Bathurst (New South Wales)

Bathurst is a city in the Central West region of New South Wales, some 200 km west of Sydney, mostly known for the Bathurst 1000 racing event.

Understand
The area's traditional owners are the Muurrai clan of the Wiradjuri people. The British town was founded in 1815 as the first inland European settlement on the Australian continent and Bathurst quickly became an expanding regional centre. Its wealth grew considerably during the first wave of the Australian Gold Rush in the 1850s and to this day plays off its history and gold rush heritage to attract visitors. Today it is a modern rural city, with good visitor facilities and walking down the main street you may be mistaken for thinking you're in a major urban centre.

Being inland of the ranges, Bathurst has greater temperature extremes than the coast. Summer days can be very hot, and there can be an occasional day of snowfall in winter. Bathurst also has areas of colourful leaves and flowers in the autumn and spring.

By car
Bathurst is approximately 2.5 hours drive west of Sydney. Cross the Blue Mountains on either the Great Western Highway from the Penrith area or the Bells Line of Road from the Windsor area. On the other side of the mountains, follow the Great Western Highway from Lithgow to Bathurst.

The road between Lithgow and Bathurst is straight and quick with parts of it being a divided highway, however expect significant traffic delays when crossing the Blue Mountains away from Sydney on a Friday afternoon or returning to Sydney at the end of a weekend.

By train and bus
sees the following services:
 * NSW Trainlink XPT. Bathurst is a stop on the Daily XPT Service from Sydney to Dubbo.  The cost will be around $70 return, but the service allows a full day to visit Bathurst.  Arriving Bathurst early morning and departing late afternoon.  You must book this ticket online with NSW Trainlink before travelling.
 * NSW Trainlink Bathurst Bullet (Unbooked). The Bathurst Bullet is an unbooked service that leaves Bathurst for Sydney early morning, and returns to Bathurst late at night.  Its primary purpose is to give Bathurst residents access to a day in Sydney.  This train accepts Opal, so the most you'll pay is $8.50 each way.  Less if you have other Opal discounts.
 * NSW Trainlink Lithgow Train and Coach. There is a NSW Trainlink coach that meets the Lithgow train.  You'll find the timetable on the Sydney trains website.  You have two choices with this service.  You can use Opal all the way, and ring NSW Trainlink to reserve a seat on the coach for no additional charge on 13 22 32, and pay the Opal fare (always less than $8.50), or you can book the service online for $11.80.  This is an identical service no matter which way you use it.  Your seat is reserved on the coach, and unreserved on the train in any event.  You'll simply pay more if you use the NSW Trainlink website to book.

By coach
Australia Wide Coaches or Sydney Transport Group have an express service from Bathurst to the Sydney City and on to Sydney airport every morning, and return in the afternoon. Price is less than the booked regional train service, but more than unbooked intercity train service.

By foot
Most attractions are within five or six blocks of the Bathurst train station.

By bus
Bathurst Buslines offers are extensive service to Bathurst and surrounding area. Monday to Friday it offers a useful service. Saturday is limited, and Sunday there is no service. You pay your fare on boarding, and the services do not accept Opal. The most useful route for tourists is route 526 that operates in the central business district. This bus stops at the train station, the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, at the base of Mount Panorama, and some hotels and restaurants.

See
The Bathurst visitors information has three self-guided walking tours available to explore the history of Bathurst.

Events

 * The Bathurst 1000. The Bathurst 1000 is an annual 1000-km motor race for touring cars in the Supercars Championship, held once a year in October at Mount Panorama just outside Bathurst. The weekend of the Bathurst 1000 attracts Bathurst's largest contingent of visitors.
 * Bathurst Show

Learn
Charles Sturt University has a Bathurst campus in Panorama Avenue in the south of Bathurst. ph 6338 4000. Its B Arts (Communications) degrees in theatre, journalism, advertising and public relations among others are particularly well regarded.

Stay safe
The weekend of the Bathurst 1000 is a risky time to be driving in the area: the fans are keen to emulate their heroes, and reckless driving is much more common than at other times.

Go next
The second large town in the area, Orange, is only half an hours drive west on the Mitchell Highway, and several bus services run between the two every day.

The interesting historical gold mining towns of Sofala and Hill End are about an hours drive away if you want to try your luck panning for gold.

Abercrombie Caves offer a less crowded alternative to the more famous Jenolan caves. Cave tours are available (as well as a self-guided tour). The route via Abercrombie is a scenic route to Canberra and the Southern Highlands.