Blue Mountains Sunset Tour Review 2026: Stargazing
Planning a Sydney trip? Read our 2026 Blue Mountains sunset and stargazing tour review, featuring a magical stop to meet quokkas at Featherdale Wildlife Park.
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Planning a Sydney trip? Read our 2026 Blue Mountains sunset and stargazing tour review, featuring a magical stop to meet quokkas at Featherdale Wildlife Park.
Sydney Blue Mountains Stargazing Day Tour: Sunset & Featherdale Wildlife Park
If you're planning a trip to Sydney, Australia, a Blue Mountains tour is probably at the top of your list. I ended up booking an afternoon-departure tour that included stargazing—something that's hard to experience back home—and a visit to Featherdale Wildlife Park to see the adorable quokkas! If you want to experience the absolute peak of Australian nature rather than just riding the Scenic World cable car, check out my review of this Stargazing & Sunset Tour.
Blue Mountains Stargazing Tour Itinerary + Featherdale Wildlife Park
While Featherdale Wildlife Park isn't a mandatory part of the stargazing tour, I added it on since we were already heading west of Sydney. It was the perfect choice because I got to see quokkas and make my day trip so much more fulfilling!
Check out this post for my full review of Featherdale Wildlife Park.
🔻Featherdale Wildlife Park Quokka Review🔻
Australia Sydney Featherdale Wildlife Park Tickets & Quokka Tour Recommendation
*Note: From October (when Sydney's daylight saving time starts) until late March 2026, the sunset is much later, so the tour schedule adjusted accordingly!
Pickup
The day before our Blue Mountains Stargazing & Sunset Tour, they sent us the exact departure time and vehicle details via KakaoTalk. Having the license plate number made it super easy to spot the car without any confusion.
The pickup point was right in front of the Rydges Hotel, which is incredibly accessible from Sydney CBD. Coincidentally, there was traffic control due to a protest starting around 12:40 PM that day, meaning vehicles couldn't enter Pitt Street.
Thankfully, they quickly shifted the pickup spot to a nearby location, allowing us to board smoothly and head off to our first stop: Featherdale.
Since most travelers stay in the city center, it's perfect to spend a relaxing morning at a Surry Hills brunch cafe before joining the afternoon tour!
1. Featherdale Wildlife Park & Quokkas
After about a 40-minute drive from the city, we arrived at our first destination: Featherdale.
Many people recommend visiting right at opening time (open run), but that leaves too much of a gap before sunset. That's why the afternoon itinerary works so much better!
As soon as we entered, we headed straight to the quokkas! I had been looking forward to this so much. They're incredibly tiny, and seeing them holding their hands together is just the most adorable thing ever, isn't it?
We were so lucky—all the animals were super active! We even got to feed an albino kangaroo!
I highly recommend buying some kangaroo feed at the entrance! You can feed them and take as many photos as you want. I'm a huge animal lover, to the point where I always pet the dogs that customers bring to cafes, haha.
*The tour I used also offered a discount for taking photos with koalas, dropping the price from $35 to $20 for up to 6 people!
🔻The Blue Mountains Sunset Tour I Took🔻
2. Blue Mountains: Lincoln's Rock & Three Sisters
We drove about an hour west from Featherdale Wildlife Park. On the way, our guide shared fascinating stories about the Blue Mountains, essential travel tips for Australia, and even local restaurant recommendations!
Our guide snapped some epic lifetime shots for us at Lincoln's Rock, famously known as "Jenny's Rock." We spent our free time exploring all the different photo spots, and time just flew by so fast... I was so sad to leave! 😭
Since we wanted to avoid the crowds from other tour groups (which would mean waiting forever for our food!), we headed to the restaurant first. Right after dinner, we arrived at the Three Sisters!
Personally, seeing the Three Sisters bathed in the spotlight of the sunset was absolutely breathtaking. The photos turned out amazing too, which made me so happy!
After dinner, I grabbed the long-sleeved shirt I'd left in the car. A chilly breeze was starting to blow, and it was getting quite cold.
🔻Pro Tips for Blue Mountains, Lincoln's Rock & Three Sisters🔻
How to Get to Sydney's Blue Mountains: Jenny's Rock, Lincoln's Rock, & Three Sisters
3. Dinner
We had dinner in the charming Katoomba Village that evening. Depending on the day of the week, the dinner spot is chosen between Leura Village and Katoomba Village to avoid closed restaurants or crazy crowds.
Other tour groups we saw back at Lincoln's Rock only started walking into the restaurant while we were already eating...! Wow...! If we hadn't come early, we might have ended up missing the sunset altogether...!
I absolutely loved that we got to choose whatever we wanted for dinner! On some tours—like in Southeast Asia—you're sometimes forced to eat a mediocre set menu. Exploring local food is such a huge part of traveling, so that always felt like a bit of a letdown.
There are tons of great spots nearby, serving everything from Korean, Western, Japanese, to Thai food, so having that free time to eat whatever we craved was fantastic.
🔻My Top Personal Restaurant Recommendations in Katoomba, Blue Mountains🔻
Katoomba Restaurants in Blue Mountains, Sydney: Thai Basil Nut Cafe & Sunset Tour
4. Sunset over the Blue Mountains
They adjust the tour itinerary to match the exact sunset time of each season.
I put all my trust in our guide, who knew all the best hidden photo spots.
As the sun began to set, a peaceful silence fell over the mountains, making the whole experience feel incredibly magical.
Apparently, the "secret spots" for the sunset tour vary depending on which guide you get! They really must be industry secrets...! These are the kinds of photos and memories we never would have captured if we hadn't joined this tour.
Isn't it absolutely stunning how the blue hues of the Blue Mountains shift minute by minute as the sun goes down?
5. Blue Mountains Stargazing Tour
This was the finale I was looking forward to the most: stargazing in the Blue Mountains. Whenever I traveled around the Australian Outback in a campervan, this was always my absolute favorite moment—the time to wrap yourself in a blanket of the Milky Way.
Even on such a clear day, clouds can suddenly roll in. So, we headed to another spot to catch the stars!
But it was the same story there. Our guide, who visits the Blue Mountains almost daily, predicted that because there was no wind, the clouds wouldn't clear up anytime soon.
We quickly huddled up with our tour mates and decided to pivot—switching our itinerary to a North Sydney night view hotspot!
But honestly, the city skyline at night is so gorgeous... (?)
I'm so glad we got to see these "city stars" instead. Since most of us were staying in the city, seeing the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House lit up from the opposite side was an absolute hit for everyone!
Tour Review
After the tour wrapped up, we headed straight home from North Sydney.
It felt so satisfying to pack so many amazing experiences into a single day of our Sydney trip!
Featherdale Wildlife Park during the day, the sunset at the Blue Mountains, and Sydney's iconic night skyline to wrap it up—it was absolutely perfect.
When you travel to Sydney, there's so much to do during the day—like markets, brunch, and shopping—but don't you find that planning your evening plans can be a bit tricky?
Personally, I found the evening Blue Mountains Sunset Tour even better than a daytime one.
1. I loved that it was a small-group tour with a maximum of 13 passengers. (There's also a private tour option if you're traveling just with family or friends!)
2. The ultimate perk of making the most of your morning beforehand.
3. You get taken to secret sunset and stargazing spots.
4. Far fewer crowds at the sights compared to morning tours.
If you book through the links below, you can get discounts ranging from 5% up to 20%, so make sure to book in advance!
🔻13-Passenger Small Group Blue Mountains Sunset Tour🔻
🔻Private Blue Mountains Sunset Tour🔻
Sydney, Australia Travel Info Round-up
🔻Sydney Cafe: AP Bakery🔻
Sydney Surry Hills Cafe AP Bakery: A Must-Visit Brunch and Bakery Spot
📍 Sydney
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
📍 Three Sisters
Katoomba NSW 2780, Australia
📍 Lincoln's Rock
51 Little Switzerland Dr, Wentworth Falls NSW 2782, Australia
📍 Leura Village Pie Shop
201/131 Leura Mall, Leura NSW 2780, Australia
The standard cost for a photo with a koala is $35. However, if you join this tour, up to 6 people can take a photo at a discounted price of $20.
The tour pickup takes place in front of the Rydges Hotel in Sydney City. After boarding, it takes about 40 minutes by car to reach the first destination, Featherdale Wildlife Park.
From October to the end of March 2026, daylight saving time is in effect, which means the sunset time is later. The entire tour schedule is adjusted accordingly so that you can watch the sunset.
Depending on the day of the tour and the crowds, dinner will be in either Katoomba or Leura. You can freely choose from a variety of restaurants, including Korean, Western, Japanese, and Thai cuisines, and enjoy your meal.
If stargazing is difficult due to weather conditions, we will discuss with the tour members and change to an alternative itinerary. In a past tour, we moved to a night view spot in North Sydney to enjoy the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.
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