I am considering the Wonderbus day tour to the Blue Mountains from Sydney. It seems to include a stop at Featherdale Wildlife Park and a boat back to Sydney via the Parramatta River. Does anyone have any experience with this tour company and do you now how much time is actually allowed to do some hiking in the mountains? Also, is the boat ride back into Sydney a plus? Thank you.

I don't know the company you mention, but just a word on the Parramatta River from Parramatta to about Concord - it's a pretty boring ride IMO. Mostly mangroves, not picturesque. Starting to get better after about Concord when the river widens. You can do it by ferry (River Cat), mostly a commuter service. I would not think of this as a big plus unless you have a special interest in seeing the whole river, which eventually turns into Sydney Harbour.

In case you were curious about Parramatta - there are one or two historical sites there, Old Government House and Experiment Farm Cottage. I don't think many overseas tourists get there. Parramatta isn't that pretty a city (dominated by office buildings and a massive shopping centre), but they are interesting sites and do tell you a lot about early settlement in the colony. You won't get there by just stumbling on them, though, you'd have to plan ahead.

Lavandula

Hi chc

If you just want to visit the Blue Mountains region, you could do it independently for a lot less than $149!

How long will you be here? For a day trip, you could take the train to Katoomba then use the hop-on-hop-off bus to travel to the major sites. The walk down the Three Sisters, then across the valley floor, then the ride up the cliff-side in the Scenic Railway would take several hours.

You can catch the River Cat or harbour ferries and spend another day visiting several harbour spots and walks for another day of activity.

Try Googling these suggestions to get the full details. Di

I will just chip in here though about Featherdale - if you aren't seeing Australian animals anywhere else it's a small precinct with a lot of different varieties, which is probably a good way of seeing them. Plus they sometimes let you touch the animals - I think I remember a huge owl that can sit on your wrist, and there are occasionally joeys (young kangaroos) that they let you touch. However if you don't want to travel there (it's sort of on the way to the Blue Mountains) you can also go to Wildlife World at Darling Harbour or even Taronga Zoo, on the other side of the harbour, and see some animals there. I've never been to Wildlife World so can't really comment on it but Taronga is great for views of the harbour and has a lot of other animals besides. If you go to Taronga take a sunhat and sunscreen, there's not much shade for the human animals!

Lavandula

I agree that a train to Katoomba, and the hop on hop off, makes good sense. We had a leisurely three day trip there recently. First day, saw the 3 sisters and major sights. Second day , a guided nature hike. Third day, some independent hiking and the aboriginal centre (quality souvenirs cheaper than in the city). We weren't able to do the Featherdale zoo or Mount Tomah botanic garden, however, as they are on a different rail line from Sydney.

Thank you to all for the suggestions. I like the idea of doing the tour ourselves (to save the money and to give us the freedom to flex our schedule). We have a few days in Sydney area and I am hoping to spend one of these days in the mountains. Thanks again.

Enjoy yourself!