How To Do the New Grand Cliff Top Walk in One Day

The Grand Cliff Top Walk in the Blue Mountains officially opened in March 2024, and is a 19 kilometre journey from Katoomba to Wentworth Falls or vice versa. The new walk now links old existing walks from Scenic World in Katoomba to Darwin’s Walk at Wilson Park.

Yes, 19 kilometres is quite the hike, but we chose to do the Grand Cliff Top Walk in just one day for several reasons.

Firstly, we have done parts of the walk before. Like a lot of visitors to the Blue Mountains, we have previously done the Three Sisters Walk, which starts at Echo Point and includes the Giant Stairway down to Honeymoon Bridge. On our previous visit it was a clear day, with fantastic views of the Three Sisters, as seen in the image below.

On the day we were to do the Grand Cliff Top Walk, however, it was rainy, and the valley was shrouded in mist and cloud. Therefore, we decided that walking the nearly 1000 stairs down to Honeymoon Bridge wouldn’t be worth it, as we wouldn’t see much when we got there.

This brings me to the second reason we chose to do the Grand Cliff Top Walk in one day. On the day we arrived in Katoomba it was a scorching 43 degrees Celsius! There was no way we were going on a hike in those temperatures. Instead, we explored the lovely town of Katoomba and enjoyed the facilities of our gorgeous accommodation, The Carrington Hotel.

Where to Stay while doing the Grand Cliff Top Walk

To do the Grand Cliff Top Walk, the idea is that you stay at whichever end of the walk you are starting at, store the bulk of your luggage at that hotel, take what you will need for your stay in the middle of the walk, or at the other end of the walk, if you plan to do it in one day like us. Then return to your first hotel either by train or taxi at the end of your walk and collect your things.

Our hotel of choice in Katoomba was the historic and grand Carrington Hotel. For a small fee we were able to securely park our car there while we walked as well as store our luggage.

Anyone that has read my other posts will know I love a hotel with history, and the Carrington Hotel is full of stories of a bygone era. Built in 1883, it is the only 19th Century grand resort hotel in NSW still in use and so, was heritage listed in 1997. It is located in the heart of Katoomba on the main street, within easy walking distance of the beginning of our Grand Cliff Top Walk.

We enjoyed a cool beverage on the veranda, beneath stunning stained-glass windows, as the sun set, and planned our epic walk for the next day, which was predicted to be much cooler.

Alternatively, another hotel we adored in Katoomba is Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort. It is a luxury 5-star hotel a little further away from the centre of town but is closer to the beginning of the walk. If you are doing the walk in the reverse direction, may I point out that Lilianfels means less walking to your hotel at the end of your big hike, and they have a spa! Might be heavenly for aching feet?

Halfway along the walk is the town of Leura, most people doing the walk over 2 days, will stay the night here, before continuing the walk the next day. In fact, part of the Grand Cliff Top Walk, passes through the grounds of The Fairmont Hotel in Leura, which makes it the perfect stop along the way. We had booked accommodation for a night here, planning to do just that. However, we tweeked our plans just a little and continued walking to Wentworth Falls, then caught an Uber back To Leura for our second nights’ accommodation at The Fairmont Resort, after we finished the walk.

Exhausted, and with very sore feet, we loved our large room at the Fairmont, with on-site dining options, so we didn’t have to go too far to find food.

What to expect on the Grand Cliff Top Walk

Ok, so accommodation is sorted, now let’s get down to the business of doing the actual walk!

As I mentioned before, the day we walked, it was rainy, cool and cloudy. Although, we missed out on some of the scenic vistas along the way (many of which we have seen before), the advantages of walking on a day like we did included: much cooler walking weather, fewer people on the track (in fact, before we got to the Conservation Cafe, we saw a total of 5 people on the track!), fewer people means it was much quieter which leads to higher chances of wildlife spotting and finally, most importantly, the cooler weather means you are less likely to encounter snakes!

Katoomba

The Grand Cliff Top Walk is self-guided, and it is relatively easy to follow the signage along the way displaying the walk logo of a black cockatoo on a blue-sky background. However, be aware, sometimes the signs are hard to spot, especially when you get to Leura!

Begin your walk by passing through the iconic stone arch that marks the entry to the Blue Mountains National Park, you will soon see your first Grand Cliff Top Walk sign pointing the way. Look for native animal sculptures along the way, many of which you will see in real life on your walk, if you are lucky.

Continue on past the Three Sisters, and stunning waterfalls including Bridal Veil Falls. The day we walked, a section of the track near Leura Falls was closed, making our task of completing the walk in one day a bit easier. It was at this point we found ourselves walking along the roadside. Not very scenic, but easy walking.

Leura

We stopped to grab a hot chocolate at a great little coffee van in Leura, the barista told us that the Pools of Siloam were still open and worth a look, so we took his advice and continued along the track to reach the pools.

Before long, the track comes back to the road and this is where you need to be a bit careful. We took a wrong turn when we entered the grounds of the Fairmont Resort. Be sure to go down the actual driveway and not the track to the golf course (it is not signed at this point, or if it was, we didn’t see it, so it wasn’t clear).

The track skirts around the back of the resort and continues on.

It was on the next stretch of the track that I was lucky enough to spot not 1, not 2 but 3 Lyrebirds! As I said earlier, we pretty much had the entire track to ourselves up until this point. The closer you get to the Conservation Hut and cafe, the more people you will encounter. The cafe is a good place to rest the feet for a while, or alternatively at the Wentworth Falls picnic area.

Wentworth Falls

This is where we decided to finish our walk…. the feet were starting to cramp! We can’t say we did the complete Grand Cliff Top Walk as parts of the track were closed and we skipped a section at the beginning that we had seen before. We were in training for our upcoming multi-day walk on The Overland Track, so wanted to push ourselves. If you want to enjoy a more leisurely pace and take in the Giant Stairway, I recommend breaking up the walk over two days, especially if the track is crowded. But if you are pushed for time, and have walked sections of the track before, it is certainly achievable in one day.

How difficult is the Grand Cliff Top Walk?

The Blue Mountains is one of my favourite destinations for short walks and now that the short walks are combined, you can make your walk as challenging as you want. You can enter and exit the walk at multiple points along the Grand Cliff Top Walk enabling you to plan a walk that suits your needs.

This was not the most difficult walk I have done, but it was no walk in the park either! Don’t be fooled into thinking that you are walking along the clifftops the whole time (like I did!). There are descents into valleys and ascents up quite a few stairs along the way. Having said that, if you are a relatively fit, you will be able to complete this walk without too much trouble.

The Grand Cliff Top Walk is new; however, weather conditions still impact the track, and some closures may be inevitable.

Another one of my favourite walks that you can make as short or long as you want, with optional side walks, is in Carnarvon Gorge. Here is a link to the Carnarvon Gorge Walk.

Other Things to Do While Visiting the Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains National Park is stunning, and we have visited a few times. Apart from the magnificent walks, here are a few other things worth doing while you are in the area.

Explore Scenic World

If it is your first visit to the Blue Mountains, taking the cable car across the scenic Jamison Valley and a ride on the steepest passenger railway in the world at Scenic World, is must-do.

Visit the Hydro Majestic

You don’t have to stay there, although it would be lovely! The Hydro Majestic was once a groundbreaking health resort and is now a grand historic hotel located along the escarpment of the breathtaking Megalong Valley. You can go and have a look around at this gorgeous, art-deco inspired hotel and perhaps book in for one of their famous high teas!

Go Antique Shopping

There are numerous antique shops in the Blue Mountains. We loved the Victory Theatre Antique Centre in Blackheath, and spent a few hours and more than a few dollars in this treasure trove.

Visit lovely public gardens

There are several beautiful gardens in the Blue Mountains that you can visit. We visited the Campbell Rhododendron Garden in Blackheath, which was lovely but not the right time of year to see it in its full blooming splendor.

Have you done any of the walks in the Blue Mountains? What did you think? What are some of your favourite walking tracks? We have just booked in for another multi-day walk on Maria Island in Tasmania, so will be on the hunt for day walks to get into shape!