Top Things to do in Lithgow
What to do and see in Lithgow, Australia: The Best Places and Tips
Discover the best top things to do in Lithgow, Australia including Hassan's Wall, Glow Worm Tunnel, Lithgow Small Arms Factory Museum, Lithgow State Mine Heritage Park, Lake Wallace, Blackfellows Hand Cave, Eskbank House and Museum, Lithgow Visitor Information Centre, Zig Zag Railway, Berghofer's Pass.
Restaurants in Lithgow
1. Hassan's Wall
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 148 reviews
Reviewed By Anita T - Forster, Australia
Just a short drive out of Lithgow you find this fabulous lookout. It has sweeping views over the valley below looking towards the East. There are a couple of nice picnic areas. There is a newish suspended walkway out to the end of the lookout. The views are really great and worth taking some photos. The old lookout area is still there and we took a walk out to it which was brilliant. It was a cave which had been tunnelled out giving you an awesome view over Hassans Walls as well as the Valley. Definitely worth an explore.
2. Glow Worm Tunnel
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 99 reviews
Reviewed By acuriousfrog
The drive from Leura was about 2 hours. It is a bit of an adventure to reach the destination as most of the drive is on dirt road with the latest section being really rough full of potholes. We didn't see many cars during our trip there so we were surprised to see the car park full with already 40 cars. There is no much space for car to navigate and leaving the place was quite challenging. Bring food and water as there is nothing around. The walk is lovely and the surroundings beautiful. Unfortunately the glow worm experience was spoiled by disrespecting Australian tourists talking loud and pointing their torches at the glow worms and try to touch them the whole way. Very frustrating to have to tell people to Shhhhhh and turn off their torches. The bushwalk is great but were once again spoiled with cigarette smoke from bushwalkers in front of us! It is bushfire season and the threat is severe...Very reckless. We managed to get some quiet moments in total darkness on the way back to the tunnel and the kids loved seeing the spectacle. Our experience will have been very different if we went there away from school holidays.
3. Lithgow Small Arms Factory Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 80 reviews
The history of the Lithgow Small Arms Factory is about people - their aspirations, achievements and disappointments, the economic and social hardships endured, the influence of our British heritage on Australia in the early 1900s, and sheer human stubborness. It is also about the introduction of new technologies into the emerging new nation. Lithgow SAF was Australia's first high precision mass production facility. This Museum was formed to celebrate its history. Situated on the existing Factory site, this unique museum is widely recognised for its comprehensive collection of modern firearms from around the world, but more than that, it is a showcase of Australian manufacturing. Displays show the production processes and social history of this renowned facility. Visitors are amazed by the myriad of commercial items produced which provided the Factory's lifeblood between wars and preserved the valuable skills of its workforce.
Reviewed By mossflower - Kurrajong, Australia
Out for a drive on a hot day and called in to this museum. Very interesting displays and helpful and informative staff. Well worth a visit when you are in Lithgow and there was much more manufactured here than guns. Think sewing machines, golf clubs...MoreGlad you found the museum interesting, and thank you for taking the time to review us. Many visitors are surprised by the diversity of the Factory's manufacture, and come away with a greater appreciation for the history of Australian manufacturing at its finest.
4. Lithgow State Mine Heritage Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 31 reviews
One of the great mining museums of New South Wales. Come and see our award winning "Fire in the Mine" light and sound show, which tells the stories of working underground in the Lithgow region coalfields in the 20th century. There are many more interpretations of coal and oil shale mining. We also have facilities to host luncheons and wedding receptions.
Reviewed By Tony W - Sydney
The people running this hands on museum are valiantly attempting to preserve the areas industrial heritage and well done for doing so. However the site needs some financial assistance to ensure the items and buildings do not fall into disrepair. Worth a visit to view the history and to support the site.
5. Lake Wallace
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 18 reviews
Reviewed By JElliot32 - New South Wales, Australia
Lake Wallace is an excellent spot for camping. And it is all free. The lake is just a km or two from the township of Wallerawang, which offers shops and cafes. There are many possible camp sites available right beside the lake, all easily accessible, on well-drained ground, and suitable for tents or caravans. There are BBQs and an amenities block that includes showers - a bit basic, but it is free.
Aside from the great, uninterrupted water views, there is a lot of birdlife on the lake, and plenty of scope to take a walk around the shore or a kayak onto the water. All in all, a great spot to get back to nature. Note that it can get a bit breezy here. Make sure you bring some warm clothes!
6. Blackfellows Hand Cave
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 12 reviews
Reviewed By Shazz P - Sydney, Australia
We 4wd in this area quite often, and the Blackfellows Hand Track is one of our favourites. The caves are awesome and when we went on the long weekend, people were actually camping out in some of the smaller caves along the track. Well worth a visit.
7. Eskbank House and Museum
Overall Ratings
4 based on 17 reviews
Reviewed By Tonbou - Orange, Australia
Embankment House was possibly the first significant house to be built in the Lithgow area, by Alexander Blenning for Thomas Brown, the first local industrialist. It was made from Australian cedar and local sandstone. It was a fairly simple house of four rooms connected but a hallway, attached to a court-yard which attached to the kitchen and wood-room. In the 1920s William Mortlock enclosed the courtyard and extended the building. In 1948 Eric Bracey, a local businessman, bought the property and spent many years re-furnishing and re-furnishing the house, which he donated to the people of Lithgow.
The house, together with its outbuildings provides a wonderful insight into early Colonial life. Our (volunteer) guide was able to provide much in-sight into life in Colonial times.
8. Lithgow Visitor Information Centre
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 10 reviews
Reviewed By Anita T - Forster, Australia
Just 5 minutes from the centre of Lithgow it is impossible to miss the Visitor Information Centre. With its impressive building, having a huge miners light incorporated into its structure. There is plenty of parking out the back. The staff are really helpful, gladly telling you all the tourist information you ask about and giving you any brochures you may need.
There is a nice shop inside as well with locally produced items for sale.
9. Zig Zag Railway
Overall Ratings
3.5 based on 45 reviews
Zig Zag Railway is temporarily CLOSED hoping to reopen in 2018. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to call or email us. Negative reviews are not helpful, we will reopen as soon as we can. On behalf of all our volunteers, Thank you for ongoing support.
Reviewed By David B - Rayong, Thailand
I live in Thailand, but in June I was back in Australia and took a Thai friend to the Blue Mountains. One of our first ports of call was the Zig Zag Railway, at Lithgow, a masterpiece of 19th Century engineering.
Unfortunately we found out that a bushfire had raced through the area in October 2013, destroying much of the track and the rolling stock.
The Zig Zag Railway was maintained and run by enthusiastic volunteers, including many retired railwaymen from New South Wales Railways. They have been busy since the bushfire restoring rolling stock and the tracks, but still have a way to go.
When it is reopened you must take a ride on this fabulous train, which as its name implies, zig zags its way up and down the precipitous sides of the Blue Mountains.
The total trip there and back is about 60 minutes, and it is an hour you will never forget. As you look out across the hostile landscape, you can only marvel at the work that went into making this engineering feat possible.
The photographs I am posting here are from an earlier visit in 2010.
10. Berghofer's Pass
Overall Ratings
4 based on 12 reviews
Reviewed By asturiasparasiempre - Gold Coast, Australia
This is a great walk if you're visiting the area as has lots of historical significance and the placards tell you all the interesting stuff. The carvings in the stone marking the boundaries between the two local government areas at the beginning of the 20th Century are very interesting.The walk can be access from Mt York Road and you go downhill or you can park your car down the bottom of the pass near the new point-to-point camera structure on the Great Western Highway and make your way up the hill to the walk.
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