I visited this WHS in January 2018. The inscribed name is quite misleading as in actual fact the Blue Mountains National Park is just one of the seven national parks that are inscribed within the Greater Blue Mountains Area. It is also the most visited as it is an easy half day or day trip from Sydney.

That said you could easily spend whole days of hiking without meeting another soul even within the Blue Mountains National Park except from the obvious lookouts. The most iconic and famous of these lookouts is Echo Point with the view of the Three Sisters (photo). Unlike, the Scenic Railway and Cable Car experience in Kuranda, the nearby Scenic World Cable Car is really a colossal tourist trap and you won't get any added value in terms of views or OUV. Moreover, all the tourist crowds and groups flock there like it's the main attraction.

From Sydney, I took a train from St James Station to Katoomba Station. Then you can either take it easy (especially if you only want to visit Echo Point and some minor lookouts like Eagle Hawk Lookout) and catch the Explorer Hop On Hop Off Bus (for 44$) or else simply rely on the very efficient and cheap public transport to be able to cover more ground. Upon arrival at Katoomba station, I first headed towards the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre, which hosted Into the Blue, a very informative section dedicated to the Greater Blue Mountains Area WHS.

The OUV of this WHS lies in the over 90 eucalypt species in temperate eucalypt forests, sandstone plateaus, escarpments and gorges. The area gets its name from the blue haze which is caused by sunlight and fine droplets of eucalypt oil from the trees, dispersed into the atmosphere. The best time to experience this phenomenon is at sunrise or sunset on clear days.

Eucalypt trees have evolved over millions of years, reinventing themselves with every single new situation they were confronted with. That's why there are so many species of eucalypt trees. The heath on the clifftops appears to be pruned manually but in reality it is pruned by wind to a uniform height and provides cover to a variety of birds and small mammals. The highlight sightings were the Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, the Channel-billed Cuckoo and the iconic Superb Lyrebird which features on the Blue Mountains NP logo.

The second best lookout point and a very good starting point for different hiking trails is Govetts Leap Lookout near Blackheath which is easily reached by public transport from Katoomba. Here there's also the Blue Mountains Heritage Centre where you can also experience the Claustral Canyon with virtual reality glasses (10 dollars for a 15mins session). At Govetts Leap Lookout there's also a UNESCO WHS plaque just opposite the main marker. From here there's a spectacular view of the Blue Gum Forest and Grose Valley Creek. The easiest trails are Pulpit Rock Trail (2.5km) which leads to Bridal Veil Falls and the Cliff Top Track to Evans Lookout Trail (6km) which leads to Wentworth Falls. If you have a rental car or more time at hand, you can also reach the nearby inscribed Jenolan Caves by public transport.