Day 1 of an AI Assisted 10 Day Trip Around New South Wales Australia

We left Gosford mid morning and headed through Sydney bound for Kiama. The planning for the trip started with ChatGPT. The initial prompt was for a 10 day driving trip with a list of places we wanted to go. With progressive refinement we narrowed it down to 1 and 2 night stays along the way. Further prompts led us to lists of possible accommodations. While helpful, the accommodation bookings needed more exploring through other booking tools. We started with a plan and once underway, more prompts to ChatGPT to suggest experiences and places of interest on our route for the day. This last bit really made our day.

We stopped first in the Royal National Park, south of Sydney. When I prompted for experiences, I also added things we liked to do, like walks, views, etc. The park is huge, so we chose Wattamolla as a stop where we could get some spectacular coastal views and get a moderate hike in. This did not disappoint. The views were spectacular, the walk was through coastal bush and along the cliffs. Got lots of pictures along the way.

Next stop was noted as a #1 unmissable stop, Bald Hill Lookout (Stanwood Tops). After a beautiful drive through the park along winding roads we got to the lookout.

Off to lunch. The suggested stop was the Scarborough Hotel. Described as a famous cliff-top bear garden, very chill and scenic! Tried another local (ish) beer, had a light lunch, and watched the cockatoo‘s fly around and land close, hoping for a handout. Food was excellent, beer was nicely chilled, and the view was again, pretty special. BTW, I’m running out of adjectives to describe the scenery…..

After lunch we headed off for Kiama. Kiama is noted for a it’s blowholes (large and small). Originally noted by the local aboriginal (the Wadi Wadi) who called it Khanterintee, in 1797, George Bass formally noted the blowholes during his survey of the coast. It was a beautiful calm day, not ideal to see the blowhole action. Still an interesting formation, and watching what surge was there, I could easily see how in the right conditions (SE swell on a high tide) it would be spectacular. We went to find the small blowhole, and couldn’t see the same sort of hole in the rocks but suspect it was one of 2 narrow channels in the cliff that water would surge into.

Kiama was our last stop before heading a bit further south to get to our accommodation for the night. We‘d booked a 2 bedroom cabin in a holiday park in Gerroa. We arrived after 5:00 pm and no-one was around. Finally sorted out how to self check in and found our cabin. Really lovely. Central living, kitchen and eating area with a separate bedroom on either side, each with ensuite. The sunset view was, well, see for yourself…