Royal National Park

Absolutely stunning! The Royal National Park is a must-visit for nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts. From the dramatic coastal cliffs and pristine beaches to lush rainforests and scenic walking trails, every corner of this park offers something breathtaking. Easy access from Sydney makes it perfect for a day trip or a weekend escape. Well-maintained tracks, diverse wildlife, and incredible views.

The Royal National Park is a true gem! From breathtaking coastal views to lush bushwalks and serene picnic spots, this place has something for everyone. We spent the day hiking along the Coast Track and were blown away by the dramatic cliffs, ocean breezes, and secluded beaches. The walking trails are well-marked and suitable for various fitness levels. There’s also plenty of wildlife—saw some beautiful birds and even a goanna! Parking was easy, and the facilities were clean and well maintained. Highly recommend this park for anyone wanting to reconnect with nature or just enjoy a peaceful day outdoors. Don’t forget your camera—every turn is a postcard! ⸻ Let me know if you want to mention a specific activity, trail, or part of the park you enjoyed

Gorgeous Hike through the ‘Uloola Trail’ down to the waterfall. It was a bit long but gorgeous!! Fairly flat trail yet so lovely.

Royal National Park, located just south of Sydney, New South Wales, is the second-oldest national park in the world, established in 1879. Covering more than 15,000 hectares, it offers an incredible range of natural landscapes including coastal cliffs, sandy beaches, lush rainforests, freshwater lagoons, and eucalyptus woodlands. The park is a beloved destination for nature lovers, hikers, photographers, and families seeking outdoor adventures. One of the most famous walking routes is the Coast Track, a 26 km trail that stretches from Bundeena to Otford. Along this route, visitors can experience breathtaking ocean views, dramatic cliffs, and secluded beaches. Highlights include Wedding Cake Rock, a stark white sandstone formation that looks like a slice of cake, and the Figure Eight Pools, natural rock formations shaped like the number eight. These pools are a popular but risky attraction and should only be visited during low tide. The park also features beautiful spots like Garie Beach, popular for surfing and coastal views, Karloo Pool, a hidden freshwater swimming spot, and Wattamolla, a scenic area with a lagoon, beach, and picnic facilities. Wildlife in the park is diverse, with over 300 species of birds, including cockatoos, rosellas, and lyrebirds. You may also spot wallabies, possums, and various reptiles as you explore. Popular activities include hiking, birdwatching, cycling on trails like Lady Carrington Drive, camping at designated spots like North Era or Uloola Falls, and relaxing with family at picnic and BBQ areas throughout the park. Royal National Park is accessible by car (with a daily entry fee) and by public transport, including trains to nearby stations and a ferry from Cronulla to Bundeena. It's a fantastic destination for both day trips and weekend getaways, offering something for every type of outdoor enthusiast.

Huge park in the south of Sydney, a mix of forest and beach. It is beautiful all along the way.

Amazing, breathtaking experience. Great scenery, fantastic nature trails, and beautiful wildlife. The call of the kookaburra never gets old. Went on a perfect day and welcomed the lack of phone reception. The peaceful sounds of nature, the wildlife, the plant and ocean scenery all combined for an experience I'll never forget. I wanted to give myself more time to see more of the trails, but I'll definitely be back. Strongly recommend.

The royal national Park was amazing and shocking how lovely this all was. Thr Creek was amazing but some dead fish tho. I reccomend not stepping in too much mud otherwise you will stink

There are many trees and a river running through the park. The environment is very good, with few people and quiet, which is suitable for all kinds of gatherings. In summer, there are more birds and flies. You can relax here for a day with a picnic basket.

This was relatively close enough for an outdoor experience. It really is create your own adventure as there are a lot of things to do here. We decided to do the wedding cake hike, here was our experience. Directions: What's nice is that this is a common hike,; the directions are simple if you're at the main entrance. Hiking Difficulty: If you're coming from the main entrance, it really isn't that difficult, if you're on the trail, you don't need fancy hiking shoes. Overall: 4.5 stars. I enjoyed the hike here. I admire the different scenery from the ocean to the rock patterns. Shading changes now and then and it took maybe 1.5 hrs total. There are many more things to see, so be sure to plan and schedule things accordingly. TL;DR Tips: * Parking is free but limited * Bring hiking shoes to be safe. * Wedding Cake Rock is now gated off * 2nd Oldest National Park in the world!

Good for a cruise just like it was back in the day Nice scenery the roads a little rough but you expect it after all these years

Royal National Park is the second oldest national park in the world, with Yellowstone in USA being the first. About a 45 minute drive from Sydney CBD, Royal National Park is definitely worth a visit if you want to get away from the city. With the lush beauty, peaceful surroundings, various wildlife, scenic hikes, and relaxing beaches, Royal National Park doesn't disappoint. As part of a small tour group, we visited the Royal National Park back in January 2014 and enjoyed the gorgeous views from Stanwell Tops and Sea Cliff Bridge; the cool, calm waters and warm, soft sand from Jibbon beach; and a mild hike along The Coast Track for a breathtaking panoramic view of the blue Pacific Ocean. Whether visiting Royal National Park on your own, with family or friends, or as part of a private tour group, there's plenty of activities to suit your needs: hiking, biking, picnic lunches, canoeing and kayaking... the list goes on. It's the perfect place to spend a day or two to relax.

Royal is Australia's oldest national park and the second oldest in the world. Yellowstone is the oldest. We came here in the winter and it was very quiet. There were maybe four or five others where we camped. Royal has many activities for the outdoors enthusiast. We're mostly rock climbers and hikers, so we spent two days hiking here. Since it's winter, their slow season, we had the park almost to ourselves, which works for me. On the first day, we walked along the coast for a few hours. It's mostly an easy stroll on the beach with a little incline here and there, but nothing most people can't do. We stopped often to admire the views and watch the crashing waves hit the the rocks with a thunderous boom. On the second day, we took the ranger's suggestion and hiked to Provident Point for some whale watching. It took us about three hours from the Marley Trail, I believe to get to Provident Point. When we arrived at our destination, we discovered that you can drive to this point. Oh, well. It was more fun to hike it anyway. The hike was wonderful. We were away from people hiking on an easy trail that has views of the ocean and forest. Although it's winter, weather was surprisingly very pleasant as we were away from the coast and in the canyon. Provident Point is absolutely gorgeous! There is a viewing station high up on a cliff. From there, you look down on the vast ocean, and surrounding you are seaside cliffs and clusters of rocks. The waves crashed into the clusters creating foam as they retreated back into the ocean. To make the experience even more memorable, we saw whales from a distance. This was quite a treat as I've never seen whales before. They were breaching and blowing water from their blowhole. I could've sat there for hours watching the waves and spotting for whales. Next time we're here, we're going to do the Coast track, which is 52 miles round trip. If you are visiting Sydney, I highly recommend spending a few days in Royal Mountain.

Splendid, just splendid. Royal National Park is abundant in walking trails, campsites, fishing areas, restrooms, and more. I'd safely say that it's the same size as the entire island of O'ahu, where I'm from in Hawai'i. Everything here is well maintained too! Forest, ocean cliffs, lakes... they're all here.

So Royal National Park is a pretty darn big place. This review is based on the Karloo pools and Uloola Falls Track. Quite an easy track but with enough climbs up and down to really give that butt a good work out! Like a free stairmaster. I can imagine this place being really busy in summer as even in winter the pools looked oh so tempting to have a splash around in. There's actually a hidden smaller falls right by the Uloola Falls if you can find it which in my opinion is much prettier and makes for a great photo op on the fall itself if it's not flowing too much. Best thing about this walk is that it starts at Heathcote and ends at Waterfall meaning you can just catch the train there and not have to dirty your car. Win! Actually wait on 2nd thought the best thing about this walk is there is actually a clean toilet along the way so no need for the bush dunny. Just don't forget to bring some hand sanitiser for clean hands after.

This park is stunning and being one of the oldest National Parks also steeped in history. The park has just about everything for everyone. Hiking, beaches, and the bush or outback. I spent the majority of my time on the coast as Bundeena borders it. The trail system is simple and maintained, though trail markings in some places are few and far between. No trash here at all, which I was surprised as that isn't the case in many places in the U.S. If you have time, I would consider this a must see if you find yourself in this part of the world.

This is one of the great rides in Sydney. Long winding roads and no commuter traffic, although you may have to content with holiday makers and some campervans. Lots of varied scenery. Watch out for the police though!

What a lovely stretch of Green country ..... not far out of Sydney's suburbs ..... this National park has space to play, rest, cook, discover and even sleep in the shade of one of the hundreds of large old trees that are scattered throughout. Do you enjoy a good paddle or row ..... then hire a boat for as long as you like and glide down the river and take photos ..... remind yourself of what peace feels like. Highly recommended for those who want more out of life !

Looking for a way to relax after you're long hard week? Head to Royal National Park along Princess Highway. Royal National Park is the world second oldest National Park. It is a beautiful bushland escape close to Sydney. It is well worth getting an annual National Parks pass from the Visitor Centre as you will definitely want to keep coming back. There is so much to do and see here. Head to Audleys Botshed for rowboats, paddle boats, and Canoes. You could bring your own mountain bikes for riding along the way. Stop over at Bundeena for Sea Kayaking or head to Garie Beach for a safe swim. Lifeguards present during summer months. Enjoy bushwalking and choose from the various walking tracks based on difficulty and distance. Picnic at Bonnie Vale. The long winding roads are a great way to explore the National Park and the view you get just as you leave the park is Spectacular. At Stanwell Tops, you can see the curvature of the earth where the ocean merges into the horizon. You could try Hang gliding or Paragliding on weekends. Still wondering if Royal National Park's for you? Then check out the photos..

Its one of the world's oldest national parks. I believe it is Australia's oldest. What makes this such a great place is that it is so close that you can easily do a day trip from Sydney. Plenty of hiking trails, and what makes this place great, the kayak. Just head to Bundeena and rent one for a couple hours and spend it going around the national park for the day. Be warned you will need a park pass for your car.

We LOVED the Royal National Park... it's an amazing place! However, we were quite shocked to have to pay to stay at a place with no facilities and that didn't seem to be well taken care of. We did the Coastal Walk from Wattamolla to Otford Lookout, which is about 18 KM and we spaced out into 2 days of hiking and one night of camping. We stayed in North Era which is a nice remote camping site, however we paid 12 dollars so that we could stay there for the night but honestly not even worth 12 dollars! There are two toilet cabins, which surprised us since the camping area is not very big, but the problem is that to access the toilets you literally have to cross a SWAMP ground or jump over a creek that has two broken wooden planks as a "bridge". The other problem is that you can't even enter the toilets...doesn't really seem taken care of at all. Another issue is that there are no trash bins around so a lot of campers leave their trash behind and those respectful one that gather their trash, like us, have to carry it all the way to the end of the Royal National Park in order to find ONE trash bin. Overall, it was a great experience however if the park is going to charge 12 dollars for camping in this area they need to look over the facilities and the area.