The foothills of the Blue Mountains are a distant beacon as you progress west along the motorway, the promise of adventure beyond the Nepean River.

Nature, sophistication and romance collide in the mountains’ most charming village.

Set off from Sydney, climbing up through the mountains to your first stop - Leura. With its picturesque main street bursting with spring colour, boutique shopping and innovative cafes showcasing local produce, Leura represents Mountains’ village life at its most vibrant. Celebrate the seasons during one of its many festivals, stroll through rambling gardens, or absorb incredible valley views from secluded clifftop lookouts.

Check-in to Fairmont Resort Blue Mountains by MGallery, a lush location to stay and take in your serene natural surroundings.

The town has welcomed adventurers and romantics for more than a century to its heritage hotels, guesthouses and cottages, lured by its fresh mountain air, challenging bushwalks, expansive views across Jamison Valley and icons such as The Three Sisters.

This part of the Blue Mountains is also a magnet for adventure seekers and adrenaline junkies. Follow their lead and take an e-bike tour with Blue Mountains Biking Adventures, going off the beaten track along epic trails between 15km and 65km long. Activities with Blue Mountains Adventure Company are just as thrilling, getting your pulse racing on a range of canyoning, abseiling and climbing expeditions tailored to all experience levels.

Blue Mountains Adventure Company also guides hiking adventures along some of the region’s most jaw-dropping trails, as does Tread Lightly Eco Tours, whose guides are specialists in the environmental and cultural aspects of each route you take. There are plenty of opportunities to lace up your walking shoes and explore at your own pace, as well. Try a section of the new Grand Cliff Top Walk – the full length is 19km and takes two days to complete between Katoomba and Wentworth Falls, but you can walk in and out at various points along the trail. Whichever section you choose you’re guaranteed stunning views, significant Aboriginal sites and charged waterfalls.

With little light pollution, the night sky over the Blue Mountains is a bedazzlement of stars. Spend an evening out with an astronomer on a Blue Mountains Stargazing tour, discovering the craters and seas of the moon, identifying star clusters and spotting planets through a state-of-the-art telescope. It’s the ultimate way to put life into perspective.

Head off this morning on a winding drive through temperate rainforest. The beautiful valley beneath the historic Hydro Majestic at Medlow Bath is an enticing diversion, tranquil farmland flanked by dramatic sun-kissed escarpment cloaked in verdant temperate rainforest. Indulge in tea and a scone at The Megalong Valley Tea Rooms or soak up the views over a glass of wine at Dryridge Estate - Sydney's closest cellar door. For more of an adventure, visit Centennial Glen Stables for a horseback ride through bushland.

Make your way back up from the valley to Blackheath. This small town packs a punch when it comes to great food, coffee and culture, delivered under the flaming canopy of magnificent oaks and blooming rhododendrons. It’s also an adventurer’s paradise, with challenging bushwalks to mysterious canyons and mindblowing vistas across densely-forested Grose Valley.

Returning to Sydney via the northern fringe of Blue Mountains National Park offers a wilder, less-touristy perspective; but as you continue down Bells Line of Road, the scenery softens, verdant farmland and apple orchards peppering the roadside. Stop to pick apples, scoff warm apple pies or sip on award-winning cider.