Southern Highlands & South Coast Private Tour From Sydney

In May 2025, following a national Conference of one of my organisations in Sydney, my wife and I chose to do a South Coast and Southern Highlands tour with Go Beyond Tours on our last free day before returning to Brisbane, our hometown. From start to finish this was a good day out, for which we thank James our courteous and careful driver who also kept us informed about the various places we visited. It was nice that this was a private tour with just my wife and I and James as driver in a most comfortable touring car. The tour packed in a lot of attractions in this scenic part of New South Wales with pick up at 8:30am from our accommodation at the A by Adina and return at around 7pm. We certainly felt we received good value for money. We felt we were afforded ample time at each stop to fully appreciate the attractions on offer. First stop made 68 kilometres south of Sydney was Bald Hill Lookout in the Stanwell Tops area offering beautiful coastal, escarpment and cliff panoramic views including the zig zag Sea Cliff Bridge in the distance. It was a good time to stretch the legs at this first stop. The Flying High Café was there serving coffee and snacks – however we declined and chose to just sit and admire the incredible views. Next we travelled along the 665 metre Sea Cliff Bridge as it zigzagged around the coastline like a slivering snake. At the end of the bridge is a parking area where we were able to stop and admire the bridge close up. It construction has been monumental with the following facts gleaned from one of a number of weatherproof information signs installed there for visitors – 60,000 tonnes of rock imported to build the access track at sea level; 11,000 cubic metres of concrete used in the bridge structure; and more than 100 people working on the project. The bridge was built so the piers and bridge deck are well away from the rock fall hazards. It cost $ AUD 49 million to build and was opened on 11 December 2005 with a design life of over 100 years. Indeed an impressive engineering feat. From the Sea Cliff Bridge it was on to the Kiama Blowholes but not before a short stop at Sharky Beach at Coledale (17km north of Wollongong) – Nothing to write home about and perhaps just a chance for us to stretch the legs. The Kiama Blowhole was a big disappointment. There were several people watching and waiting like us; however it was all in vain as there was not a single powerful, upward spray or plume of seawater as we had expected and anticipated. We later learnt that this situation is not uncommon and it does highlight the unpredictability of “Mother Nature”. Still, we did admire the impressive Kiama Lighthouse nearby. All was not lost, however, in the Blowhole stakes because we had made a stop beforehand to Endeavour Lookout, also in Kiama, and witnessed the far more reliable Little Blowhole (reviewed separately) and she performed a treat and consistently with sprays at times up to 10 metres high. That was an amazing experience and made up for missing out on the main event. Lunch was had in Kiama (120 km south of Sydney) and we opted for the historic Grand Hotel (established 1891), which was being extensively renovated, and we enjoyed a great meal. I have reviewed this hotel separately. It was pleasing that James chose to eat with us rather than cocoon himself on his lonesome elsewhere, like many tour operators often do. James was surprised when we chose “The Grand” as he had not considered that as an option before – however, like us, he was impressed enough to agree to include this hotel in the lunch options for future tours. We enjoyed a good walk around the streets of this charming beach town after lunch – the historic Post Office building (built 1879) in particular, on coastal Terralong Street, was a standout feature on our walk. The tour continued after lunch with a lovely drive through the Southern Highlands with a first stop at The Lookout Cambewarra Mountain (28 km west of Gerringong), which commands a magnificent panorama of Shoalhaven City, stretching from Coolangatta Mountain in the north, way down to Pigeon House Mountain just inland from Ulladulla, in the south. There is also an award winning restaurant here (we did not go in) which has operated since 1909 apparently. On to the famous Robertson Pie Shop (reviewed separately) in Robertson (where my wife and I bought cold pies to heat up for our dinner) before the “jewels in the crown” on this grand tour – Carrington and Fitzroy Falls (both reviewed separately). These are two spectacular waterfalls distinctively different in their own way. Driver James definitely saved the best for last. Carrington Falls are reached from a car park picnic area via an easy walk along a beautifully constructed walkway that loops around the edge of the escarpment, passing several lookouts as well as banksia trees. The sight of the Falls is quite incredible as the water cascades 90m down to the Kangaroo River below. The circuit loop from picnic area back to picnic area is 570 metres. Fitzroy Falls were reached via an easy 150 metre walk to a lookout with good safety rails. From the lookout, we had a perfect view of the top of Fitzroy Falls as it cascades over prominent sandstone cliffs into the gorge below. What sheer majesty! The water descends nearly 100m before it makes its way through Yarrunga Valley toward the Shoalhaven River. That then is a snapshot of our impressive day tour on our last day of our short Sydney visit. If you have a day spare in your Sydney travel itinerary and you don’t have your own transport then a day tour of the South Coast and Southern Highlands is a good option. It follows that we would highly recommend your considering Go Beyond Tours to take you there. .

My husband and i had been on a fantastic Go Beyond Tours tour of Sydney in 2024 so I contacted Michael about the possibility of a southern highlands winery tour and he was able to customize this southern highlands tour to include two wineries plus a lunch stop at the 1834 Bistro. He was able to work with our firm deadline for getting back to our ship and all nine of us had a fantastic time and were still talking about that day several months later.

It’s a long day with beautiful scenery. We did just about everything listed in the description. We were very lucky to have gorgeous weather. Mike our tour guide was extremely friendly and well prepared. We had some great conversations about the areas we saw, and he took us to a great place for lunch. The vehicle was well maintained, and comfortable.