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Blue Mountains · Hotel shortlist

Cheap hotels near the cathedral in Blue Mountains

Fiona Gallagher

Fiona Gallagher Australia and New Zealand

Updated 1 September 2026 · 18 Blue Mountains hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Blue Mountains, out of the 18 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.7 down to 4.2.

Every one comes in under $130 a night, and the one I would book first is $68.

Royal Hotel Capertee

Highest rated of the five

Royal Hotel Capertee

★★★★★4.7 from 612 reviews

Royal Hotel Capertee comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.7 from 612 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is found under city centre and around $68 a night on the dates we checked.

18 hotels in Blue Mountains qualified for this list and five made it. The Flying Fox Backpackers Hostel is the one I would book if the first is full.

Why it works for this trip

  • Restaurantdinner downstairs on the night you land
  • Bara drink without going back out
  • Family roomscots and larger rooms rather than a squeeze
  • Parkinga real consideration if you are driving in
  • Step free accesslevel entry and a lift

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All five, ranked

  1. Royal Hotel Capertee1

    Royal Hotel Capertee

    ★★★★★4.7 from 612 reviews

    • Restaurant
    • Bar
    • Parking
    • Kid friendly
    • Accessible

    Check rates Read more

  2. The Flying Fox Backpackers Hostel2

    The Flying Fox Backpackers Hostel

    ★★★★★4.8 from 196 reviews

    • Parking
    • Kitchen
    • Kid friendly

    Check rates Read more

  3. No.14 Lovel St3

    No.14 Lovel St

    ★★★★★4.7 from 326 reviews

    • Kitchen

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  4. Leura House4

    Leura House

    ★★★★★4.2 from 114 reviews

    • Parking
    • Kid friendly
    • Accessible

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  5. K2 River Island Nature Retreat5

    K2 River Island Nature Retreat

    ★★★★★4.3 from 98 reviews

    • Pool
    • Spa
    • Parking
    • Kitchen

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How this list was put together

18 Blue Mountains hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating, then on class, and took the top five.

Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

Fiona Gallagher

Fiona Gallagher Australia and New Zealand

Half her year is already on research boats, so holidays are deliberately dry land. Long-distance hiking routes in the off season, alone, with nothing being measured.

Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.