Your guide to beachside breaks on the NSW coast
The NSW coastline stretches more than 2,000 kilometres and is home to some of the country’s best beaches, welcoming seaside towns and incredible experiences among nature including kayaking with turtles to walking On Country with Traditional Owners. Here are some of the best beachside breaks that will allow you to fully unwind or ramp up the adventure.
The mainland’s most easterly town is the first to be bathed in light each day, and you can watch the ocean sparkle right from your doorstep at Reflections Byron Bay. The beachfront holiday park is enveloped in rainforest between Cape Byron Lighthouse and the happy-go-lucky holiday town, packed with flashy places to eat, drink and shop. Accommodation ranges from camping and caravanning to comfy bell tents, spacious cabins and plush tiny homes, some so close to Clarkes Beach you can feel the sea spray from your front door.
In this surfing town, it’s a rite of passage to ride the waves; if you’re a novice book a lesson with Let’s Go Surfing. Or choose a kayak instead with Go Sea Kayak Byron Bay, where you’re likely to paddle alongside dolphins and turtles.
Tasman Holiday Parks – North Star at Hastings Point claims a beachside locale, waterslides and ample outdoor activities – it’s a top family-friendly option if you wish to extend your stay in the Tweed region. Hire an e-bike from Beyond Byron E Bikes and cruise along the Rivers Rail Trail, a repurposed railway track from Murwillumbah to Crabbes Creek, exploring all the towns and villages on the way.
On a three-kilometre peninsula, wedged between the Pacific Ocean and Wooli Wooli River, the tiny coastal town of Wooli is a gateway to some of the Coffs Coast’s most brilliant nature-based experiences. It’s also home to a family-friendly holiday park the kids won’t want to leave.
Situated on the Wooli Wooli River, Solitary Islands Resort Wooli has accommodation that can fit up to 14 – from modern cabins to riverside sites. The big attraction is the 110-metre waterslide aptly named Wooli Wedgie, as well as the splash park, ninja course and mini golf.
As an eco-certified destination, in Coffs there are many opportunities to restore calm in nature. Enjoy a gentle stroll through coastal forests, rainforest and gardens dotted with rare native plants at North Coast Regional Botanic Garden. Nearby, Solitary Islands Marine Park is a sanctuary of diverse marine life with 550 reef fish and 90 hard coral species. Or snorkel or scuba dive around the marine park with Jetty Dive, which also offers an otherworldly opportunity to swim with humpback whales.
This region has the highest population of koalas on the east coast and is home to the world’s first wild koala breeding facility and a visitor centre. Part of Guulabaa (meaning ‘Place of Koala’ to the local Biripi people), the facility is also home to WildNets, where you can bounce high up in the treetops, Bunyah Café, The Hub (a series of decks designed to maximise the views of the surrounding Cowarra State Forest), and the Bunyah Bilbay Cultural Centre, opening soon.
NRMA Port Macquarie Breakwall Holiday Park occupies a prime position in town, at the mouth of the Hastings River and adjacent to the beach. The pet-friendly park has a variety of sites and cabins under Norfolk Island pines. During your stay, when cooking is off the menu, try local sea-to-plate restaurant Bills Fishhouse & Bar.
Fortuitously located between the beauty of both Seven Mile Beach and Wallis Lake, days at Tiona Holiday Park should be spent swimming, fishing, boating or surfing. The pet-friendly park offers camping, glamping, caravanning and cabins. Here, some have direct access to the beach and some are veiled within lush palms, while the unique treehouse glamping tents are elevated among the rainforest canopy, enveloping you in green from morning to night.
The buzzy town of Forster is a 10-minute drive north and has a diverse dining scene. Book a table at Wharf Street Distillery, which handcrafts small-batch spirits and serves an elevated modern Australian menu. Or hit the road to Gloucester, the gateway to the Barrington Tops and World Heritage-listed Gondwana Rainforests. The scenic drive along The Bucketts Way takes you past small country towns, mountain ranges and farmland.
Another sanctuary doing incredible work to help protect our most iconic endangered species is Koala Sanctuary Port Stephens, an eight-hectare retreat caring for sick, injured and orphaned koalas. Tucked away in bushland and backing onto One Mile Beach, you can stay overnight in one of the four-person glamping tents or a suite and wake to a chorus of birdlife and spend the day hanging out with the furry residents.
Make the short trip to drinking and dining destination B Farm by Murray’s, home to local craft beer icon Murray’s Brewing, a cellar door, farm-to-table restaurant and a high tea pavilion. On weekends, gather with friends in dappled sunshine on the lawn and enjoy the live music.
Big4 Easts Beach, the 14-hectare park in Kiama, has been family-owned and operated for 80 years and claims absolute beach frontage. No matter where you stay – from the double-storey Ocean View Lofts to the grassy ensuite campsites – it’s an easy stroll to the sand. Kids will never be bored here: there’s an aqua park with waterslides, a heated pool, a jumping pillow, kids’ club and an outdoor rope playground.
Kiama is famously home to the largest blowhole in the world, which can propel water up to 30 metres in the air. See this natural phenomenon as part of the 20-kilometre Kiama Coast Walk, which runs from Minnamurra River to Gerringong, and includes beach walking, grassy tracks, and gentle hills. Gerringong is home to Buena Vista Farm, a picturesque property that looks out over the ocean. Take a farm tour or join a class to learn how to make sourdough, cheese or preserves.
Aptly named Holiday Haven White Sands, this holiday park has direct access to spectacular Huskisson Beach. There are a variety of cabins, ultra-comfortable safari tents and powered sites available, shaded by tall eucalypts, some affording views over Jervis Bay.
Take a walk and talk On Country with Gadhungal Marring, which celebrates local Dharawal culture, storytelling and connection to land. At night, join an astrophysicist from Jervis Bay Stargazing to listen to constellation stories and look through telescopes at the uninterrupted dark skies from the beach.
Fringed by national park and coast, Tathra Beach Eco Camp is all about unplugging in nature. The eco camp features luxe safari tents, ‘Gumnut Pods’ made for couples, and contemporary cabins, such as the chic six-person Black Cockatoo cabins, which feature full kitchens and stone bathrooms. Or stay true to your natural immersion and pitch your tent on one of the eucalypt-shaded unpowered sites.
Connect to the land during a guided cultural walk with Yandama On Country, led by local Yuin, Dharawal and Wolgalu man, Nathan Lygon. Or jump aboard Captain Sponge’s boat for an oyster tour on Pambula Lake to see how sustainable Sydney rock oysters are farmed and taste the delicious molluscs. An ultimate playground for mountain bikers, the new Gravity Eden Mountain Bike Park comprises 58 kilometres of trails that can take you from sea level to the summit of the coastal peaks.
