Possible to go directly to Katoomba from Airport?

[helmslady]

We arrive Sydney 8am one day and ship embarkation 2-8pm next day. Would it be possible to get a train from the airport to Katoomba Station, tour the area staying overnight and return next day for the cruise? We'd really like to see the Blue Mountain area. We should have added extra time before cruise instead all of it after the cruise in New Zealand.

 

Any comments would be appreciated. We're obviously first timers . . .

[MMDown Under]

We arrive Sydney 8am one day and ship embarkation 2-8pm next day. Would it be possible to get a train from the airport to Katoomba Station, tour the area staying overnight and return next day for the cruise? We'd really like to see the Blue Mountain area. We should have added extra time before cruise instead all of it after the cruise in New Zealand.

 

Any comments would be appreciated. We're obviously first timers . . .

 

Sounds like a good idea to me.

 

Train from airport to central.

Train from central to Katoomba.

Buy a through ticket.

 

A local may know a better change point.

[The_Big_M]

Sounds like a good idea to me.

 

Train from airport to central.

Train from central to Katoomba.

Buy a through ticket.

 

A local may know a better change point.

 

That's definitely the best place to change.

 

You'd need to get one-way tickets rather than return, as travel is on different days and also that you're starting (Int'l airport) and finishing (Circular Quay/city) at different stations.

[Globaliser]

The only thing I'd wonder about is luggage. The trains are not completely luggage-friendly if you have lots of it. While it's far from being a deal-breaker, I wonder whether it might be worth thinking about luggage storage. One option would be to store it at the airport, and to return there by train the next day to collect it, before jumping into a taxi to the port.

[kenish]

I believe there is luggage storage at the Overseas Terminal. If there is, you might be able to store you luggage there and just take an overnight bag to Katoomba. I'm not 100% sure of this so someone with direct experience can answer better. Also if your ship docks at Darling Harbour I don't know what storage facilities are there.

[mochuck]

If you sit at the end of the carriage where there are just 2 seats facing each other there should be plenty of room for luggage. By the time you get on the train peak hour should be finished and in any case you will be travelling in the opposite direction to the commuters.

 

It is about a 2 hour trip from Katoomba to Central and the trains run once an hour. Here is the timetable

[Globaliser]

Is there guaranteed to be step-free access to/from the platforms at Central? I'm pretty sure that there are lifts (elevators) to some platforms, but does this apply to all? I don't often use Central so can't be sure about this.

[aussiedisneyfan]

I am pretty sure that every platform has elevators now.

[The_Big_M]

Every platform has elevators and there is always a means around, although there are still stairs and escalators as well, so elevators are not always the quickest. It is available though.

[shieldsboy]

Helmslady,

 

Another factor to consider is your energy level if you have flown in directly from Canada.

 

The flight across the Pacific is very arduous especially if you travel in economy.

 

On arriving in Sydney you would have firstly catch a train to Central Station then switch to another train for the 2 hour trip to Katoomba. Both trains are suburban trains and are unlikely to have toilets and certainly do not have any restaurant or buffet facilities - nor decent luggage storage racks.

 

And the trains are of a poorer standard than many in USA or Europe (for instance, may not be air-conditioned).

 

When you add the effect of the time change you have gone through (Montreal is currently 16 hours behind Sydney) I cannot help feeling you may be wiser to use your brief time in Sydney to exploring the many "delights" of Sydney itself.

 

Sorry to be so pessimistic about your plans.

 

Don

 

PS Perhaps my views are somewhat coloured as I am nearly 70 - if you are a lot younger then perhaps many of my comments don't apply.

[The_Big_M]

Actually, Katoomba is a fair distance away so only interurban (or country, but you wouldn't use those for this trip) trains run through there. It's outside the suburban network.

 

All interurban trains are air conditioned and have toilets on board. They do have a small amount of luggage storage facilities. I would actually say they are at least equivalent in standard to comparable US/European equipment. Country trains do have buffet facilities which are similar to US long-distance trains.

[helmslady]

Helmslady,

 

Another factor to consider is your energy level if you have flown in directly from Canada.

 

The flight across the Pacific is very arduous especially if you travel in economy.

 

On arriving in Sydney you would have firstly catch a train to Central Station then switch to another train for the 2 hour trip to Katoomba. Both trains are suburban trains and are unlikely to have toilets and certainly do not have any restaurant or buffet facilities - nor decent luggage storage racks.

 

And the trains are of a poorer standard than many in USA or Europe (for instance, may not be air-conditioned).

 

When you add the effect of the time change you have gone through (Montreal is currently 16 hours behind Sydney) I cannot help feeling you may be wiser to use your brief time in Sydney to exploring the many "delights" of Sydney itself.

 

Sorry to be so pessimistic about your plans.

 

Don

 

PS Perhaps my views are somewhat coloured as I am nearly 70 - if you are a lot younger then perhaps many of my comments don't apply.

Thank you for all your information. We are flying Executive so we shouldn't be in "terrible" shape for travel to Katoomba and, as we're not getting any younger (or smarter), we thought we'd try the trip to the Blue Mountains. Next time we'll allow ourselves more time to see more of this part of Australia. This trip we are spending a couple of post-cruise weeks in New Zealand.

[MMDown Under]

Thank you for all your information. We are flying Executive so we shouldn't be in "terrible" shape for travel to Katoomba and, as we're not getting any younger (or smarter), we thought we'd try the trip to the Blue Mountains. Next time we'll allow ourselves more time to see more of this part of Australia. This trip we are spending a couple of post-cruise weeks in New Zealand.

 

I'm sure you'll be pleased re your decision to make an overnight visit to Katoomba. Try to stay near the escarpment, so you can enjoy the spectacular views and changing colours at sunset and during early morning walks, which are the best times of the day on the mountain.

[kenish]

Thank you for all your information. We are flying Executive so we shouldn't be in "terrible" shape for travel to Katoomba and, as we're not getting any younger (or smarter), we thought we'd try the trip to the Blue Mountains.

 

A similar story for what it's worth....my teen and I flew from LAX-Melbourne. We arrived around 8am, cleared Customs, and got to our hotel around 930. Our plan was to keep going til we dropped in our tracks. I expected that to happen around 6pm. However we were so excited and energized to finally be in Oz that we were out on the town until 10pm. We did a lot of things and were walking around the city all day...we didn't spend it sitting in a cafe all day. In fact, stopping to rest probably would have been a mistake. :)

[helmslady]

Thought I would follow-up with this thread and thank everyone again for their information which made this excursion one of our highlights of our wonderful cruise from Sydney to Auckland.

 

Our plane arrived in the morning and we were able to easily pop on the train to Katoomba Stn. The train ride gave us an opportunity to see the country-side north of Sydney. The B&B (Lurline House) kindly picked us up at the station and returned us next afternoon. Lurline is located close to the escarpment so we were able to drop our luggage and immediately walk to the trails. The vegetation, the birds, the sounds, the scenery - it was wonderful. We returned to the B&B for a rest before dinner and didn't wake up until next morning. There was a wonderful breakfast included and off we went exploring the trails again until we reluctantly had to leave at about 2 pm. The return train ride was just as smooth and we were able to get off at the quay for a short walk pulling our luggage (no problem) to the ship embarkation point. We made the most of the limited time we had and are very happy we did this jaunt to Katoomba (in some of the literature I've read, they call it the Grand Canyon of Australia).

[jms2362]

We arrive Sydney 8am one day and ship embarkation 2-8pm next day. Would it be possible to get a train from the airport to Katoomba Station, tour the area staying overnight and return next day for the cruise? We'd really like to see the Blue Mountain area. We should have added extra time before cruise instead all of it after the cruise in New Zealand.

 

Any comments would be appreciated. We're obviously first timers . . .

Here is some info I got today from a similar question that we had.

, the 2 hour train ride leaves from sydney central railway station to Katoomba. you can hop on to an explorer bus there to go to the various sites. the ones worth doing are the scenic railway and of course, the 3 sisters viewpoint.

http://www.131500.com.au/tickets/explore/blue-mountains

http://www.scenicworld.com.au/