Blue Mountains: Need suggestions for touring

Old Jun 16, 2009, 12:29 pm
  #16  
 
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We are headed to Australia next week so this is a timely thread!

Originally Posted by craz

we were just there in May

We took the train from Cicular Quay and got off at Katoomba, we then walked 1/2 hr thru the town and to Scenic World where we purchased a Silver pass includes Up & Down to the valley (we took the train down and Cable car up , If I was to redo it it would be the train both ways) then teh SkyCar over to the other side 25 AUD per person.
Do you mean you took a intra-Sydney train from Circular Quay to Sydney Central Station and then the CityRail Train from Sydney Central Station to Katoomba? How long was the train ride from Sydney Central Station to Katoomba? Going up to the Blue Mounts, on which side of the train was it better to sit to view scenery etc.?

When you arrived at the Blue Mountains, how much was the Silver Pass? Is the Silver Pass only good for the train/cable car up and down the valley? You mention that you could redo, you would take the train both ways. Why?

Originally Posted by craz

we then walked along the trail to Echo pt and then to the 3 sisters back to Echo pt and then walked back to the train station and headed back to teh City
How long was this walk? The reason I ask is that we are traveling with two youngin's, and I need to know how long of a walk to expect. Is the walk strenous? Leisurely?

Originally Posted by craz

If you do as we did and leave at 9am (we did this at 8:30) and caught the 8:55am train from central all it cost was 17 AUD per person round trip its 24 AUD if you want to get a train during Peak 9am and before. Funny teh only place we had to scan or show our tkts was at Cicular Quay so we could have purchased a 3.60 tkt and gone all the way. You must change trains at Central but the local train is included in the price.
You mention "Central". Is this the Sydney Central Station? Do we just catch the CityRail train to Katoomba?

Originally Posted by craz

It would have been 54 AUD for the trains and Explorer Bus. Keep in mind the bus runs every 1/2 hr so if you happen to just miss it at a stop you'll have to wait another 1/2 hr. If youre in shape Im not the walk is Great.

IMO the Bus is a complete waste of both time and $$
What is the "Explorer Bus"? Is this a bus service up at the Blue Mountains area?

Thanks,

Onedog
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Old Jun 17, 2009, 5:55 am
  #17  
 
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There is a parallel discussion going on here:http://tinyurl.com/mwd84r.

It really is very, very easy. You can start at any Sydney railway station and go through Sydney (Central) on your way to Katoomba.
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Old Jun 17, 2009, 9:54 am
  #18  
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Originally Posted by onedog
We are headed to Australia next week so this is a timely thread!



Do you mean you took a intra-Sydney train from Circular Quay to Sydney Central Station and then the CityRail Train from Sydney Central Station to Katoomba? How long was the train ride from Sydney Central Station to Katoomba? Going up to the Blue Mounts, on which side of the train was it better to sit to view scenery etc.?

When you arrived at the Blue Mountains, how much was the Silver Pass? Is the Silver Pass only good for the train/cable car up and down the valley? You mention that you could redo, you would take the train both ways. Why?



How long was this walk? The reason I ask is that we are traveling with two youngin's, and I need to know how long of a walk to expect. Is the walk strenous? Leisurely?



You mention "Central". Is this the Sydney Central Station? Do we just catch the CityRail train to Katoomba?



What is the "Explorer Bus"? Is this a bus service up at the Blue Mountains area?

Thanks,

Onedog
1- The train from Central took appx 2 hrs if I remember correctly , it does make stops every so often. It doesnt run along the Rim so views arent great, It does run along the main hway so if you go by bus dont expect to see anything different. Its a 2 level car

2- You buy the Silver Pass at Scenic World, I think it was 25AUD but that was with a 1 way on the SkyWay. 28AUD for a return on the SkyWay but a waste if you are heading over to Echo Pt and 3 sisters area. You need to ask for this its not listed on the menu.

b) we walked all thru the boardwalk paths and took the CableCar up but from the sounds of the people on the train it sounded like alot more fun. What you see from the Cable car can be seen simply by walking around the top especially if you take the SkyWay over to the other side

3- the Walk from the station to Scenic is 1/2 hr slightly uphill and at times no sidewalk. It will be difficult walking from the other side of SkyWay to Echo Pt and 3 sisiters, especially to the 3 sisiters as there are 100+ steps and its steep. I believe you can walk along a roadway (we walked along the path that goes along the rim dirt and at times muddy). I think the only way to get to the 3 sisters is via the trail at Echo Pt

The biggest problem with the Explorer Bus is , if you just miss it like numerous people we saw keep doing, then you have to wait another 1/2 hr till the next one comes along

Its a good way to kill a day but I liked the Grand Canyon much more
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Old Sep 9, 2010, 1:27 pm
  #19  
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My brother and I visited the Blue Mountains on a day-trip from Sydney on Monday. To our relief, the skies were clear and the weather was great, except for a brief and barely bothersome early-afternoon shower. We had a MyMulti3, which covered the train ride from Sydney to Katoomba. The train took two hours each way. We took the 7:21 a.m. departure from Central and were back by 5:30 p.m. or so.

Once we got to Katoomba, we used the hop-on, hop-off Blue Mountains Explorer Bus service. A ticket by itself would have been $36 per person, but we opted for the "Lyrebird Pass" for $58 each, which covered not only the bus, but also included a one-way ticket on each of the Skyway, Railway, and Cableway at Scenic World.

Following the advice of the woman who sold us our ticket and our bus driver, we hopped off the bus at Scenic World (Stop 9), Honeymoon Lookout (Stop 15), and Leura Cascades (Stop 17). At Stop 9, we took the Skyway across the valley. The Skyway offers good views of the waterfall, the forest canopy, and the Three Sisters in the distance. There is a clear plexiglass floor in the middle of the car for viewing below. Upon reaching the other end -- Scenic World -- we took the Railway, with its remarkable 52 degree slope, down. We then explored the valley for a while before taking the Cableway back up. We ate sandwiches at the Cableway Cafe and then caught a bus to Stop 15, which was the recommended way to get to the Three Sisters. We took the cliffside walk from Stop 15 back to Stop 14 where we hiked over to one of the the Three Sisters before viewing them all from Echo Point. Then we hopped on the bus to Stop 17, where we explored the Leura Cascades and walked to Gordon Falls, Stop 18. Finally, we caught the bus to the Leura Railway station for the train back to Sydney. One of the two Explorer buses which makes the continuous circuit, and the one which we took, is timed to deposit customers at the Leura Railway station just in time to catch the hourly train back to Sydney.

The hiking was great and we really enjoyed the scenery. I was happy we coupled the train with the Explorer bus, rather than opting for a package tour originating and terminating in Sydney. I do think this is very much a viable day-trip from Sydney, provided that you get an early start; the 7:21 a.m. departure from Central was perfect as it got us to Katoomba in time to catch the first outgoing Explorer bus. Those using the Explorer bus ought to plan around the one-hour scheduled downtime when the drivers take their lunch break. For those who want to save a little money, there is a Trolley service which competes with the Explorer bus. The Trolley is $20 as opposed to $36 for the Explorer, but it apparently only runs once an hour instead of every half hour and does the circuit in reverse. In all honesty, there's not much in the way of narration with the Explorer bus, but it does get your from Points A to B to C, etc., and runs according to schedule. No matter what option you choose, plan on a lot of hiking (unless you just want a glimpse of the Three Sisters from Echo Point), although most of it is not particularly challenging.
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Old Sep 10, 2010, 7:31 pm
  #20  
 
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Thanks so much for posting your experiences in the Blue Mountains! We are planning a November visit to Sydney and want to do a similar one day trip.
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Old Sep 14, 2010, 11:32 pm
  #21  
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We did an oztrails tour last month which was quite nice. Sadly most of our day was hampered by poor weather however as we were leaving scenicworld our driver took us to a lightly used lookout,and we saw an amazing rainbow over them! I thought the tour was worth it however others may disagree.
Cheers
Howie
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