Best Beaches NSW


            

Bondi Beach, NSW Accommodation
This is the most celebrated beach in the country, a kilometre of golden grains where Sydney’s beautiful people come to bare it all. As well as the essential ingredients – booming surf, seagulls riding the breeze, the smell of sun-block – Bondi has a style all its own. This is see-and-be-seen territory, and nobody is ever too tanned, too thin or too muscled.

Bondi also has a vibrant café and restaurant culture. Campbell Parade, which runs along the back of the beach, is a near-continuous strip of outdoor cafes and gelato bars. There’s serious food territory too, with Sean’s Panaroma and the Icebergs Dining Room and Bar dishing out food every bit as glam as the view.

Stressed over beach-fashion burnout? Head one street back from the beach and you’ll find gorgeous streetwear, beachwear and funky designs for a new-look you. There’s Tuchuzy, where Kylie Minogue has been spotted checking out the racks, Bikini Island for surfwear essentials, Purl Harbour for gorgeous handknits, Alfie's Shop for the Bondi street look and puf 'n stuf retro clothing for vintage everything.

 

Broulee, NSW Accommodation
Broulee is dedicated to the sea. The fishing is great, there’s good diving and snorkelling in the area and the surfing is some of the best on the South Coast. The beaches are particularly lovely in this part of the world. Broulee Beach is well protected and the sand dips gradually, which makes it a family favourite. To the north, there are several small and secluded coves with fine beaches.
 
Surveyed and gazetted in 1837, Broulee developed relatively early as a port for whaling ships and coastal sailing vessels. In 1841, the schooner "Rover" foundered here during a fierce storm but several crew were saved by local Aboriginals who formed a human chain and plucked them from the surf. The town’s great beaches have made it a popular holiday destination, especially with Canberra residents.

Byron Bay, NSW Accommodation
Byron Bay’s natural credentials are impeccable – humpback whales cruise past the headland, storms create rainbows on the mountains across the bay, hang-gliders ride the thermals above the lighthouse. Australia's most easterly point casts a spell over everyone who goes there.

Over the past two decades, Byron Bay has become an escape for urban refugees, and especially those with artistic inclinations. Architects, designers, craftworkers and software engineers have set up shop, grafting their talents and energy on to this small, relaxed coastal village. Today Byron Bay is a chic seaside town with glorious beaches, a New Age tinge and loads of style.

Originally the centre of a farming and dairy district, Byron Bay spread its wings in the 1970s when it was ”discovered” – initially by surfers and later by urban escapees and a cast of international megastars who built palatial estates in the hills behind the town. Today it has become an essential stop for international backpackers travelling the east-coast circuit.

Manly, NSW Accommodation
A visit to Manly by ferry is a quintessential Sydney experience. Nestled between a tranquil inner-harbour beach on one side and a popular Pacific Ocean surf beach on the other, Manly manages to combine a laid-back attitude with a sophisticated dining scene and stylish boutiques. The palm-tree lined Corso leads you onto the Steyne promenade, where you can walk, roller-blade or cycle along the oceanfront. Back in 2004, it became the first local council in Sydney to declare its beaches non-smoking. There are a number of scenic walking routes that link the beaches with the national park.

Jervis Bay, NSW Accommodation
Just south of the Shoalhaven River, Jervis Bay measures 15 km from north to south and about 10 km across. The main town is Huskisson, from where dolphin-watch cruises, dive and fishing trips and boats depart to explore this vast waterway.

The bay’s beaches are glorious, especially those starting from Greenfields Beach, just south of Vincentia, and continuing to Murrays Beach in the shelter of Bowen Island. Its sparkling waters, underwater topography of arches, caves and rock stacks and a marine population that includes gropers, wrasses, sharks, cuttlefish and sea dragons make this one of the finest dive sites in the State.

At its southern end, Jervis Bay is enclosed by Booderee National Park, a pristine coastal wilderness. From Wreck Bay village on Summercloud Bay in the park’s south, a walking trail circles the peninsula to St Georges Head, passing a succession of quiet beaches, cliffs and forests.

Sociable and playful, the dolphins that live within the sheltered embrace of Jervis Bay can often be seen in shallow waters close to shore – or even close to sea kayaks in the bay. And between June and November, migrating whales can be seen from boats and headlands, as they pass by or come right inside the bay.

Mollymook, NSW Accommodation
Mollymook Beach is a strip of golden sand, a long stretch of clear waters for body surfers, board riders and fishermen to enjoy . Headlands offer protection on windy days while the coastline also provides safe swimming for children at places such as Narrawallee Inlet and the Bogey Hole. Dolphins are often seen off these beaches or whales migrating along the coast.

The town has plenty of accommodation options, from beachside apartments to motels and holiday homes available for short-term rental throughout the year.

Mollymook has two fine golf courses. One is the 9-hole Beachside Course located on the southern end of Mollymook Beach. The other is the 18-hole Hilltop Course, in a bushland setting yet still within earshot of the waves.

Mollymook has always been a holiday town and many adults in Sydney and Canberra have fond memories of childhood summers spent on the town’s beaches. Over recent times Mollymook has expanded so that its houses blend almost seamlessly with those of Milton and Ulladulla, forming a large and sprawling semi-urban area.