Jenolan Caves Blue Mountains Australia
Cave Tours Travel Tips, Pictures Jenolan, New South Wales
Located in the scenic Blue Mountains, Jenolan Caves are a popular tourism area about 175 kilometers (109 miles) west of Sydney, Australia.
I came by train from Sydney to Katoomba and stayed at Leura Gardens Resort then took a day tour by bus to Jenolan Caves.
At Jenolan (pronounced je-NO-lan) there is a range of accommodation like the grand lodge hotel shown in this picture.
Located to the right of this view are the Cave tour ticket offices, washrooms and tour bus parking.
Route 1 from Great Western Highway to Jenolan Caves, Blue Mountains. 
My tour bus picked up passengers at their hotels, variously in Katoomba, Leura and Wentworth Falls, before stopping at the tour office in Katoomba (picture).
By 10 a.m. we were on the Great Western Highway heading west 75 or so kilometers (47 miles) to Jenolan.
We drove through Blackheath (pop. 5,000, site of annual Rhododendon Festival) and Mt. Victoria, at 1,043 meters / 3400 ft elevation, the highest point in the Blue Mountains.
After a half hour or so, we turned left (south) onto Route 1into Jenolan. See Google Map Katoomba to Jenolan and the highway around Jenolan googlemap. Near Jenolan, the roads are very twist-y, with dramatic drop offs and many spots where you have to pull out for oncoming traffic. When the speed limit drops to Very Slow, you know you are almost there!
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Tunnel into Jenolan Caves, Blue Mountains Australia
Route 1 passes through this large Archway tunnel shared by vehicles and pedestrians to reach the parking area and hotels (picture above).
This passageway, open to inbound traffic only (mostly tour buses) over noon hour, is very narrow in parts.
Walkers and drivers have to go slow and watch out for each other.
In this picture, at the Katoomba side, you can see stairs. These lead to Lucas Cave; the people at the bottom are waiting to start the tour.
TIP Book cave tours in advance. A family drove themselves from Leura to Jenolan on a Summer weekday, only to find that the remaining tours for that day were fully booked.
TIP Bring your own water; Plan ahead for washroom breaks as tours last about 90 minutes, and there are no facilities inside the caves. No food, no gum chewing, no smoking is allowed in the caves. Bring a lunch, as cave tours last about 90 minutes in each cave, with only 30 minutes or so between tours, which is not enough time to go to a restaurant.
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Jenolan Caves Commemorative Plaque, Jenolan, Blue Mountains Australia 
This commemorative plaque dated February 23, 1929, marks the discovery of the more important Jenolan caverns.
Jenolan Caves offers a variety of cave tour entry fee packages. These fees do not include travel TO Jenolan. Admission fees are likely included in Day Tour packages.
At the time of my visit, entry to caves fees ranged from $28 AUD/person / cave to $75 AUD / person including all gear for the daily 2-hour adventure caving tour.
I paid about $80 AUD (almost the same in Canadian and US dollars) for the whole day trip including tours of Lucas Cave and Orient Cave (no meals, etc. but hotel pickup included).
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