3 days in Byron Bay
Glide with dolphins, visit lovely hinterland communities and enjoy superb organic food in the famed seaside town of Byron Bay.
By Simon Webster
If you thought the world’s greatest beaches were all in the middle of nowhere, Byron Bay is going to make you think wrong.
Australia’s most renowned beach town beguiles everyone from backpackers to Hollywood celebrities with its magnificent stretches of sand and world-class surf breaks, right alongside an unbelievable selection of restaurants, resorts, wellness activities, alternative culture and adventure.
What to anticipate
Stunning beaches near to organic eateries
Luxury getaways and trendy shops
Tiny communities in the rainforest hinterland
Fast facts
Time: 3 days
Distance: 240 km (150 miles) (150 miles)
Transport: car
Nearest major city: Brisbane
Price: $$$
DAY 1: CHECK IN, EXPLORE, AND MEET SOME DOLPHINS
Morning
Pick up your rental vehicle at Ballina Byron Gateway Airport and enjoy the 30-minute journey to your Byron Bay hotel. Elements of Byron has been considered one of the trendiest hotels in the world, so go straight there and check in to your own luxury villa amid the gum trees.
Like many of the finest things in Byron Bay, Elements is right by the beach, in this instance, Belongil Beach, which boasts 10 kilometres (six miles) of golden sand that seems like it might be miles from anyplace, yet happens to be right next to one of the funkiest cities on the globe.
Stroll to the beach, take a swim and soak up some sea air, then meander back to climb on the world’s first solar train for the 10-minute journey into town.
Afternoon
Your lunch destination is Beach Byron Bay. Sophisticated yet informal, it provides outstanding seasonal eating and views over Clarkes Beach that will make you want to stay all day.
Not that you will – since a few minutes’ walk away is the starting point for your afternoon experience with Go Sea Kayak, on which you’ll paddle beyond the crashing waves to get close to dolphins, migrating humpback whales and turtles, and very likely be brought to tears by the beauty of it all.
Afterwards, a 10-minute stroll will bring you to a chilled drink at the famed Beach Hotel on Main Beach, where you can watch an unusual assortment of tourists and residents go past.
Around the corner, you’ll eat oysters and supper overlooking the town from the Balcony Bar & Oyster Co, following which a 10-minute taxi journey will take you back to your accommodation.
DAY 2: HEAD FOR THE HILLS
Morning
Salute the sun with yoga on the beach. It’s a particularly suitable way to start proceedings on a day when you will be touring the Byron Bay hinterland, and its booming counterculture movement.
The mountains, rainforest and rolling hills inland from Byron are as magnificent as the beach, so hop in the vehicle and head for your first destination, Bangalow, which is only a 12-kilometre (seven-mile), 15-minute drive away.
This pretty little village has become a not-so-secret gourmet hotspot in recent years, so grab a coffee at one of the cafés such as TOWN and have a stroll among the shops – perhaps picking up some stylish Byron-esque clothes and homewares from Island Luxe, or a gift from quirky selection at the Wax Jambu Emporium.
Afternoon
Just six kilometres (four miles) down the road lies Newrybar, another picturesque town and home to your lunch venue, Harvest.
A restaurant, deli and bakery located in a historic Australian form of building, a ‘Queenslander’, it provides a relaxing environment and a much-lauded cuisine with plenty of local and organic foods. Now you’re traveling into Australia’s hippie heartland.
Long-haired teenagers gathered here to the Northern Rivers area for the Aquarius Festival back in 1973, and many of them never left.
Their best hour came in the late ’70s, when they kept loggers away from the jungle surrounding the beautiful and now rightly called Protesters Falls. It’s 50 kilometres (31 miles), or an hour, from Newrybar and can be visited through an easy 30-minute bushwalk.
From here, it will take another 50 minutes to traverse the 33 kilometres (21 miles) to Australia’s counterculture capital, Nimbin, a vibrant (in more ways than one) community where alternative lives are the norm.
Have a meander along the main strip, Cullen Street, purchase gifts from businesses such as Hemping Around, and check in on the interesting Nimbin Candle Factory. It’s only 74 kilometres (46 miles), or a little over an hour’s journey, back to Elements, to eat in elegance at Azure Bar & Grill.
DAY 3: BE FIRST TO SEE THE SUN RISE
Morning
You can’t visit Byron without climbing up to the lighthouse. Its location atop Cape Byron is the most easterly point in mainland Australia, and this is the first site in Australia to witness the rising sun, so get up there for dawn.
The lighthouse is about an eight-kilometre (five-mile), or 15-minute drive from your accommodation and provides breathtaking vistas, especially if there are dolphins swimming around in the water below. Next, leap off the cliff.
A tandem hang gliding trip will have you flying like a bird over the Byron Bay coastline and give you a whole new appreciation of this amazing terrain in a surprisingly calm experience that culminates with a smooth landing on the beaches of Tallow Beach.
If that’s not wild enough, consider freefalling over Byron Bay from a height of 15,000 feet (4,572-metres) on a skydiving excursion.
Time for lunch, which is going to be overlooking another another Byron beach – Wategos.
It’s only a 10-minute drive to Rae’s on Wategos, where you will enjoy some exquisite al fresco eating overlooking what many people think is Byron’s loveliest length of sand (which is some honour) (which is some accolade). Don’t be shocked if you encounter a star here;
Byron’s blend of natural beauty, laid-back attitude and alternative thinking is growing increasingly more popular with Hollywood types, and Rae’s has always drawn A-listers.
Afternoon
A visit of the extremely popular local craft brewery, Stone & Wood, seems in order, followed by a little of shopping therapy (see out the very Byron boho designs at Spell & The Gypsy Collective, and the beach-lifestyle garments and homewares at Hope & May) (check out the very Byron bohemian fashions at Spell & The Gypsy Collective, and the beach-lifestyle clothes and homewares at Hope & May).
Then travel to The Farm. Just eight kilometres (five miles) from the core of town, it’s a cluster of sustainably-minded micro-businesses that raise animals, cultivate food, and sell fresh goods.
Take a self-guided tour to see the hens and piglets then remain for supper at Three Blue Ducks, where all that ethically cultivated food is converted into something wonderful on a plate. Then it’s a 10-minute trip back to your accommodation for your final night in Byron.
Topic: 3 days in Byron Bay
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I am arguably the most popular Australian writer of all time. I am from the town of Karrinyup in rural Western Australia. When I was young, I was fascinated by the unique landscape of Australia, and I decided to support himself by writing books about the Australian landscape.
