Blue Mountains Full-Day Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Ticket

Echo Point and the Three Sisters, Katoomba

Echo Point is the most famous lookout in the Blue Mountains and the reason most visitors come to Katoomba. From the wide viewing platforms you face the Three Sisters, three weathered sandstone pillars rising above the Jamison Valley, with eucalyptus forest rolling away to the horizon. The blue haze that gives the range its name comes from fine droplets of eucalyptus oil in the air, and it is strongest on warm, still mornings.

The Three Sisters are tied to an Aboriginal Dreamtime story of three sisters turned to stone, and the area lies within the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. Get off at Stop 6, Honeymoon Lookout, and follow the Prince Henry Cliff Walk to Echo Point for a short, fairly level cliff-top stroll. Allow about an hour here. Is the Three Sisters worth visiting? Yes: it is the classic view of any Blue Mountains day trip, and early buses reach it before the busiest hours.

Katoomba Falls, Katoomba Cascades and the Furber Steps

A few stops along the loop, Katoomba Falls drops over the escarpment into the rainforest of the Jamison Valley. Short paths lead to lookouts over the falls and to Katoomba Cascades, where the creek slides over sandstone ledges among tree ferns before plunging into the valley. In wet weather the water is at its most impressive, and the cool, mossy gullies make a fine contrast with the dry cliff tops.

For a real taste of bushwalking, the Furber Steps descend steeply through rainforest to the valley floor, passing small waterfalls and lookouts on the way. The descent is steep and uneven, so allow at least an hour and wear good shoes. Because the bus runs in a loop, you can walk down and climb out at a different point, then simply hop on the next bus. This is where the guidebook's walking maps are most useful.

Narrow Neck and Cahill's Lookout

Narrow Neck is a long, thin plateau that separates the Jamison Valley from the Megalong Valley, and its lookout gives one of the widest panoramas in the area: sheer orange cliffs, endless forest and, on clear days, ridge after ridge fading into blue. Far fewer visitors stop here than at Echo Point, so it is a good place to enjoy the silence of the mountains and take photos without crowds.

Cahill's Lookout faces the opposite way, over the green farmland and forest of the Megalong Valley and the distinctive Boars Head Rock on the cliff edge. Late afternoon light makes the sandstone glow, so it is worth planning your loop to pass here later in the day. Each lookout needs only twenty to thirty minutes, which makes them easy to combine with a longer stop elsewhere on the route.

Leura Village, Leura Cascades and Gordon Falls

Leura is the prettiest village in the upper Blue Mountains, known for its tree-lined main street, heritage cottages, gardens, bakeries and small galleries. It is the natural lunch stop on a hop-on hop-off day: browse the shops, sit in a café and then ride on to the waterfalls just outside the village. In spring the gardens are full of blossom, and in autumn the street trees turn red and gold.

Leura Cascades is a shaded picnic area where a creek tumbles over rock steps, with easy paths to nearby lookouts. Further on, Gordon Falls and the Olympian Rock Lookout open onto the Jamison Valley, and a short walk leads to the Pool of Siloam, a small rainforest pool beneath a waterfall where some visitors swim on hot days. Allow two hours for Leura and its walks, and keep an eye on the timetable for the last bus.