New Years Eve in the Blue Mountains


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Oceania » Australia » New South Wales » Katoomba
December 31st 2009
Published: December 13th 2017
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Geo: -33.714, 150.312

31 Dec 2009 - 2 Jan 2010
My Mum is here on holidays, neither of us particularly like New Years, my husband is working that night, I am 7 months pregnant, so he encouraged us to go for a couple of days of pampering.

Got a good enough deal for the time of year through www.hotelcub.net for the 5 star Lillianfels at fairly short notice. Decided to go by train which turns out was amazingly good value - like $11ish one way practically door to door for a 2 hour journey. Nice scenery along the way. We arrived around 13:30 so walked straight from the station to the town which took 5 mins and had lovely brunch in newly done up cafe.

Then we mosied to the antiques emporium which is really good - I once got a Tiffany bracelet there - and had a look around town before getting a cab to our lovely hotel on the other end of town near Echo Point - walkable but not with an overnight bag & pregnant or with an overnight bag and recovering from a cancer operation in Mum's case.

Hotel really gorgeous,lovely room where I promptly feel asleep on big cushy bed while Mum read a book. Had a walk later to show Mum the famous 3 sisters from Echo Point and look around the hotel grounds - gardens, pools, tennis courts. And then we got dolled up for mocktails & dinner in the lounge bar & a viewing of the 9pm fireworks on the big screen from Sydney. By midnight we were back in our room for the 2nd lot of Sydney fireworks on TV and me fresh from a big after dinner sudsy bath - all products in the hotel are L'Occitane which is a very nice touch, and the lobby shop even sells them too (some us have 15% discount for life cards in L'Occitane shops back in Sydney so we'll say no more about that!) So a very civilised NYE bar receiving a fairly entertaining call from a slightly enebriated spouse back in the city - so he was doing it for the team!

Next day after the overpriced hotel breakfast we took the trolley bus to the top of the town and book shopped and clothes shopped and did more antique browsing. We had lunch in a lovely new place that specialized in chinese tea at the far end of town from the bookstores. And after we walked back to the hotel - which took about 20mins - I had more pregnancy sleeps while Mum finished yesterday's new book.

We had booked Echoes restaurant for that 8pm night which was in a boutique hotel behind our hotel and was gorgeous - not much vege options but it did have nice risotto. The views over the Jamieson valley were amazing and the 1st sunset of 2010 was brilliant. So we took our time there and had lovely evening.

Next morning after breakfast we had booked the spa and Mum had pedicure while I had back massage followed by a hot stone foot massage, bliss. Lovely spa and we seemed to have it to ourselves. Then we read the papers in the comfy lounge after check out and got a cab to the station for the 13:25 train, on which unsurprisingly I slept most of the way back. (Switched at central to city train for no extra cost- which we still can't get over).

For the next 3 nights back in humid Sydney I hardly slept a bloody wink so I think I over did it with the mountain air sleeps!<br clear="all">

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