The Legendary Pacific Coast Highway, the region between Brisbane and Sydney, is our final portion of our time in Australia. And this is an area that we were really looking forward to. We were able to rent a car to do the drive, which allows us to take our time and visit the coast at our own pace, spend time at different beaches, watch people while we eat breakfast at a cafe, spend a full day with friends, etc. It was a great way to take in the local culture while taking small moments for ourselves. The expanse of the pristine coastline was truly remarkable. There wasn’t a single spot that didn’t have a large sandy beach and teal blue ocean water. And with the beating heat of the Australian sunshine, we just had to take a dip in every body of water. It was really relaxing.
We also were able to stop in Hunter Valley, one of the wine regions of Australia, and indulge in some wine and food. It was really the perfect way to cap off this part of our travels and *cheers* to a great adventure down under. The people, nature, culture, nature, history, and nature truly blew us away and we know we will need to come back to explore more of this large and diverse country.
Destination Overview
The Legendary Pacific Coast Highway and Hunter Valley
Brisbane and Gold Coast are located at the very southern part of the Queensland state. Located about 1000 km (621 miles) to the south of Brisbane is Sydney, and driving this magnificent route between the two cities along the New South Wales coastline is a favorite road trip for many Australians. While not as internationally known as the Great Ocean Road, the Legendary Pacific Coast drive has many destinations that are worthy of turning this approximately 10 hour drive into a multi-day trip.
Right over the border of Queensland, only about a 2 hour drive from Brisbane, is the first New South Wales beach town worthy of an extended stop, Byron Bay. Before being known for some of the famous celebrities that own homes there today such as Matt Damon or the Hemsworth brothers, this town became popular in the 1970s as a hippy happy alternative town. There is now a blended combination of the hippy vibes and upscale beach town making it appealing to many looking to have a unique time at some of its picturesque sand beaches.
The next must stop destination along the drive is much further along at Port Stephens about 6 hours south of Byron Bay. However, for those looking for a much more laid back and quiet New South Wales beach experience than Byron Bay many of the small towns in-between are also well worth a stop. Port Stephens attracts visitors with its stunning beaches and majestic bay. The Tomaree Head has walking trails that end at a summit overlooking the beautiful scenery and the nearby Stockton Beach offers fun 4 Wheel Drive access along the ocean.
Sydney is only about 2 hours south of this area but one other must stop destination is the Hunter Valley Wine Region located about 1 hour inland from the city of Newcastle near Port Stephens. This wine region is one of the top in Australia and is known for its semillon white as well as shiraz red wines. A visitor center in Pokolbin can help you choose where to visit in the valley for delicious wine and food. After completing your stay in the Hunter Valley it is only about a 2 hour drive to Sydney which can be done direct or with some final beach stops along the Central Coast to conclude your Legendary Pacific Coast road trip.
Where to Read More
The Legendary Pacific Coast Highway: Your Guide from Brisbane to Sydney
A guide to road tripping from Brisbane to Sydney through Byron Bay. It includes the stops and highlights throughout your drive that will amaze you.
An Interesting Fact
Hunter Valley is One of the Top Wine Regions in the World
Australia is regarded as one of the top wine producing countries in the world both by volume but also in terms of quality of the wine. Within Australia the most prominent wine regions are spread throughout the country such as Western Australia’s Margaret River, South Australia’s Barossa and McLaren Valleys, Victoria’s Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula, and New South Wales’ Hunter Valley. In addition to having wine regions that are geographically accessible throughout the country, the experience is also very approachable to all budgets and varying levels of wine experience. Many of the cellar dollars offer complimentary tastings where you not only become educated on the wine production and different types but also generally do not need to pay for the tasting if you buy at least 1 bottle to take home. This means that locals as well as visitors can taste Australia’s most famous wine, Shiraz, which is produced throughout the country but also get to know more about Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling, Semillon, and so many other wine types.
We had considered taking a day trip to the Hunter Valley wine region while in Sydney but then realized we could seamlessly add it on to the end of our Legendary Pacific Coast road trip instead. While researching online where to visit, we learned that besides producing excellent Shiraz wine in Hunter Valley they were also renowned for their Semillon. However, we soon realized that there were over 150 wineries and cellar doors within the Hunter Valley which made it difficult to determine which were worthwhile to visit. There was a visitor center near Pokolbin at the center of the Hunter Valley that we stopped at to start our day and get more personalized advice. Based on conversations with a knowledgeable team there, we learned that you could not go wrong with whatever places you end up choosing, which was incredible that there were so many quality options in such a small area.
For our day trip to the valley, we started with a lunch at Baume Restaurant which was connected to the Ben Ean Winery. We chose this restaurant because of their commitment to sourcing only the best local ingredients and providing a casual but delicious family style dining experience. They had a great patio to enjoy the beautiful weather outside in addition to a cozy interior that highlighted the wines of the attached winery. All of the food we had was filling and delicious but also complimented the wines that we sampled throughout the meal.
After our meal, we went over to Briar Ridge for a wine tasting at their cellar door. We chose this one because it is a small boutique winery that was highly recognized for its wines. Upon arriving, the cellar door felt like a home and the outdoor porch was a great place to sample wine while learning about the production process here as well as in Australia. We tasted 8 different wines and ended up thoroughly enjoying our afternoon at this peaceful property tucked into the vineyards. At the end, we bought wine as a souvenir and the tasting was included, which we learned was pretty customary in cellar doors throughout Australia. We could have gone to one more destination but rather than pack in 3 stops we took it easy at 2 and enjoyed their outdoor seating areas. Visiting these destinations was still enough for us to have a great day, and we left understanding why the Hunter Valley is such a famous wine region in Australia and the world.
Travel Tip of the Week
Visit a Few Beach Towns Along the New South Wales North Coast
Sydney is famous for its urban beaches such as Bondi, Coogee, and Manly Beach. For those short on time, any one of them is going to result in an amazing day relaxing on the sand and in the water. If you are spending an extended amount of time in New South Wales, then it would be worth your time to check out the beach towns that line the coast of the state both to the south and north of Sydney. Since we were driving from Brisbane to Sydney, the Legendary Pacific Coast road trip afforded us many opportunities to check out some of these small towns to the north of Sydney and relax on beaches far less crowded than the famous ones in the city.
Our first beach town on the road trip was Byron Bay, which ended up being the most crowded of any that we did on the road trip. This town is a prominent vacation destination that includes A-list celebrities as owners of its gorgeous beach front homes. As such, this area has the most built up infrastructure including a family farm experience, craft brewery, distilleries, shops, restaurants, and much more. In combination, all of this provides countless days worth of fun, in addition to numerous beaches to relax on. The main beach in town can become pretty crowded especially near the Life Saving Club as there are plenty of places to park and it is only steps from the busiest part of Byron Bay. However, it is easy to get away from the crowds by going out to Cape Byron which contains an iconic lighthouse, the most easterly point in Australia, and beautiful cliff views. Here we saw a pod of dolphins swimming below and incredible views of Tallow Beach stretching along the ocean as far as we could see. There were also some trails, which made for a nice walk around the cape, and after we went swimming at the secluded Wategos Beach, which did not have much parking access and resulted in very few people. We also went to the Pass, which was more crowded but had great shoreline views.
The next beach towns that we stopped in were picturesque New South Wales communities that rarely have any crowds. Our friends invited us to visit them, and they showed us a few of the beaches that they love to visit which included Corindi, Arrawarra, Mullaway, and Woolgoolga Beach. They told us that while Byron Bay is more well known, they preferred these spots and the countless others like them that extend all the way down to Sydney. While the towns might not have as many tourist specific amenities as Byron Bay, they did offer varying restaurants, shops, and things to do in addition to the amazing beaches which almost felt like your own personal beaches given the few people around.
Our last stop along the drive at a beach town was an interesting combination of beautiful harbor and urban city. Nelson Bay is a small community located in the Port Stephens Harbor area about an hour from the city of Newcastle. We first stopped in Nelson Bay to visit Tomaree Head and walk up to the summit which had unforgettable views of the beaches as well as the ocean below. We did not stop in this town to relax on the beaches; although there were plenty to choose from in the area. On the way to Newcastle, we stopped at Stockton Beach which had a line of cars preparing their tires to go 4 Wheel Driving along the ocean. Our car did not have the right set up so we continued on to the city but thought it would be a fun activity in the future.
Within Newcastle, there are a handful of great beaches such as Nobbys, Newcastle, and Merewether Beaches. At both Merewether and Newcastle Beaches, there were enormous ocean baths for a more controlled swimming environment than the beaches. At the ocean baths, the sea water is contained by rocks, meaning there is no need for those scared of sharks to worry. Within the ocean baths, there are sections for kids as well as areas for people to swim laps. While Newcastle does not compare to the wonder of Sydney, it was nice to get a similar urban beach experience with far fewer crowds. It was a great way to end our beach town stops on the Legendary Pacific drive (although in between Newcastle and Sydney, we could have chosen many other small communities in the Central Coast to stop). All of these would have had wonderful beach experiences too as the options are nearly endless for great beach communities in New South Wales.
