Blue Mountains Hop On Hop Off Tour

The staff and drivers are so very friendly and helpful! I would highly recommend this, as it makes walks/hikes easier and quicker.

We enjoyed the bus service which we used over a three day visit. There are multiple stops and the driver ( the amazingly cheerful and helpful Ella) summarises what you can do at each stop. Do the walk or see the sights and get on the next bus which will be there in one hour. The walks are of variable intensity and all the ones we did involved steps, sometimes a lot of steps… It was great and the scenery is off the charts beautiful. If you’re only there for one day you won’t have time to get off at each stop. You can use the pass over three days at no additional charge although admission to scenic world will only be for one day. Anyway, highly recommended especially good value for a multi day use.

The Hop on Hop Off Bus is a comfortable ride around a small area of the Blue Mountains in and near Katoomba. It has some great drivers who give some witty and informative commentary around the circuit (granted if you get the same driver again it's the same jokes and info). All drivers are different in their commentary. I was staying at the YHA for three days so I got the pass extended for three days by going into the office next to the train station. I incidentally bought the pass as a combo with Scenic World when I bought my ticket for their on their official site. But what makes the pass not as good as it should be is firstly the first bus isn't until 9:15am. That bus too only goes to Echo Point and the five stops before it in town then Honeymoon track to Echo. So if it is raining and misty and you can't see the three siblings, then you can't get to any other walks until the 9:45am bus. The bus takes roughly an hour to do the circuit. So it's 10:30 or later until you get to somewhere to hike, there really needs to be buses from 8am or earlier. Also the last bus for the day leaves stop 1 (Katoomba station end of Katoomba St) at 4:45pm. Meaning if you get off one at three or something, there is no guarantee there will be a bus to pick you up when your hike is over. They really should keep running until at least an hour after dark. Plus there aren't enough buses throughout the day. There's literally only one bus (I mean I'm sure there's a spare one if the one running breaks down or has an accident) but there's only one running the whole day. There really needs to be at least two, so you've got one on the half hour as you shouldn't have to worry a bus won't be there for almost an hour when you emerge from your hike, as often you don't know how long it will take to get to where the track comes out and how close it is to the red bus stop. Even better would be to have one going the opposite direction too as obviously most after going to Scenic World would be going to Echo Point. What also isn't well thought out is due to how much it rains, is that your pass for up to three days is a folded stapled together bunch of A4 printouts. I'm not saying do away with the booklet, but a credit card sized pass would be better as you can put it in your wallet to protect it. If you're going to Scenic World (which you should if you haven't been) don't get off at the Skyway stop, as it doesn't come over until it is filled with passengers, then you get to scenic world and there is just one staff member writing in the number on the paper pass or the barcode if you bought it through them. Takes over half an hour to get in. Don't know why the Hop on Hop Off office near the train station doesn't give you wrist bands when they give you booklet like all the other tour companies walking past you already have on? Of the walks I'd recommend the most stop 21, Lyrebird Dell, where you can walk past a nice waterfall, some caves, and continue walking along interesting paths and stepping stones to Pool of Sibam. Then exit up the stairs to Gordon Falls lookout to catch the bus at either stop 9 or 8 (you can literally see each of these stops from the other). The other reason I would just do local buses next time is they go everywhere this bus does, but this bus doesn't do Wentworth Falls, Jenolan Caves or places like that, which you may have come to The Blue Mountains to see. In fact it doesn't even go to the Katoomba on the other side of the railway tracks, where the court house, local council, cinema, only 10c bottle/can deposit refund machine in Katoomba/Leura area are.