Awesome Day Trip to Blue Mountains with PJ Tours

The tour to Blue Mountains is one of the most popular day trips from Sydney. It is a tourist spot known for its great wonder. This popular region that is located in New South Wales has amazing landscapes, towering cliffs, beautiful waterfalls, vast wildlife, breathtaking plateau and amazing mountain range that people completely love. It is all set in inspiring panoramas that surely tourist will be left in awe.

Blue Mountains is 50 kilometers away from the city of Sydney. It would take 2-hour drive to reach this place. Blue Mountains can be reached by riding a train or driving your own car but the most convenient way to visit this popular destination is by joining a group tour.

From the city of Sydney, there are already several group tours that offer day trips to Blue Mountains. One that I found most interesting was PJ Tours. The company offers Blue Mountain Tours in small group; one of the factors that made me opted to have them as my partner in visiting this popular destination. The tour package included a visit to some other tourist spots as well that I found very exciting to see.

Part of the tour package was a complimentary hotel pick up. I was supposed to be picked up from my hotel at 7:15 AM but sadly missed the tour shuttle because I appeared at the pick up location late. I called the tour company and asked if they could go back to the hotel again and pick me up. After 10 minutes, the shuttle arrived. It was shameful that I missed the pickup time. When I entered the shuttle, I apologized to everyone for causing a delay in our tour. Good thing that I was in a small group. I couldn’t imagine how more disgraceful it would be if I was in a bigger group.

We left the city center of Sydney at around 8:00 AM. As we traveled the road towards west of Sydney, our tour guide and also our driver, Maunj, explained to us our itinerary for the day. We will be visiting several places including a wildlife park, a village, an Olympic park and some important tourist spots in the Blue Mountains region. We will also go on a river cruise at the end of the tour.

Featherdale Wildlife Park

First from our itinerary was a visit to Featherdale Wildlife Park. It was a 40-minute drive from the city center to reach the place. This tourist spot is a unique small nature zoo that is located at Doonside, Sydney. Here, we were given an hour to explore the place.

Zoos are actually all the same for me. Various animals can be seen inside like birds, reptiles, marsupials and mammals. But since I was in Australia, our visit to this zoo became interesting for me. We were able to see some of the unique animals of Australia and their habitats like Koala, Wallabies, Kangaroos, Dingo and Tasmanian Devils.

The wildlife park is a great place to have an encounter with koalas and hand feed some kangaroos and wallabies. The park also holds exciting animal feeding show. It was just too sad that we only had limited time to spend. Nevertheless, it was still a fun place to meet various kinds of animals.

Scenic World

The second destination from our list was the Scenic World. It is a famous tourist attraction located in Katoomba. Scenic World offers a unique adventure to enjoy the Blue Mountains. This tourist attraction has several interesting activities that visitors will surely like. There are exciting rides to enjoy the view of Blue Mountains and trails great for nature walk.

It was past 10:00 AM when our group arrived at the Scenic World. We were dropped by at the Skyway East Station. From there, we had a short walk going to the Echo Point. It was dreamlike seeing the Blue Mountains from that vantage. The view was truly amazing. Too bad I didn’t have a nice photo with the wonderful panorama on my background. The wind was blowing so hard that with my body weight, it could actually fly me.

After a few minutes, the group went back to the station. Because, I didn’t want to be left out, I followed them. We then rode the skyway going to the main building of Scenic World.

We allotted 2 ½ hours at Scenic World to roam around and have our lunch. Since it was more important for me to get around than having my lunch at that moment, I explored the attractions first.

There are three rides at Scenic World, which are Scenic Skyway, Scenic Railway and Scenic Cableway. The Scenic Skyway is suspended 270 meters above the ancient ravines. The ride provides a unique thrill as spectacular views are revealed through the electro-glass cabin floor. The ride offers the greatest views of Katoomba Falls, the Three Sisters, and Jamison Valley.

After which, it was the Scenic Railway that I’ve tried. The scenic railway is my most favorite ride, in terms of excitement and thrills. The ride descends 310 meters through a cliff-side tunnel, emerging into long-lived rainforest at the Jamison Valley base. The ride holds the steepest passenger railway in the world, inclining to 52 degree.

Another ride that can be found at the Scenic World is the Scenic Cableway. It is 545-meter ride through an enclosed cabin providing a special vantage point for viewing the Three Sisters, Orphan Rock, Mt. Solitary and Katoomba Falls.

A great outdoor activity to do at the Scenic World is walking through the Scenic Walkway. The walkway is a 2.4-kilometer path inside a peaceful rainforest. Tourists can explore the site’s coal mining history, learn about local flora and witness the lush wildlife. Walking through the walkway could also take you to the station to ride the cableway going to the main building.

Visitors can ride at the rides as long as they want. The ride is unlimited. Scenic World completely provided me fun memories of seeing the Blue Mountains. It was a thrilling and exciting base to view the notable mountain range.

Blue Mountains and the Three Sisters

I was wrong when I told myself that seeing the Blue Mountains from the Scenic World was enough for me. When we went to Echo Point Lookout, I felt in wonderment again.  It was another spectacular panorama of the World Heritage Site. The view from the Echo Point was so magnificent. The view was immense.

It was around 2:00 PM when we arrived at the crowded tourist spot. Our guide gave us an hour to get around. He told us that we could also go to the Honeymoon Bridge, which could take about half an hour walk back and forth.

I went to the lookout points first and took some shots of the spectacular vista. There I saw the famous Three Sisters, which are rock formations recognized as a place of special cultural significance to Aboriginal people. The lookout points also offer some of the most iconic views of the national park. After a while, I took a walk going to the Honeymoon Bridge that our guide told us. Since, I was only left with few minutes before we departed from this place. I hurriedly walked to get to my desired destination.

Going to Honeymoon Bridge was easy because of the paved path but you may find it also difficult when you have fear of heights. The last part of the trail has steep stairways that lead down to the Honeymoon Bridge. I chanced upon two women who backed out. I assumed they were frightened to step down to get to the famed bridge.

It was a success that I’ve reached the bridge. I must tell it was scary down there – not with the elevation but because of the wind. The wind was blowing so hard that I found myself holding the handrails so tight. Nevertheless, the view was again so magnificent. I was glad that I decided to visit this spot even though we only had limited time to do so. I couldn’t find any more words to describe the view that I had from there. I felt surreal seeing the immense natural beauty of the Blue Mountains. The hike was definitely worth it.

Leura Village

Before we finally left the area surrounding the Blue Mountains, we made a short stop at Leura, a charming mountain village. Here, we were given a free time to walk around the shopping street and have some snacks. Tourists can enjoy a stroll and visit some unique shops and galleries that can be found at the village.

Olympic Park

We were also able to get to the Olympic Park. The area has different stadiums and facilities that hosted the 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

River Cruise from Homebush Bay

As part of our tour, we returned to Sydney through a ferry ride. Our driver dropped us off at a ferry station to get back to the city. The ferry ride was about half an hour. It was great that we returned to the city through a cruise ride because it was a perfect timing to view the city while sunset.

Seeing the Blue Mountains is an absolute experience to have. I am pleased that I had able to visit the famous tourist attraction when I was in Australia. I fell in love with the blue-hazed beauty of the national park, which has one million hectares of tall forests, sandstone cliffs, canyons, waterfalls and bush land. I was in amazement seeing the magnificent vistas and sceneries. I was grateful that I joined the tour held by PJ Tours because it provided me not only with convenience and ease but also so much fun and enjoyment. It was completely an awesome day trip that provided our group not only with magnificent scenes but also a supreme Blue Mountains experience.