Scenic World, Blue Mountains
Scenic World is a must-do for us if we have people coming to visit Sydney from overseas.
What a great day out! When my parents were visiting from South Africa we took them off to the Blue Mountains. Without a clue as to what to expect I had read somewhere to try Scenic World and I am so glad we did, even though it poured with rain.
We then returned with my in-laws and experienced the most beautiful day in the middle of March.
Where is Scenic World
Location and Address
Scenic World is in Katoomba. The exact address is cnr Violet and Cliff Drive, Katoomba NSW 2780, NSW.
Without traffic it should take about 1 hour and 40 minutes from Sydney’s North Shore.
Parking
Thankfully there is parking onsite and when that is full there is overflow parking in walking distance.
We booked our tickets in advance online as the in the days leading up to our visit the tickets had been sold out way in advance. There is however a surcharge for the online bookings. I think it is in the region of $4 or $5 but its worth buying them to not have to drive all the way there and have to turn back.
It is well worth the ticket price because of the great ‘activities’ that are available. There are four main ‘activities’ within Scenic World.
1. RAILWAY
The Railway is the steepest passenger train in the world. In the world. It goes at a 52 degree incline but you can decrease the degree of your seat to make it less steep. Its about 550 meters into the Jamison Valley… I was petrified of this but it actually wasn’t so bad. My little 3 year old loved it and screamed his lungs out in excitement.
The Railway takes you from the top entrance down into the valley past Orphan Rock.
It is not possible to take a pram on this ride but you can hold your little one on your lap or alongside you and I think its safe, we weren’t warned against this. We’ve now done it twice with the 3 year old between myself and my husband and our 1 year old on my lap.
Going back up, from the valley up to the Top Station is far more daunting as you go backwards but it is still not so bad 🙂 I didn’t even hate it.
From the Railway you can walk around the valley and then take a return trip or you can make your way to the cableway and use that to go back up.
This ride is also not wheelchair friendly.
2. SKYWAY
With its huge windows and glass bottom, the skyway is an awesome way to see the Three Sisters, Mount Solitary and the Katoomba Falls.
The skyway is pram friendly but the space is quite cramped so its difficult to manoeuvre. We’ve done it twice now without issues the deciding factor should be whether you want to walk to the lookout points and whether this can be done with a pram.
We walked from the end of the Sky way to the Echo Point lookout and Jeepers it was far for the two kids. We had to stop every ten minutes, I wouldn’t do this with the kids again although we did get spectacular views of the 3 sisters.
3. CABLEWAY
The cableway down is, according to Scenic World, the biggest cable car in Australia. It is quite large and fits a lot of people unfortunately there are not many seats so expect to stand the whole way down – not good if you are trying to avoid thinking about the heights.
As with the skyway, there is a guide who talks you through the views which is awesome. Not only are they knowlegable but they’re also passionate about the area and entertaining in the way they convey the information.
The cableway is pram friendly.
4. WALKWAY
The walkway at the bottom of the valley is magnificent. It is like being a million miles away from Sydney, in some tropical rainforest. According to Scenic World, the walkway is the longest elevated boardwalk in Australia 🙂
You can determine the length of the walk that you want to take as there are various options. If you’re travelling with a pram and want to walk around the Valley take the Cableway down so that you can use your pram.
There are things to look at relating to the mining history of the area or the flora that are well signposted every couple of metres- interesting for adults and children alike. My son kept stopping me and asking me what every board said.
Some things to remember
- Scenic world is open from 9am – 5pm
- There are no toilets at the end of the rides so make sure to use the bathrooms at the ‘visitors centre’.
- Last ride is at 4:50PM
- Needless to say: wear comfortable walking shoes, take some snacks, water / juices and if it looks like rain a poncho or jacket.
- At the “Visitor’s Centre” you can get coffee and food so there is no need to stop on the way there. The coffee and tea time treats are lovely and the lunch offerings ain’t bad either.
Tickets
Standard tickets
(outside of Easter Holiday period and Christmas Holiday period)
- Adults are $35
- Children (over 4 years old) $18
- Family ticket (2 adults and 5 children up to 14 years old) is $88.
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