Southern Highlands day trip: Bowral and Tulip Time

A southern highlands day trip works best in spring, when Bowral fills its town garden with tulips and Berrima's sandstone lanes are quiet and green. Bowral is about 132 km south-west of Sydney. This year's Tulip Time festival runs to Monday 3 October, so today is the last day to see the beds. This guide shows how to fit the tulips, a town walk and Berrima into one day.

Sources for this section: Wikipedia, Bowral (version before 3 October 2022); Wingecarribee Shire Council media release, 17 May 2022.

Getting there from Sydney

Driving is the easy option. Destination Southern Highlands says the region is about 1.5 hours south of Sydney. It tells drivers to take the M7 or M5 motorway south and leave at Mittagong. Bowral is a few minutes beyond, and it sits about 5 km from the Hume Highway.

The train also works for Bowral. Bowral station opened in 1867 and is on the Southern Highlands line. Some services run through to Sydney Central and others need a change, so check the timetable before you book a day around it. The railway bypassed Berrima, which makes a car the better choice if you want to see both towns.

Sources for this section: Destination Southern Highlands, Getting Here; Wikipedia, Bowral railway station and Bowral (versions before 3 October 2022).

Tulip Time at Corbett Gardens

Tulip Time is the reason most people come in spring. Wingecarribee Shire Council said this year's festival is the 61st, and that more than 75,000 bulbs were planted in Corbett Gardens. It ran from Friday 16 September to Monday 3 October 2022. The gardens sit in the middle of Bowral, at the corner of Merrigang and Bendooley Streets.

The gardens are older than the festival. Visit NSW says the local tourist association bought the land in 1911, after Mrs Ada Corbett suggested a public park. Entry is free for most of the year, but there is a fee during the festival.

Here is what to know for the 2022 festival:

• Tickets are online only. There are no ticket sales at the gate, and the festival is cashless.
• Two day sessions. One runs 9:30am to 1pm, with entry closing at noon. The other runs 1:30pm to 5pm, with entry closing at 4pm.
• Prices. The listed price is A$12 for an adult and A$7 for a concession or a child aged 13 to 17, plus a booking fee.
• Tulips After Dark. On Friday and Saturday evenings the gardens open from 6pm to 8:30pm, with live music and a bar serving local wines.

Corbett Gardens closes to the public on 4 and 5 October for the dismantle and clean up, so the festival visit has to happen on or before today.

Sources for this section: Wingecarribee Shire Council media release, 17 May 2022; Destination Southern Highlands, Tulip Time 2022 and Tulip Time 2022 General Admission Tickets; Visit NSW, Corbett Gardens.

A walk through Bowral

After the gardens, stay in town for an hour or two. Bowral is known for its boutiques, antique shops and cafes. Wikipedia notes that citizens began planting deciduous trees from 1887 to give the town a European look. The oaks at the start of Bong Bong Street still give it strong autumn colour, and spring leaves are fresh now.

Cricket fans can visit the Bradman Oval, the Bradman Museum and the International Cricket Hall of Fame. Wikipedia says they are dedicated to the achievements of Sir Donald Bradman, who is often linked with Bowral.

For a view, head up Mount Gibraltar. It rises 863 m above sea level, sits between Bowral and Mittagong, and has three lookout points over the two towns.

Sources for this section: Wikipedia, Bowral and Mount Gibraltar (versions before 3 October 2022).

Berrima, the sandstone village

Berrima is about 11 km from Bowral. It was planned as a chief centre for southern New South Wales, and Wikipedia says the whole village is on the Register of the National Estate. The railway bypassed it, so no new houses were built for many years and old buildings survived. The Hume Highway bypassed it again in March 1989, which is why the main street is calm.

• Berrima Court House. It was built in the late 1830s, and the first trial by jury in the colony of New South Wales was held there.
• Old Berrima Gaol. Convicts built it from 1835 and it opened in 1839.
• Surveyor General Inn. It dates to 1834 and has held a licence since 1839.
• Two churches. Holy Trinity Anglican Church, designed by Edmund Blacket, and St Francis Xavier Catholic Church were both built around 1849.

Most of these sights can be seen on foot in an hour or so. The village also has cafes and shops, so it suits a late lunch.

Sources for this section: Wikipedia, Berrima, New South Wales (version before 3 October 2022).

A simple plan for the day

1. Leave Sydney early. Aim to reach Corbett Gardens for the 9:30am session, then book it online first.
2. Late morning. Walk Bowral's main street and, if you like cricket, the Bradman Museum.
3. Lunch in Berrima. Walk past the Court House, the old gaol and the inn, and eat in the village.
4. Afternoon. Go back to Bowral for Mount Gibraltar, or take the later 1:30pm garden session instead.
5. Evening option. On Friday and Saturday, book the Tulips After Dark session before you drive home.

If the festival has already finished when you read this, the town walk and Berrima are still open all year, and the next Tulip Time is in spring.

Sources for this section: Destination Southern Highlands, Tulip Time 2022 General Admission Tickets; Wikipedia, Bowral and Berrima, New South Wales (versions before 3 October 2022).

Sources

1. Wingecarribee Shire Council, Harbison to join Tulip Time Bulb Planting, 17 May 2022: wsc.nsw.gov.au
2. Destination Southern Highlands, Tulip Time 2022: visitsouthernhighlands.com.au
3. Destination Southern Highlands, Tulip Time 2022 General Admission Tickets: visitsouthernhighlands.com.au
4. Destination Southern Highlands, Getting Here: visitsouthernhighlands.com.au
5. Visit NSW, Corbett Gardens: visitnsw.com
6. Wikipedia, Bowral: en.wikipedia.org
7. Wikipedia, Bowral railway station: en.wikipedia.org
8. Wikipedia, Berrima, New South Wales: en.wikipedia.org
9. Wikipedia, Mount Gibraltar: en.wikipedia.org