We always wanted to visit The Jenolan Caves in the Blue Mountains, as it claimed as "the most spectacular and most famous cave in Australia". Having seen its website, I agree that the caves at Jenolan are so beautiful!!
But it is 175 km away from Sydney, we will have to spare two days in Blue Mountains to visit Scenic World and The Jenolan Caves. Or, if we wanted to have a day trip to both of the places, then we should hire a car. That's why we postponed visiting The Jenolan Caves until our third holiday in Sydney. We had plenty of time, and we rented a Hyundai from Apex. Perfect! A visit to Jenolan Caves was finally in our itinerary :)
Grand Arch, the entrance to Jenolan Caves complex |
We left Katoomba after our lunch, our Orient Cave Tour was scheduled at 3.45pm. We had checked through our GPS that it would take 2 hours driving from Katoomba to The Jenolan Caves. So we had some spare time to enjoy the view along the way. Somehow, it reminded us to the selfdrive we did in New Zealand.
Can you see the sheeps? |
Finally we arrived at The Jenolan Caves complex, it was rainy on our way from Katoomba, with a thunderstorm too. Fortunately, when we reached The Jenolan Caves complex, the rain had just stopped. We sat at the picnic area near the parking place, and had our pasta that we prepared at our rented house in Leura from Airbnb. But suddenly the rain came again, and we had to run all the way from parking place to the ticket office building.
The Jenolan Cave Complex, the building is cafe and also the accommodation |
The ticket office building |
We got the ticket to join the Orient Cave Tour, we were advised to wait just opposite the ticket office building. There are some chairs and tables available at the area, so we waited until the guide calls our group to go into the cave.
I was confuse to choose which cave to go. There are several tours available, I read the show cave tour one by one. From The Jenolan Caves' website, I understand that the most visited tour is the Lucas Cave Tour. But when I read that Orient Cave Tour is considered to the the most beautiful cave in the world, I decided to sign up for the Orient Cave Tour.
Our complimentary ticket |
The tour was delayed due to power outage in some of the caves. At 4 pm, a guide approach us and the group of Orient Cave tour were asked to follow her. We took some steps to reach the cave's entrance, and we entered the cave one by one. We were so EXCITED!
We were briefed when we were all inside of the cave |
The guide was really friendly and knows everything about the cave. We followed her to enjoy the beauty of the Orient Cave. You may see how beautiful the cave is with all the stalagtite and stalagmite all over the place.
Our Kiddos didn't have any difficulty to walk inside the cave. It has a kids friendly walkpath, we felt so save walking inside the cave.
The tour was 1,5 hours, and it was too short! We didn't realize how time flew so fast inside the cave, until the guide lead us to the exit, the same way as the entrance.
It was time to leave the cave |
When we exit the Orient Cave, the rain had stopped. So we walked to the Grand Arch before going to the parking place. It was almost 6 pm, so there weren't many people at the Grand Arch.
Visitors taking The Lucas Cave Tour should wait at the Grand Arch area |
For those who love trekking, the track is available for the bushwalking activity at the Jenolan Caves complex.
Beautiful surrounding of The Jenolan Caves' complex |
Finally it was time to go back to our parking place, we had to drive back all the way to Sydney that evening. We passed the lodge, with beautiful flowers in front of it.
It was great to be able to introduce how it was like to go inside the cave to our Kiddos. It was their first experience ever! And they were so lucky to see the most beautiful cave in the world for their first experience.
Thank you Jenolan Caves for the complimentary family pass. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to explore your magnificent Orient Cave:)
Plan your visit:
- You could take bus leaving from Katoomba to The Jenolan Caves. The Trolley Tours offers some attractive package that include the bus and ticket to the cave.
- However doing selfdrive from Sydney is the best way to reach The Jenolan Caves. We enjoyed the view along the way, and we could make some stops at the small towns.
- If you plan to visit the caves as well as doing the bushwalk, you are advised to sleep at Jenolan Caves' Accommodation.
The lobby of the Caves House. Lovely! |
- Bring along your snacks and drink as it is far away from shops. One shop available near the cafe was closed when we wanted to buy snacks for our Kiddos.
The cafe area |
written on February 8, 2015 by @tesyasblog
Previous Post:
looks like a great place to visit! amazing cave indeed...
ReplyDeleteYes it is Indah :)
Deleteakuu udah ke sini juga, kemarin pilih yang Chifley Cave kak, dan panic attack pas baru masuk dong =,=
ReplyDeleteodoongnyaa