It never did. We wasted an entire day of our vacation, and we didn't see any of the Blue Mountains. We asked the person behind the desk if we would get a refund or a discount on a future trip, and she said she just worked there. She didn't know about that. She could have cared less. We contacted customer service, and they did nothing. There are lots of other companies in the Blue Mountains. Use one of them instead.

I intended to go to Blue Mountains and hike around myself, but am glad I decided to do this tour!…read moreThe cheapest option was bus only which cost $45. Other options including the sky rail were $90+. I honestly think this tour was the best way to see Blue Mountains as the park is massive. There's no way you can do it walking around on your own. I truly believe that tour guides can make or break your trip. We had the opportunity to ride with Jimmy most of our day. He's truly the most genuine and sweetest tour guides I've ever met. Not to mention he's super knowledgeable and is funny without being cheesy. He told us the ins and outs of each stop giving us advice and recommendations. You'll be given a map with each stop clearly labeled with photos and descriptions. Don't lose this as it also has the timetable for bus pick ups. Generally there will be a bus pick-up every half hour. Also they're always on time if not a bit early! If they're early they'll wait for the appropriate time to continue. Tip: If you do 15-16 and do the hike to Honeymoon Bridge and Three Sisters DO NOT walk all the way down the Grand Stairs (900 steps). We walked all the way down and ended up having to walk all the way back up... I suppose we got our exercise in for the day. Once you see the platform you walk back to Echo Point.

These caves are absolutely beautiful, and the hike through them is pretty easy (just a little tight…read moreat times), while offering an adventure-filled day just a short drive from Sydney. Our bus wound it's way around the mountains to the caves, with many stunning vistas along the way. We met up at the large mouth to the cave opening. We saw several colorful birds around the outside of the cave and some wallabies too! Our guide gave us some information about the history of the caves and then our hike into the caves began. If you're not an experienced hiker, no need to worry. The tour through the cave is along a boardwalk with a hand rail for most of the areas where that there is a steep incline or rocky terrain. We entered in and wound our way through several passages and stops within the Lucas Cave - including the underground river, the cathedral chamber/cove where choirs come to sing, and a stop where we all turned off our phones or flashlights and got to experience pure darkness that drove many cave explorers mad back in the day! Our guide also showed us many rock formations that cave hikers used to find their way within the cave's many routes. In the choir cove, the guide turned out all the guide lights and showed us that they have a light show installed within the cave as well, which was very neat to see. We hiked our way out and around the beautiful Blue Lake, before heading back to Sydney. A quick day-long trip to see mountains, caves, and a little bit of wildlife!

#68 for 2021 The…read moreAboriginals were the first visitors to the Jenolan Caves using the healing pools found deep inside long before the Europeans discovered it in the 1840s. Dated to be about 340 million years old the Jenolan Caves are the most ancient open caves in the world spanning more than 25 miles multileveled with over 300 entrance points following the subterranean section of the Jenolan River. I am so interested in caves because they are like a secret world full of mystery, wonder and excitement. With 16 caves to explore, Jenolan offers all kinds of adventures for every different level of cave exploring for all ages young and old. The most popular cave is the Lucas cave. Since we were here for a few hours and could only choose 1 that was the unanimous vote by our group. The tour takes about 1.5 hours. Our tour group was large and the guide did a good job keeping everyone together to prevent straggling and further damage. The high lights for me is the underwater river, stalactites and stalagmites with their interesting names (I can't remember any of them now) and the brilliant colors. I was able to take some fantastic pictures and enjoyed it all. Parts of the hike can be difficult for those not in the best of health. However, I can say many of us were kind to wait for those back in the pack giving kind words of encouragement. Our guide was very informative providing interesting tid bits of information and answering all questions asked. She explained the geology of the formation and what the cave means to different groups of people. She also said the acoustics are so good, better than any where else in the world man made or natural. Some people have had events in the main chamber for celebration including weddings. For the heavy peek season it may be better to make reservations. We were able to get up there and pick a time slot when to go. You choose the cave, if it is open, and the time. Meet your guide at a particular location close to the entrance of the cave and begin your tour. This particular tour was about $35.00 Aussie. You may have to wait for a little while before your tour begins. This was a good time for us to get a bite to eat because the drive up is over an hour. Driving through many country roads was quite enjoyable actually. So green and cool with lots to see, stop and do. But I digress. If you didn't bring any food you have a few choices. Chisolm's Restaurant was closed for us. This was designed in 1871 for the wealthy land owners. If you want to dine like you in the bling here's your chance to bling out. If you just want a drink you can hang at Jeremiah's Bar & Lounge. This was closed to us too. Maybe it was too early in the day. Jeremiah is Jeremiah Wilson the first official Jenolan Cave guide considered a good looking, red haired Irish not just a cave explorer but a notorious ladies' man. I wonder if being a cave man has an impact on that kind of life style? What was open? Caves Cafe is where we were able to get small plates at a moderate prices. As a suggestion you might be better off bringing your own brown paper bag lunch. Save you money for some better eats in the towns close by. I was amazed to see the number of creatures about. A beggar red parrot. Sorry I had no food. A large swimming lizard trying to decide how threatening I would be. And a wombat crossing the road without any care in the world who everyone was or why they were taking pictures. I think he just wanted to get to the other side. He did allow me to take many pictures. So photogenic too. There are a few short hiking trails you could explore. Some have aggressive ascents. Check with park staff for weather conditions and health risks before beginning any hike. Part of our group tried to do this but turn back after winds got fierce. You could do what I did. Go up high enough to get a few down perspective shots of the surrounding are. Very picturesque actually. Visiting the Jenolan Caves in the Blue Mountains is an absolute treasure. I would love to go back to explore other caves. Maybe in the pitch dark. Nah. Maybe not.