Transportation around Sydney

I will be in Sydney post cruise for 8 days in November.

Rough itinerary is to spend 2 days in Sydney, the Rocks and the Quay.Most likely walking, not using transportation much.

2 days in Katoomba - one day using hop on/hop off bus, possibly renting car for second day to go to Blue Mtn Botanic Garden.

1 day each Kiama, Manly, Taranga, walk Bondi to Coogee

then last morning train to airport.

 

My questions

1. should i buy an opal card online before i leave home (USA) to avoid lines coming off ship - or wait until we get there?
   
2. advantages/disadvantage of train vs bus to Katoomba?
   
3. will all my transportation (other than ho/ho and car in Blue Mtns) be covered by opal card?
   
4. can i get the card with $60 weekly pass plus 13.80 for train to airport for last day?
   

Thanks for your help with my planning!

kathy

1. Either will work fine

2. I like the train ride, but both have advantages in terms of views, bus will spend about an hour in industrial commercial areas, so probably train by a hairs width.

3. Not sure what other transport you mean?

Yes, the blue mountains train is very easy from Central station and not too pricey really. I live at the end of the blue mountains line, and even a full cost ticket for me is only around $8.30 if I travel during peak times or under $6 if I wait till the off peak trains. A full trip to Lithgow is around 3 hours, to Katoomba it's 2, and the Blue Mountains themselves don't really start till you go through Penrith about an hour after leaving Sydney. The trip planner website is great for working out the timetable options, fares, etc. Also the trip view app if you're using data and smartphones while you're in the Sydney area, I find that is excellent for helping me figure out which platform to go to, when the next train is, what my connection options are, etc as I'm traveling around the city.

 

As far as what to do, let me know what kind of things you're interested in and I'm happy to give a few pointers. I've lived in five villages of the blue mountains and gotten to know a fair few others over the years!

 

If you're fairly mobile and active and would enjoy some beautiful bush walks, I'd head to Wentworth Falls. The lookouts and tracks at the end of Falls Road are stunning and much less touristy than Katoomba, but they are about a 20 minute walk from the station. There are a few good and longstanding cafes and things there, too - I've been visiting Schwarz' Patisserie and the Conservation Hut for well over 20 years now! Katoomba is more touristy and busy but you can get a good overview there - the Explorer bus runs a loop of all the major tourist points of Katoomba and Leura like the three sisters lookout, scenic world, Leura Mall, etc. It takes about an hour to do a whole loop of the stops and I believe they give a bit of a tour and give you some information on the way. You can hop on/hop off as you see fit and spend more time in a few places.

 

My favourite places are further up the mountains past Katoomba, though. The upper mountains are largely ignored, so if you like to see things without feeling too touristy that's the place to be. Blackheath has some stunning walks and lookouts and is a great little village. Some great little bakeries, antique shops, and if you catch a taxi or bus to Govett's Leap you'll see all the beauty of the mountains and are pretty likely to have it all to yourself. If you're up for the full round trip, the views between Mt Victoria and Lithgow are the best of the whole journey, and the station in Lithgow is right in the main street so there are plenty of shops and cafes nearby. If you like wildlife, there's a quoll sanctuary and beautiful little restaurant a quick taxi ride away, they have a few resident kangaroos, an emu, some dingos, and they're all very friendly. Not all the animals are around all the time (only the quolls and dingos are actually captive in any way) but it's a nice spot up in the bush. If you like any kind of train history, coal mining history, etc there's plenty to see around town, too.

 

Eek, that's way too much already! But yes, do the Blue Mountains, and you can do a tour if you like but it's very easy to manage trains and people are very friendly on the whole and will point you in the right direction. I came from the US originally and from an area where I was not at all used to having decent (or any!) public transport, so I was surprised how straightforward it was here.

 

Oh, and I wouldn't try to get the senior concession. If they check your ticket on board, the fine is up to $200 if you can't produce a valid NSW concession card.

What great information!!! Thank you! We are flying in from the U.S. for two cruises (Mar 2018) and additional touring on our own. I had planned on taking the train to Katoomba and then doing the hop on hop off tour (which we still may do). Will research more and possibly stay on the train to further staions. Thank you again!