Thanks,Loki, I read that that was possible. It’s nice to know it is doable. Do you remember how long the train rides were? And I assume Central is in the city?

Sally

Personally, I'd take an afternoon flight from Melbourne to Sydney and have a more relaxed day. Explore the RNP when you are actually staying in Sydney.

Take the T4 train to Cronulla, which takes about 50 min from Central. Then it's about 10min walk to the Bundeena ferry.

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Re #3 - I'd be worried about an afternoon flight given the number of flights that are cancelled these days.

Central is the major train station in Sydney. Airport trains go through here. From Central to Cronulla is about an hour, trains run every 15 minutes. There's a 5-10 minute walk from the train station to the ferry, ferries run every hour (extra cost, not Opal), takes about half an hour.

From the ferry dock, you have to walk through the streets to Jibbon Beach, that's about 15 minutes. I did the short version around Jibbon Head, returning from Shelley Beach through the forest to Jibbon Beach. There are longer tracks that come out in the SE corner of Bundeena township (but I was feeling lazy).

https://cronullaferries.com.au/ferries-to-bundeena/

I don't see any reason why you can't hire a car and head south to the national park. It's not difficult to get from the car hire places at the domestic terminals out the way you want to go. You can probably hire a car with an enclosed boot (trunk) and take your luggage with you.

I would hire the car and then return it to the airport before your flight home.

It is quite straight forward getting to the Princes Hwy from the airport and then to the RNP. I would go to Wattamolla. Go via Audley if the weir is not flooded as it is ATM. You could also drive to Bundeena or just drive to Cronulla, explore the beaches there and then catch the ferry.

If you decide not to rent a car, realise that the domestic and the international terminals are not within walking distance. This makes the logistics of what to do with your luggage more difficult. As suggested above, storing the bags in the car makes sense.

Thanks, Matt. Having a relaxing day is an option. But I’d like to get to Syd before I start relaxing! Plus we have to check out of our Melbourne hotel anyway.

Sally

Thanks, Loki, for the info and the link.

Sally

Thanks, yerwords, for the idea to take our luggage with us by hiring a car with an enclosed boot. Good idea! My husband will be an old hand at left side driving by then after 12 days in the Melbourne area!

Sally