Sydney is a great urban base but there are also lots of interesting day trips outside of the city if you are looking to explore more of New South Wales.Here are five of the best day trips from Sydney.
Hunter Valley
The Hunter Valley is two hours drive outside of Sydney. It is famous for it’s beautiful green, rolling landscape and the many vineyards in the area. Many day trippers stop off at the Hunter Valley Gardens which boasts sixty acres of landscaped garden, eight kilometres of walking paths and over six thousand tress.
Blue Mountains
The Blue Mountains is a large region to the West of Sydney centred on Katoomba. It is most famous for The Three Sisters which is a rock outcrop which can be seen from a popular viewing point. There are also many interesting walks around The Three Sisters area with spectacular views and leading to interesting hiddens gems such as the Katoomba Falls.
Driving to the Blue Mountains from Sydney takes between one to two hours depending on where you stop. It is more of a winter weekend spot as it tends to get too hot in the Summer months.
Canberra
The striking view of parliament house as you drive down Commonwealth Avenue is the main draw of Canberra. It’s a solid three hour drive however as you get closer to the ACT there are many wineries. It’s worth breaking up the journey with stop for a tasting session, a spot of lunch or to pick up a few bottles at places like Shaw vineyards or Eden road wines.
Canberra itself is a very spread out city and makes a striking contrast to the high rise nature of Sydney. It’s fun to wander around spotting various embassies.
Lake George is found at the foot of Parliament House. Bikes are available for hire and the round trip takes four hours on one, or seven hours on foot. You also hire pedalos to take a gentle paddle on the lake.
Southern Highlands
The Southern Highlands start around one hours drive outside of Sydney and are a combination of picturesque towns, rolling British-like countryside and cold climate vineyards. The main towns are Berrima and Mittagong. Berrima is a charming colonial town built around the idea of an English Village common.
In recent years the region has started to develop a name for cold climate wines – such as Riesling and Chardonnay. A trip round the vineyards is good fun with great cellar doors such as Artemis and Centennial.
Port Stephens
Port Stephens and Nelson Bay are around two and a half hours drive from Sydney. It boasts stunning beaches and an interesting, and visible, array of marine wildlife. It’s a great spot for fishing, whale and dolphin watching and boating.