A Dog Friendly Blue Mountains Weekend
The Blue Mountains is the easiest dog friendly weekend from Sydney: two hours up the highway, cold enough for a fire most of the year, and three towns in a row that will pour you a coffee with a dog under the table. There is one catch worth knowing before you book. The drawcard walking tracks are almost all inside Blue Mountains National Park, and dogs are not allowed on any of them. This is the weekend that works around that: where to stay, where to eat, and which of the three towns earns your Sunday.
Where to stay
Five options rather than a ranking, because they solve different weekends. Two of them are in Katoomba for the view, two in Blackheath where the pubs let dogs indoors, and one down in the valley for campers. Every one takes dogs by policy, not by exception, but the fees and the fine print vary a lot, so read the line under each.
The grand one. Lilianfels sits in a garden estate a few minutes from Echo Point, and it takes dogs properly rather than merely tolerating them.
The Pooch Package puts a dog bed and bowl in the room, plus a treat on arrival.
A design led Blackheath motel, and the value pick of the five. Dogs of any size stay at no extra charge, which is rare enough up here to justify driving the extra fifteen minutes.
No pet fee, any size dog.
Self contained cottages with fireplaces, which is the right call anywhere between May and September. Your dog stays inside with you rather than out the back.
Dogs stay inside the cottage. The Three Sisters are a stroll away.
Book this one if you want Leura Mall's cafe strip at the bottom of the hill. Dog friendly rooms are designated rather than property wide, so request when you book.
One dog of any size per room, $150 per stay.
The camping option, down in the valley below Blackheath. Worth knowing that the policy splits: the sites take dogs, the cabins do not.
Sites only, outside peak periods, and let them know you are bringing a dog.
Leura: the cafe strip
Leura Mall is the prettiest of the three main streets and the easiest to spend a morning on: a single row of cafes with tables out front, most of which will bring your dog a bowl of water without being asked. Everything here is outdoor seating only, which is fine in October and character building in July.
Leura Mall's reliable coffee stop, with enough undercover outdoor tables that mountain weather does not end the visit.
Outdoor seating, plenty of it under cover.
A courtyard out the back, and staff who actively want the dog there rather than simply permitting it.
Dogs welcome in the back courtyard.
The Leura pub, with beer gardens at both the front and the rear, so there is always one out of the wind.
Beer gardens front and rear. Outdoors only.
Katoomba: Echo Point and the Three Sisters
Katoomba is the view, and it is worth the stop even though the walking is off limits. Dogs are banned on the tracks and lookout platforms below Echo Point, so treat this as a drive up, a look, and a coffee somewhere with a garden rather than an afternoon of walking.
The view everyone drives up for, with a garden you can actually sit in with a dog. The tracks below Echo Point are national park and closed to dogs, so this is where the Katoomba stop ends.
Garden seating, with water bowls and treats from the bar.
Katoomba Street's coffee roaster, for the morning before the drive home.
Outdoor deck only, per NSW food safety rules.
Blackheath: the upper mountains
Fifteen minutes further up the highway and noticeably colder, which turns out to be the point. Blackheath has the only venues in the mountains that take dogs properly indoors, so when the weather closes in this is the town that still works. It is also the quietest of the three on a long weekend.
The best dog result in the mountains. Dogs are welcome throughout, inside and out, not banished to the grass. The beer garden out front is the summer answer and the fire inside is the winter one.
Inside and out, with water provided.
Dogs come inside here too, which is what makes Blackheath the town to pick when the forecast is bad.
Dogs welcome inside.
Blackheath's coffee, and the first thing worth queueing for on a cold morning.
Calls itself dog friendly, with no stated restrictions.
Dog owner FAQs
Can dogs go on the Blue Mountains walking tracks?
Mostly no, and this is the thing that catches people out. Blue Mountains National Park prohibits dogs on its tracks and lookouts, which covers nearly all the famous ones: the Giant Stairway, the Grand Canyon track, Wentworth Falls. Dogs are fine on the town streets, in the council parks outside the national park, and at every venue on this list. Plan the weekend around the towns rather than the tracks.
Which Blue Mountains town is best with a dog?
Blackheath, and it is not close. All three of its venues on this list take dogs inside: The Ivanhoe Hotel Bistro, Spikes Bistro and Sanguinary Espresso. Every Leura and Katoomba venue here is outdoors only, which matters a great deal between May and September when sitting outside stops being fun. Leura has the better cafe strip and Katoomba has the view, but Blackheath has the fire.
Do the dog friendly stays charge a pet fee?
It varies enough to check before you book. Kyah Hotel in Blackheath charges nothing for a dog of any size. Leura Gardens Resort charges $150 per stay and limits it to one dog per room. Fees and conditions change, so confirm at the time of booking.
Is there anywhere my dog can go off leash?
Not at any venue on this list, and not in the national park. The off leash areas in the mountains are council reserves rather than the scenic spots, so check Blue Mountains City Council for the current designated areas, and treat the sign on site as the final word.