Having stayed in tiny Singapore for most of our lives, we’ve always envied those who stay in countries with vast amounts of land and limitless access to nature. To date, we’ve been on two big road trips together – in Tasmania and Hokkaido respectively – and thoroughly enjoyed each experience.
This time, we had the opportunity to explore the outskirts of the otherwise very metropolitan city of Sydney, and our 4 Day Self-Drive Road Trip Experience Around Sydney and New South Wales begins here.
For this trip, we managed to snag some decently-priced air tickets from budget carrier Scoot for the entire family.
Pro tip: wait for Scoot’s Take Off Tuesday promotions – they’re well worth it.
As we were arriving right smack in the middle of April – when summer gives way to autumn – we were hoping to enjoy the best of both worlds: the cool breeze coupled with warm sunrays. Unfortunately, summer decided to overstay its welcome, especially in the city.
Thankfully, the 4 days we spent on the road were far cooler. A big reason for that was, of course, that we spent a good part of it in the mountains.
By the time we started on the road trip, we had spent 5 days exploring the city already, and couldn’t wait to head out. During this time, we stayed with a family friend of Jan’s, who runs a successful, beautiful Airbnb house in Surry Hills (highly recommended, by the way).
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Onto the road, then. Our first destination: the world-famous Blue Mountains, just 1.5 hours away.
But first, a quick stop at Featherdale Wildlife Park, situated conveniently along the way.
Featherdale Wildlife Park
What got us excited about this park is the fact that it has some 1,700 animals – native to Australia – many of which were not kept in cages.
Wallabies, for instance, were wandering around, free for petting anytime, anywhere. It did feel like a lovely sanctuary for the animals, who were happy to be photographed by the throngs of tourists milling around.
The main highlight was definitely the crocodile show. After explaining about how crocs all over the world were facing extinction, the trainer fed a whole chicken to Ngukurr, the resident saltwater crocodile, who was waiting patiently in the pool below:
Terrifying, but very cool. A must-see.
After a quick bite at the park cafe, we were back on the road to Leura, the so-called capital of the Blue Mountains.
Leura
Located 985 meters upwards, Leura is known as a great starting point for many nature walks around these parts. Today, however, our main objective was to head up to the Blue Mountains Botanic Gardens to snap some photos for our wedding.
Still, we couldn’t help but make an impromptu pit stop at the Princes Rock Lookout – one of the many perks of being on a road trip – to take a look at the famous Wentworth Falls. An easy 20 to 30-minute walk in and out from the road, just outside of Leura.
There are a number of lookout points around the area that give you a great view of the waterfall, but we felt that Princes Rock captured it nicely.
Lunch time! We didn’t have many daylight hours left, so we decided to take our lunch on-the-go from Leura Gourmet Cafe & Deli, which is popular for its healthy yet affordable food options.
On to an hour-long drive up to Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, located atop Mount Tomah.
If you’ve read our previous articles, you’ll know that Jan is a massive fan of flowers. Given that the garden features over 21,000 plants and 900 species, we thought this would be perfect place to snap some lovely pre-wedding photos.
And lovely they were.
Unfortunately, due to the season, the flowers weren’t out in full bloom. But as you can see, we were still surrounded by flowers everywhere we walked.
Add on that to the beautifully built botanical grounds, and fresh, crisp mountain air. No regrets making the drive up here.
By now, we could literally see the sun setting behind the mountains in the distance (really gorgeous view up here, by the way). Time to head back down, and check into our Airbnb apartment for the night.
And yes, dinner as well.
We had initially planned to shoot for Hassan’s Wall Lookout at Lithgow – slightly northwards of Leura – but I didn’t fancy driving back in the dark, so we decided against it.
If you don’t mind some night driving, though, the view from Hassan’s Wall is apparently spectacular, giving you a panoramic view of all the neighboring mountains.
Day 1 Accommodation: Blackheath
As for accommodation options, we were spoilt for choice. The towns of Leura, Katoomba, and Blackheath were all very promising, being conveniently located near great lookout points for an early morning sunrise photoshoot.
In the end, we decided to go with Blackheath, as we wanted to dedicate at least half a day to Katoomba – by far the most well-known name in this region – before heading out to Hunter Valley.
This peaceful town is also situated nearest to the Botanic Garden, which ultimately closed the deal for us.
We were very happy with our Blackheath Airbnb apartment, which took up the entire first floor of the house pictured above.
It was clean, warm, and comfy – everything you need on a dark and cold night.
Want to book this apartment? Join Airbnb with this link to save $45 on your first booking.
On that note: yes, it got a lot colder as we ventured up into the mountains. Especially at night, temperatures dip into the low single-digits, so do bring along your jackets and windbreakers.
The area we were staying in was fairly secluded, so it was nice and quiet at night. The skies were full of stars, which could be clearly seen from the front porch:
The roads right outside our Blackheath accommodation were also brimming with autumn colors, but we’d only find out the next morning. It also helped that the apartment was right down the road from the lookout points we had planned into our itinerary for day 2 – more on that real soon.
The downside? We had to take a quick 3-minute drive back out to the main road to get dinner. So if you do stay here, remember to buy your dinner out on the main road before checking in.
And if you’re a fan of pizza, you’ll love Blackheath Kebab House, where we bought a ton of pizzas, kebabs, and fish and chips – so much, that we had enough to spare for lunch the next day. Score!
Onwards to day 2, then.
The Blackheath Lookout Trio
Remember how I mentioned that there were some incredible lookouts within throwing distance of our apartment?
Given the opportunity we had, we decided to get up nice and early to catch the sunrise at the nearest lookout point, Govetts Leap Lookout, which was a 5-minute drive from the Airbnb apartment. I kid you not.
No hiking required, by the way. You can take your car all the way up to the lookout point, and even enjoy the view without leaving it.
It was a struggle to wake up at 530am, but totally worth it to get a look at the sun emerging in the distance, with a slew of mountains slowly being illuminated in the foreground.
To our surprise, we weren’t the only ones crazy enough to do this. Already, there were a group of sunrise chasers waiting there when we arrived.
All that was left to do was sit back, enjoy the rising sun, and of course, snap some photos.
Onwards to the next observation point at Pulpit Rock Lookout, which was another short 5-minute drive away.
Of all the lookouts we visited along this road trip, Pulpit Rock was one of my favorites.
Why? Because via a series of metal (and rock) staircases, there was not one, but three lookout points that we could make our way to within the same area.
And going through them felt like a mini roller coaster ride, going off the edge into a sea of trees. Thrill seekers and those who enjoy heights will love it!
Sounds crazy, but you’ll understand when you see it for yourself:
If you only have time for one lookout point in Blackheath, I highly suggest going for Pulpit Rock.
Do note that these stairs are fairly steep, so please be careful and take your time. You’ll want to enjoy the scenery (and the incredible drop) at the same time, anyway!
Last but not least, we popped by and took a leisurely stroll at Evans Lookout. Here, you’ll get a proper eyeful of the overlapping mountains in the distance:
Evans Lookout is also the starting point for several bush walks in the vicinity. We didn’t have time to embark on any, but if you’re keen, you can find a list of walks in this area here.
With the photo bug satisfied, we headed down to Katoomba to check in at our next Airbnb apartment, and grab some lunch.
Our Katoomba accommodation was situated just off the main street, with a good number of dining options in the neighborhood – perfect for quick bites, which we needed as we were in a bit of a rush today.
Want to book this apartment? Join Airbnb with this link to save $45 on your first booking.
The reason? Our wedding photoshoot was that very evening, so we needed some time beforehand to prepare.
At this point, we had time for just one activity, so we decided to go with the most popular attraction Katoomba had to offer: Scenic World.
Scenic World
First, we grabbed a quick (but very satisfying) lunch at The Yellow Deli, a stone’s throw away from our apartment. We found out that our servers at the quaint little diner were actually doing this pro bono – they were volunteers from the local church, serving others for free out of Christian love. Do support their good work if you’re in the area!
We also bumped into our Airbnb host there (it was his favorite food joint), who warned us that it’d be very, very crowded at Scenic World in the middle of the day. He recommended going either early in the morning, or towards the end of the day (opening hours are from 9am to 5pm everyday).
Unfortunately, we didn’t have much of a choice, and decided to go ahead with it anyway at around 2pm.
While it was certainly packed, the crowd did little to spoil our experience in this magical little (well, not so little) wonderland.
There are a number of rides and attractions within Scenic World that you can choose to visit, each located at different parts of the place: the Scenic Skyway, Scenic Railway, Scenic Walkway, and Scenic Cableway.
There is also the Sculpture at Scenic World, which features a number of artworks that exhibiting artists have painstakingly blended into the natural landscape along a 2.4km walkway.
Also, don’t miss the amazing view of Echo Point and the iconic Three Sisters – a rock formation with an interesting story behind it – when you take the Scenic Skyway.
Suspended 270 metres above the valley, with a glass-bottomed floor, this is probably the best vantage point to observe and snap some photos of the landmark.
Your Discovery pass will give you access to all the attractions for a full day. As such, it makes sense to come bright and early in the morning, and take your time exploring every nook and cranny of the place.
We were on a clock, however, and had to make a beeline back to the apartment after two hours or so.
After a quick change of clothes and application of makeup, we were out of the house again – this time, to Lincoln’s Rock, where our highly sought-after photographer, Trish from Tealily Photography, would be taking our pre-wedding photos.
Lincoln’s Rock
This lookout point is best described as a huge slab of flat rock hanging right on the edge of a rather steep drop down to Wentworth Falls. But don’t be mistaken – the view here is to die for, a big reason why Trish recommended that we capture our fond memories here.
We didn’t take too many photos ourselves here (as we were busy walking around and posing ourselves), but here’s a selection taken by Trish herself:
As you can see, beautiful doesn’t even begin to describe the view from here. Just be careful not to go too far out to the edge – there are no safety railings or nets here.
The hour passed by quickly as we were having so much fun! Soon, we were back on the road, headed back to Katoomba for dinner.
As I mentioned earlier, Katoomba has a good selection of dining options. We were craving Chinese food by now, and fortunately had spotted a Chinese restaurant near our place called Katoomba Canton Palace. Comfort food, if you would, and pretty close to our Singaporean standards. Jan’s parents certainly enjoyed the food 🙂
And so our Blue Mountains chapter comes to a close on day 2.
On day 3, we head on towards another well-loved New South Wales tourist destination in the form of Hunter Valley. See you guys over there!
Next up: Sydney and New South Wales Road Trip Itinerary, Day 3: Hunter Valley
