Aussie travellers have been heading off on a two-hour 6km hike to see an Instagram-famous rock pool – and then left disappointed to find it is not all it cracked up to be.
The Figure Eight Pools are located along the coast of Sydney’s Royal National Park near Burning Palms Beach just over an hour south of the city and has been drawing in adventurers in droves for their unique, naturally-formed shapes.
However travel bloggers are discovering the reality of the tourist hotspot with many being left dismayed at how underwhelming – and dangerous – the pools are in real life.
Instagram vs Reality: Travellers are embarking on a two-hour hike to see the Instagram-famous Figure Eight Pools but many have been left disappointed by what they found
The Figure Eight Pools are located along the coast of Sydney’s Royal National Park near Burning Palms Beach just over an hour south of the city
‘Whoever told you the Figure Eight Pools were bucket list-worthy is lying to you and let me show you why,’ visitor Jessica Henderson said in a TikTok clip.
Thanks to the enormous attention on Instagram, the Figure Eight Pools has become a huge social media trend, with tourists from all walks of life travelling far just to capture that ‘perfect’ photo.
In the video, Jessica took viewers along the ‘never-ending’ hike through the bush, along the beach and over the rocks to the pools.
‘Whoever told you the Figure Eight Pools were bucket list-worthy is lying to you and let me show you why,’ visitor Jessica Henderson said in a TikTok clip
Thanks to the enormous attention on Instagram, the Figure Eight Pools has become a huge social media trend, with tourists from all over travelling far just to capture that ‘perfect’ photo
When Jessica and her boyfriend finally arrived, they found a series of small murky swimming holes, only one of which had the recognisable figure-eight shape.
‘Did we come all the way here for that?’ Jessica’s partner laughed.
‘This one’s kind of pretty but still not going in and this is probably the highlight of the trip,’ she said showing a bigger, clearer rock pool nearby.
‘Time to go straight back to the car.’
The clip was a follow-up in response to a previous video in which Jessica showed images of what she expected the pools to look like versus what she was greeted with when she made the journey.
After a 6km hike, Jessica and her boyfriend finally arrived at the pools to find a series of small murky swimming holes, only one of which had a figure-eight shape
‘Definitely not worth it… did that few years ago and that eight pool was full of people with selfie sticks,’ replied one disappointed viewer
Both videos racked up a combined 2.6million views as many in the comments said they had a similar experience while others thought the ordeal was hilarious.
‘I think the hike there is better than the actual pool,’ one viewer said.
‘I hiked the whole way in SANDALS and when we got there – it was so high tide we couldn’t see anything,’ another recalled.
‘Definitely not worth it… did that few years ago and that eight pool was full of people with selfie sticks,’ replied a third.
Another TikTok clip showed a group of women visiting the pool who poked fun at their laughably bad trip. There were crowds of people and conditions were very windy
‘Agreed. Whoever hyped up the figure eight pool I hope both sides of their pillow is warm,’ joked a fourth.
Another TikTok clip showed a group of women visiting the pool who poked fun at their laughably bad visit.
They arrived at the spot after a long hike to find hoards of people and blustering conditions making it unpleasant to swim.
Since the pools became an Instagram sensation in 2016 thousands of people have made the trek to swim in the sometimes crystal clear waters but it hasn’t come without consequences.
Since the pools became an Instagram sensation thousands have made the trek to swim there but it hasn’t come without consequences with multiple drownings and injuries
A number of drownings and broken bones have been recorded at the site of the pools after inexperienced swimmers visited and were hit by rogue waves on the rock shelf.
The entire shelf the pools sit on is underwater at high tide so tourists are cautioned to only visit during low tide or else risk large swell ruining their day trip.
There are no toilets, water stops or mobile phone reception down by the famous pools so it pays to be prepared.
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