Just off the Great Western Highway near the village of Leura, where the World Heritage-listed national park meets the community, east meets the oldest continuous culture on earth in a yin and yang of harmony, kinship and respect.A former school on 12ha of natural Australian bushland within the World Heritage-listed Blue Mountains National Park, Sinofield Edu-Retreat is a gem hidden in plain sight.

Restaurants in famous venues often rest in the love diners have for the building itself.So it was with some trepidation that we placed the first fork of food in our mouths at Jamison Views Restaurant at Hotel Mountain Heritage, one of the grand heritage hotels for which the region has become renowned. 

Grace. Humility. Wisdom. Community. Responsibility. Service.You don’t just become an Aboriginal Elder by reaching a certain age.

It’s been more than 40 years since hotel owner Gary Crockett put on a festive feast to ease the homesick pangs of a group of Irish travellers waxing nostalgic as snowflakes danced on the wind one freezing July evening.Hotel Mountain Heritage continues the tradition of Australia’s first Yulefest celebration to this day, with tables laden with traditional fare, decorations and atmosphere you expect to see at Christmas.

What if there was a way to experience the wildness of the big Blue – without sacrificing comfort? There is.

By Ellen HillIn July 1942, Connie married Roy and enjoyed an eight-day honeymoon at the Carrington Hotel in Katoomba. “I was 28 years old, and just after we arrived, I was told there was a call for me in Booth Number 2,” Connie says. “It was my mother. She wanted to know if I’d arrived safely, and was I alright? What did she expect?!!”