Weekend trips from Sydney offers you romantic getaways, a cozy country retreat, a gourmet feast, an unforgettable beach vacation, or surprise yourself by discovering some hidden gems you never knew existed.

Sydney is blessed with lots of cool places, amazing activities and adventures but sometimes everybody needs some time off from city life and go for new adventures and places to spice up life.

Whether you looking for romantic escapes, thrilling adventures, cosy rural retreat, gourmet feast, incredible beach break or surprise yourself to find some hidden gems you never thought existed.

To help you find some inspiration for your upcoming weekend, I have selected top 9 awesome weekend trips from Sydney.

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The Blue Mountains – Weekend trips from Sydney

UNESCO has listed the Blue Mountains as a World Heritage site. Less than 2 hours’ drive from Sydney and you will enjoy the best scenery, mountains, adventures walks, lookouts and many other places and attractions but sadly most visitors visit only a small part of the mountain. Due to plenty of Eucalyptus forests in the mountain it looks blue and that’s the reason, it is called Blue Mountains.

Blue Mountain is famous for its world’s steepest railway, Scenic Skyway and Cableway, breathtaking views, extraordinary hikes and plenty of wildlife. My favourite spot was visiting The Three Sisters and learn the story behind the name. You can take a pass and explore the mountain by the Blue Mountain Explorer Bus which allows you to hop in and hop off so that you can explore at your own pace.

If you love spooky and horror stories then you must visit Jenolan Caves. Personally,  I don’t believe it but some people have said that it is like haunted place and they have sighted ghosts there. There are plenty of more activities you can do over there and that’s the reason it’s one of the favourite weekend destinations for people who live in Sydney.

Jervis Bay – Weekend trips from Sydney

The irony of Jervis Bay is that not many people know about it. It is around 3 hours away from Sydney and the best part is you can reach there by tour bus, public transport (train & bus). I think the best way is to go by car so that you can stop at a couple of really cool places before you reach Jervis Bay.

It’s a paradise for nature lovers and you will enjoy the view of crystal clear and turquoise blue water from powdery snowy white sands beaches. You can enjoy swimming, surfing or just relaxing at Jervis Bay Beaches. Out of all the beaches, Hyams Beach is one of my favourite. It is a long beach, a small seaside village and famous for its powdery snowy white sands.

Great place to go for whale watching from May to November and if you are lucky you can spot dolphins as well. Snorkelling, kayaking and fishing are also very popular activities in Jervis Bay Marine Park and in Jervis national park you can do trail walking as well as bird watching.

The Hunter Valley – Weekend trips from Sydney

The Hunter Valley is one of Australia’s most famous wine regions, around 250 kilometres away from Sydney. It’s home to numerous wineries and offers premium fine wines and is known for the best vineyard tours and wine tasting. Most of the cellars are located near the Hunter River.

Apart from wine, there is so much more to explore such as gardens, beaches, lakes, national parks and nature reserves, golf and outstanding spas.

You can also enjoy gourmet delights in restaurants, ride on hot air balloons, a helicopter ride to see the spectacular view of Hunter Valley should be on your to do list. During Christmas, there is the Christmas light show in Gorgeous Hunter Valley Garden, a lifetime experience not to be missed.

Port Stephens – Weekend trips from Sydney

Less than 3 hours’ drive from the busy life of Sydney, you will be in Port Stephens which offers you stunning sandy beaches, sand dunes, national parks, coastal walks, and many more.

You don’t have to go to Dubai to enjoy beautiful sandscape activities such as Quad biking, Camel riding, 4WD and sand-boarding in sand dunes. You can do all sand dunes amazing adventures at Worimi Conservation Lands at Anna Bay in Port Stephens.

You can enjoy swimming in turquoise blue water and there are over 20 magnificent beaches to choose from. It is a great place to enjoy water sports activities such as parasailing, snorkelling, surfing, fishing, stand-up paddle boarding and many more.

You can spot friendly bottlenose dolphins and you can take a tour to see whales and dolphins, gorgeous water creatures.

Have you ever been to Mount Tomaree? if not, it’s the best place to see beautiful nature and wildlife.  Hiking till the top is a must to enjoy the breathtaking view, you can also try mountain biking through trails will give you memorable experiences.

Kangaroo Valley – Weekend trips from Sydney

Kangaroo Valley is considered as the heaven of New South Wales. There are Canoeing, golf, bushwalking, swimming, waterfalls, bike riding, lookouts, scenic roads, wine tasting and many more activities you can do in Kangaroo Valley. No wonder, it is popular and perfect for weekend trips.

You can learn about the historic settlement in Pioneer Museum Park and drive across iconic Hampden Bridge which was built in 1898. There are plenty of antiques & collectables shops along with cafes and restaurants to enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Enjoy an unforgettable time at cruises and watch whales and dolphins. Lastly, enjoy beautiful rides going in and out of the Valley.

Newcastle – Weekend trips from Sydney

Just above two hours of drive from Sydney and you will reach the harbour city of New South Wales called Newcastle. Stunning beaches are linked by the Bathers Way.

I suggest you should visit Bogey Hole. Not many people know about it but during the colonial period, convicts built an ocean bath known as Bogey Hole. Fort Scratchley offers you an incredible view of the region and if you are lucky you can spot dolphins.

Good news for coastal walk lovers, there is a big coastal walk between Nobbys Beach and Merewether Beach and both Bogey Hole and Fort Scratchley fall in between your walk.

To experience something different, you can take a crime tour which takes you on a journey back to Dark Side, the city’s most ruthless criminals.

Apart from enjoying a great time at glorious beaches, Newcastle offers plenty of activities such splendid craft breweries and pub walking tour, ride in new light rail, 450 meter scenic walk and silhouettes of ANZAC soldiers in Newcastle Memorial Walk, tracks for cycling,  whale watching tour, small caves and many more fun things.

Berry – Weekend trips from Sydney

Berry is a beautiful rural country town which is located in the Southern Highlands. Famous for its picturesque old buildings, architecture and green hill, Berry offers you a wide range of activities such as boutique shopping, locally produced premium wines and high quality restaurants, well known monthly markets, stunning beaches, scenic drive and a superb view of the countryside, historic Courthouse, picnic area and playgrounds for kids and many more.

Canberra – Capital of Australia

Canberra is the capital, well planned and largest inland city of Australia. This should be on your list for weekend trips from Sydney. The City is a heaven for art lovers and historians. The National Gallery of Australia holds over 160,000 works of art and one of Australia’s largest art museums is found in Canberra.

The Australian War Memorial is free and a must visit attraction in Canberra, it offers you to learn about the history of Australian soldiers who sacrificed their lives in World War, the weapons and transport used during world war and has an impressive museum.

Have you ever heard about miniature garden? Well, family owned miniature English Cockington Green garden provides a very unique experience for all ages.

To feel Australia’s powerful democracy in action, you must take a guided tour of the Australian Parliament House.

From Mount Ainslie lookout you can see an incredible view of the Parliament, Australian War Memorial and City centre. You can explore the street art; enjoy food at a variety of best restaurants, hike to Booroomba Rocks, shop at the best vintage shops and enjoy many more fun activities only in Canberra.

Ulladulla and Mollymook – Weekend trips from Sydney

Ulladulla is a coastal town around 250 kilometres from Sydney,  it is famous for its fresh seafoods, especially freshly caught oyster and fish and you can enjoy the best seafood from the local restaurants.

The best place to enjoy fishing, surfing and swimming as well as enjoy panoramic views from Morton National Park.

Moreover, you can also spot whales, experience millions of years old natural rock platforms at Gondwana Coast Fossil Walk, stunning sunset at Ulladulla Harbour, lakes and beautiful beaches of Meroo National Park.

The Mollymook area is famous for its beautiful nature, native wildlife, snowy white sands and pristine, crystal clear and turquoise blue waters, and astonishing ocean views.

Check out other attractions and places also Five Astonishing Newcastle Beaches, Incredible Gold Coast Beaches, Bicentennial Walk Airlie Beach, Airlie Beach, Best Beaches in Australia, 

Summary of 9 Weekend trips from Sydney

• Blue Mountain :- Blue Mountain is famous for its world’s steepest railway, Scenic Skyway and Cableway, breathtaking views, extraordinary hikes and plenty of wildlife.
• Jervis Bay :- It’s a paradise for nature lovers and you will enjoy the view of crystal clear and turquoise blue water from powdery snowy white sands beaches.
• The Hunter Valley :- It’s home to numerous wineries and offers premium fine wines and is known for the best vineyard tours and wine tasting.
• Port Stephens  :- Less than 3 hours’ drive from the busy life of Sydney, you will be in Port Stephens which offers you stunning sandy beaches, sand dunes, national parks, coastal walks, and many more.
• Kangaroo Valley :- Kangaroo Valley is considered as the heaven of New South Wales. There are Canoeing, golf, bushwalking, swimming, waterfalls, bike riding, lookouts, scenic roads, wine tasting and many more activities you can do in Kangaroo Valley.
• Newcastle :- Just above two hours of drive from Sydney and you will reach the harbour city of New South Wales called Newcastle. Stunning beaches are linked by the Bathers Way.
• Berry :- Berry is a beautiful rural country town which is located in the Southern Highlands.
• Canberra  :- The capital of Australia, Canberra is a heaven for art lovers and historians.
• Ulladulla :- Ulladulla is a coastal town around 250 kilometres from Sydney,  it is famous for its fresh seafoods, especially freshly caught oyster and fish and you can enjoy the best seafood from the local restaurants.
• Mollymook : – The Mollymook area is famous for its beautiful nature, native wildlife, snowy white sands and pristine, crystal clear and turquoise blue waters, and astonishing ocean views.