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Greater Blue Mountains Area

Near Oberon · Australia

Background

World Heritage since
2000
Type of site
Natural
Inscribed
2000

The Greater Blue Mountains Area consists of 1.03 million hectares of sandstone plateaux, escarpments and gorges dominated by temperate eucalypt forest. UNESCO says its eight protected areas show the evolution and diversification of the eucalypts in post-Gondwana isolation, with 91 eucalypt taxa, ten percent of Australia's vascular flora and relict species such as the Wollemi pine surviving in tiny refuges.

The blue comes from eucalyptus oil evaporating in the heat and scattering the light. Not mountains in the usual sense but a deeply cut plateau, from under 100 m to 1,300 m, it lies 60 to 180 km inland from Sydney and takes in seven national parks and the Jenolan Caves. Wikivoyage says Katoomba, 1,017 m up, was home to the Gundungurra and Darug peoples, who called it kedumba, shining falling water, and became a resort town in the early 20th century, with art deco shopfronts to show for it.

More on the UNESCO listing More on Wikipedia

  1. Post-GondwanaEucalypts diversify in isolation on the sandstone plateau
  2. Before colonisationThe Gundungurra and Darug peoples live in the mountains
  3. Early 20th c.Katoomba grows as a mountain resort on the railway
  4. 2000Inscribed as World Heritage at the committee session in Cairns

Find Your Way Around

The main parts of the site, in the order most visitors see them

  1. 1
    Three Sisters
    The rock formation at Echo Point, Katoomba; the GoGo guide's day trip.
  2. 2
    Scenic World
    The skyway and railway down into the valley.
  3. 3
    Bushwalks
    To the Ruined Castle and Mount Solitary, or easier walks along the cliff base.
  4. 4
    Wollemi Pine
    The relict tree that survives in restricted sites.
  5. 5
    Jenolan Caves
    The karst reserve within the listed area.
  6. 6
    Katoomba Street
    The art deco main street of the resort town.

Know Before You Go

From Wikivoyage and the GoGo guides

Train from Central
Wikivoyage: hourly Blue Mountains Line trains from Sydney Central take about two hours; bus 686 runs every 20 minutes from Katoomba to Scenic World and Echo Point.
Shoes, Water, Sun
Good shoes, a bottle of water and sun protection are highly recommended; stick to the cliff-base walks or take a guide if unprepared.
Echo Point Parking
Parking fees apply at Echo Point and space is limited; park at Scenic World and walk.
Lyrebirds
Watch for large, noisy lyrebirds scratching for food along the tracks.

Three Sisters Day

From the GoGo Sydney guide · Open the Sydney Guide ›

  1. 10:30
    Three Sisters and the Blue Mountains5 hrs
    Echo Point, the valley and a bushwalk.
  2. 19:00
    Seafood by the Harbour90 min
    Oysters and prawns back in Sydney.

Best Time to Visit

Best months: Mar–Apr, Oct–Dec.

Typical highs

Best monthsRain: wettest Feb (110 mm), driest May (33 mm)

Climate: NASA POWER

Pair It With

Other World Heritage sites nearby, by distance

WORTH A NIGHTDAY TRIPSAME DAYDistance not to scale · tap a site
Do These Together
The Sydney Opera House is 114 km away; both are in the GoGo Sydney guide.
Sources
UNESCO World Heritage Centre, listing 917 · Wikipedia: Greater Blue Mountains Area · Wikivoyage: Katoomba (CC BY-SA 4.0) · GoGo Sydney guide · UNESCO listing