Blue Mountains

Bygone Beautys is home to one of the world's largest private collections of teapots, spanning five centuries. More than 5,500 teapots are in the collection: Royal Doulton, Torquay Ware, Wedgwood, Bunnykins and Toby characters to name a few. From the elegant to the ostentatious, this is a unique antique emporium which also features a tearoom where you can indulge in a Devonshire tea or traditional high tea.

Travel back in time and learn about ‘The Dreaming’ — the mythical period when the earth, Aboriginal people, animals, and landscapes were created. This multi award-winning Aboriginal walkabout adventure will enrich you with its ancient wisdom. Aboriginal owned and guided, you will follow an original walkabout song line of sacred sites through a beautiful and secluded rainforest gully. Walk gently and listen carefully to what the natural bush, fascinating art and ceremonial sites have to tell.

The Blue Mountains Adventure Company is an abseiling, rock-climbing, canyoning and bushwalking specialist. Take on an action-packed adventure, combining an abseiling course and canyon trip: wading, swimming and a thrilling abseil await you. Operating for more than 30 years, the company offers courses for all levels of experience, from novice to advance thrill-seekers.

With a world-class collection of plants, this splendid botanic garden is some 1,000 metres above sea level and enjoys spectacular views. See the famous Wollemi pine, nicknamed the dinosaur tree. The tree was discovered in 1994, deep in a gorge in the Wollemi National Park, part of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area. Guided tours are available, including an Aboriginal heritage tour

A treasure from the 1930s, the elegant and tranquil gardens are acclaimed by garden lovers worldwide and draw inspiration from the great traditions of European landscape design. You’ll also enjoy breathtaking views of the Blue Mountains. The Art Déco Everglades House features a gallery, gift shop and tea rooms. The tea rooms in the house and courtyard are open seven days a week.

The picturesque fairways of the Blue Mountains draw in many avid golfers from across the region and around the world. Choose from many notable courses, all with sensational views of the World Heritage wilderness. Wentworth Falls Country Club Blaxland Road, Wentworth Falls NSW +61 2 4757 1202 www.wfcc.com.au/cms Blackheath Golf & Community Club Brightlands Avenue, Blackheath NSW +61 2 4787 8406 blackheathgolf.com.au Leura Golf Club Sublime Point Road, Leura NSW +61 2 4785 0035 www.leuragolfclub.com.au Springwood Country Club 84 Hawkesbury Road, Springwood NSW +61 2 4751 1122 www.springwoodgolfclub.com.au

Govetts Leap Lookout is a popular spot to stop and view the spectacular panorama before descending into the Grose Valley. Here you’ll find one of the region’s more physical walks where you can view the towering cliffs leading back up to Perry Lookdown and Evans Lookout. At the top of the escarpment is a picnic ground, toilets and access to cliff top walks, including the Fairfax Heritage Track which is suitable for wheelchairs and prams.

Leura Cascades is a popular picnic area set amid tall eucalypts. Take a walk beside the nearby rapids on Leura Falls Creek, down to Bridal Veil Falls and Leura Falls. Other longer walks take you along the cliff tops to Echo Point or down through the Leura Forest and via the Federal or Dardanelles Passes to Katoomba.

Recognised as one of Australia’s most renowned artists and authors, Norman Lindsay made his home in the Blue Mountains and produced an array of drawings, etchings, woodcuts, watercolours and sculptures. As the author of The Magic Pudding, a children’s classic, he is regarded as one of Australia’s literary icons. His sandstone home is now a museum which displays his artistic work as well as his superb gardens.

At Scenic World you choose how you take in the spectacular sites of the Three Sisters, Katoomba Falls and Jamison Valley. Impressive 360-degree views are the highlight of Scenic Skyway’s glass-bottomed carriage. Travelling 270 metres above ancient ravines, it’s Australia’s highest cable car. You can also ride on the Scenic Railway, the world’s steepest passenger railway, and discover the thrill of a 52-degree incline. For a gentler experience, descend into the valleys on Scenic Cableway to see nature at its most spectacular and then amble along the 2.4-kilometre elevated Scenic Walkway through a towering Jurassic rainforest. Unlimited rides on all four experiences are included in the one ticket price.

Within Blue Mountains National Park, five minutes from the highway, is one of the most majestic waterfalls on the plateau. The falls occur where the Jamison Creek drops over the escarpment and plunges 297 metres over the upper and lower falls into a large pool before flowing down the creek into the Valley of the Waters. Bushwalks in the area vary from short 10 minutes to full day walks in the valley. National Parks and Wildlife Services produce a booklet with maps and information on the walks. Barbecue and picnic facilities are available and it is about two kilometres from Wentworth Falls train station.