Kangaroo Valley
A Hidden Valley in the Southern Highlands
On the lands of the Wodi Wodi people.
schedule 3 min read / Updated Apr 2026
A deep rural valley in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, two hours south of Sydney. Kangaroo Valley is surrounded by 400 metre sandstone escarpments, crossed by the Kangaroo River, and centred on a village with the only suspension bridge of its type still in use in Australia.
Kangaroo Valley sits in a deep amphitheatre between the Illawarra escarpment and the Southern Highlands plateau, on the traditional lands of the Wodi Wodi and Dharawal peoples. The valley is about 15 kilometres long and 3 kilometres wide, and is surrounded on three sides by sandstone cliffs that rise more than 400 metres above the valley floor. The only way in is via steep winding roads from any direction.
The valley was originally settled in the 1820s as dairy country and is still an active agricultural area today. Its permanent population is small, around 350 people, but the village of Kangaroo Valley swells with day-trippers every weekend from Sydney and the Illawarra. The compact village sits at the northern end of the valley and has about a dozen shops, a pub, a cheese factory and an ice-creamery.
The Hampden Bridge, built in 1898, is the town's most recognisable structure and the reason most first-time visitors come. It is the oldest surviving suspension bridge of its type in Australia and the only one still in active use. The bridge crosses the Kangaroo River just south of the village and is an official state heritage item. Both ends of the bridge have small parks and picnic areas with river access.
The Kangaroo River runs through the middle of the valley and is calm and clear enough for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding throughout most of its length. Kayak hire is available from shops in the village, and there are multiple put-in points along the river. The Bendeela Picnic Area, 10 minutes west of the village, is the standard launching point and has grass lawns, BBQ facilities, and a shallow swimming area.
The Fitzroy Falls visitor centre, at the top of the Morton National Park escarpment 20 minutes north of the village, is an essential stop on any visit. The falls drop 81 metres off the escarpment into the valley below and are the second-highest waterfall in New South Wales. The visitor centre has a self-guided walk to the main lookout and a longer East Rim Walk that passes several smaller falls and lookouts.
Morton National Park surrounds the southern half of the valley and protects one of the largest wilderness areas in New South Wales. The park contains grass trees, hundreds of plant species, and a dense population of wombats, eastern grey kangaroos, swamp wallabies, and echidnas. The Bundanoon end of the park, 45 minutes west, has multiple walking tracks and is another standard base for exploring the area.
Beyond the valley itself, Kangaroo Valley is within easy day-trip range of Jervis Bay (one hour east), the Southern Highlands wine country (45 minutes north), and the Illawarra coastal beaches including Kiama with its famous blowhole. The historic town of Berry, 30 minutes east at the foot of the escarpment, is a popular stop for antique shopping and cafe lunches.
Kangaroo Valley is a year-round destination. Autumn (March to May) is spectacular for the deciduous trees planted by early settlers, and spring (September to November) brings wildflowers across the escarpment. Summer can be hot but the river swimming is excellent. Winter mornings are cold, often foggy, and very quiet. Sydney Airport (SYD) is the closest major airport, two hours north.
Gallery
Kangaroo Valley in pictures.
10 images licensed from Wikimedia Commons
All images are sourced from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licences. Individual photographers are credited on the source pages.
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Scenic views
Lookouts near Kangaroo Valley.
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Attribution
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Images (10)
- Forester kangaroo (Macropus giganteus tasmaniensis) Esk Vall... · Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Forester kangaroo (Macropus giganteus tasmaniensis) female w... · Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0
- (1)Anglican Church Kangaroo Valley.jpg · Sardaka · CC BY-SA 4.0
- (1)Kangaroo Valley-1.jpg · Sardaka · CC BY-SA 4.0
- (1)Kangaroo Valley-2.jpg · Sardaka · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Beehive Pt from Kangaroo Valley Fire Trail - panoramio.jpg · ambo kangaroo · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Calyptorhynchus funereus -Kangaroo Valley, New South Wales,... · craigles75 · CC BY 2.0
- Forester kangaroo (Macropus giganteus tasmaniensis) juvenile... · Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Forester kangaroo (Macropus giganteus tasmaniensis) portrait... · Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0
- KangarooValley2.jpg · Sardaka (talk) 10:28, 19 October 2008 (UTC) · CC BY 3.0
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