Blue Mountains Weather, Month by Month

Katoomba sits at 1,017 metres and runs about five degrees colder than Sydney by day, every month of the year. That single number decides what you pack, what you can see and whether the lookout you drove to shows you anything at all. Figures below are Bureau of Meteorology averages. If you want the day handled whatever it does, the best Blue Mountains day tour run in all conditions.

What the weather does to a visit here

Three things, and only one of them is about comfort.

It decides whether you see anything. The lookouts face across valleys several hundred metres deep, and when cloud fills those valleys there is nothing to look at. The lowest-rated reviews across four different operators all describe the same thing: thick mist, a guide doing his best, and no view. Tours run in it rather than cancelling, and no refund follows a poor view.

It decides what you wear. The five-degree gap is why every operator's what-to-bring list says the same three things: closed shoes, a warm layer, a rain jacket. People arrive in what suited the Sydney forecast and spend the day cold.

It moves the timetable. The sunset departures set their start times by daylight saving, leaving at ten in winter and noon in summer, and returning as late as ten at night in high summer. Confirm yours rather than assuming.

The Blue Mountains month by month

January — 23.4°C by day, 12.9°C at night

The warmest month up here, and one of the two wettest. Expect afternoon storms and a valley that fills with cloud after them. Sunset tours return latest now, as late as ten at night, so check what that does to your evening.

February — 22.5°C by day, 13.0°C at night

The wettest month of the year and the warmest nights. Nearly a third of days see rain of a millimetre or more. Bring a jacket that works in warm rain rather than a coat, and treat a clear morning as the day's best chance.

March — 20.4°C by day, 11.6°C at night

Still wet, and noticeably cooler than February by day. Rainfall barely drops while temperatures start to. The escarpment stays green and the waterfalls run hard, which makes it a good month for the walking days.

April — 16.9°C by day, 8.8°C at night

Rain eases by a third and the humidity goes with it. Days sit in the mid teens, nights near nine. School holidays fall here, which fills the Glenbrook entry station and the Giant Stairway queue. Book earlier than you would in May.

May — 13.3°C by day, 6.1°C at night

The clearest air of the year starts here. Rainfall drops to a hundred millimetres and wet days to under eight. Days reach thirteen and nights fall to six, so the warm layer stops being optional.

June — 10.2°C by day, 3.7°C at night

Winter proper, with a small rebound in rain. Maximums drop to ten and overnight lows to under four. Sunset comes early, so the late-start departures leave later in the morning and still finish in daylight.

July — 9.5°C by day, 2.6°C at night

The coldest month, and the gap with the city is at its widest: 9.5 degrees here against 16.4 in Sydney. Nights average 2.6. It is also one of the driest months, which means the views are often at their sharpest.

August — 11.3°C by day, 3.3°C at night

The driest month of the year at under eighty millimetres. Days lift past eleven while nights stay near three. Wind is the thing that catches people out now, and it is what moves a stargazing session off an exposed lookout.

September — 14.8°C by day, 5.5°C at night

The lowest rainfall of the twelve and rising temperatures. Days reach fifteen and nights five and a half. Clear air, long light and no school holidays make this the quietest good month on the calendar.

October — 17.8°C by day, 7.8°C at night

Warm days, cool nights and rain beginning to build again. Eighteen by day, under eight overnight. Daylight saving has started, so the sunset departures shift to a later start and a later return.

November — 20.5°C by day, 9.9°C at night

Twenty by day and ten at night, with rain back over a hundred millimetres. Storm season is beginning. Fire danger becomes a real consideration from now, and the park may close at short notice when it is high.

December — 22.6°C by day, 11.8°C at night

Warm, wet and busy. Days near twenty-three, nights near twelve, rain over a hundred and twenty millimetres. School holidays and the longest days of the year arrive together, so book anything small-group well ahead.

The seasons, and which one you want

If you want clear air and sharp views, come between May and September. Rainfall bottoms out at 70.7mm in September and 79.3mm in August, and the coldest months are also the driest. You will need a proper coat and you will get the escarpment at its most legible.

If you want warmth and long evenings, come between November and February, and accept that these are the four wettest months on the record. February alone averages 177.8mm across 11.2 wet days. You get late sunsets, which is what the golden-hour departures are built around, and a real chance of an afternoon storm.

Autumn, from March to May, is the compromise most locals would pick: falling rain, falling crowds, and the waterfalls still running from the summer.

Best time of day

Early, if you can. The coaches from Sydney reach Echo Point between ten and midday, so anything before that is quiet, and guides who know the range reorder their stops to arrive before the rest. Travellers write about that more than any other single thing their guide did.

Late is the other answer, and it is a different day rather than a lesser one. West- facing lookouts like Lincoln's Rock only work in the last hour of light, which is why the late-start departures exist at all. Between about noon and three the light is flat, the car parks are full and the valley haze is at its weakest.

Frequently asked questions