STAY
Encounters with wildlife at a campground in the bush, grocery shopping with locals for a self-catered cottage or leave it all to your hosts at an historic guesthouse, hotels or resort. The Blue Mountains is your home away from home.
Frequently Asked Questions
For most first-time visitors, Katoomba is the best town to stay in the Blue Mountains. The Three Sisters and Scenic World are close by, and you’ll have restaurants, shops and public transport on your doorstep. Choose Leura if cafés, boutiques and gardens are more your thing, or Blackheath for a quieter base close to the Grand Canyon Walk and Grose Valley. If you want to stay closer to Sydney while still having national park on your doorstep, Glenbrook is a good choice. Truthfully though? You can’t go wrong with any of our beautiful towns.
Leura and Katoomba have quite different vibes. Katoomba is bigger and busier, with supermarkets, the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre and some of the region’s most famous attractions, including the Three Sisters and Scenic World, plus plenty of restaurants, shops and places to stay. Just one train stop away, Leura has a smaller village feel, with cafés, restaurants and boutiques lining Leura Mall. Both put bushwalks and lookouts within easy reach. While Leura can also get busy, it really comes down to the kind of stay you prefer.
Definitely. While you can visit the Blue Mountains on a day trip, especially from places relatively close by like Sydney or Bathurst, staying overnight lets you see a different side of the Mountains. Watch the last light disappear across the valley at sunset, settle into a cosy pub or restaurant for dinner, then wake to mist through the trees and a bushwalk before the day-trippers arrive. Stay two or three nights (or even longer) and there’s time to slow down, explore different villages and venture beyond the best-known sights. We recommend visiting midweek too as you’ll often find the Mountains quieter.
You don’t need a big budget to stay in the Blue Mountains. Hostels are one of the cheapest options, with YHA Blue Mountains and The Flying Fox in Katoomba offering budget-friendly stays. You’ll also find motels and motor inns along the entire Great Western Highway from Sydney to Lithgow. Many of our local hotels are also very reasonably priced with something for every budget.
For an even cheaper night, pitch a tent or bring your campervan. There are free camping options at Mount York near Mount Victoria and Old Ford Reserve in the Megalong Valley, as well as caravan parks and campgrounds such as Blackheath Glen Tourist Park.
For an even cheaper night, pitch a tent or bring your campervan. There are free camping options at Mount York near Mount Victoria and Old Ford Reserve in the Megalong Valley, as well as caravan parks and campgrounds such as Blackheath Glen Tourist Park.
Lilianfels Resort & Spa is the Blue Mountains’ classic luxury resort, just moments from the Three Sisters in Katoomba. Spend the afternoon in the spa or by the pool, before dinner at Darley’s restaurant onsite.
Other options include nearby Echoes, where you can wake to views stretching across the Jamison Valley, while at Chalets at Blackheath, the bush begins just beyond your door. Fairmont Resort in Leura has a golf course, spa and restaurants all on site, while Parklands sits among acres of gardens in Blackheath.
At the Hydro Majestic in Medlow Bath, take afternoon tea overlooking the Megalong Valley and stay the night in a hotel that has welcomed guests for more than a century.
Other options include nearby Echoes, where you can wake to views stretching across the Jamison Valley, while at Chalets at Blackheath, the bush begins just beyond your door. Fairmont Resort in Leura has a golf course, spa and restaurants all on site, while Parklands sits among acres of gardens in Blackheath.
At the Hydro Majestic in Medlow Bath, take afternoon tea overlooking the Megalong Valley and stay the night in a hotel that has welcomed guests for more than a century.