A highlight reel of must-dos in beautiful NSW.

NSW is a state of remarkable contrasts, from cool cities to character-filled outback towns, and breathtaking coasts with epic surf to rich cultural experiences. Here we round up some of the best bits not to be missed on your next holiday.  

The best regional cities to explore

Newcastle

Few cities balance urban sophistication and coastal cool quite like Newcastle. By day, enjoy heritage-listed ocean baths, superb surf breaks and the scenic Bathers Way cliff-top walk.  

After dark, the city comes alive with a refined dining scene and hip small bars. Newcastle also takes its arts and culture seriously, with national performances at the Civic Theatre, vibrant street art and more than 7000 works at the recently reopened Newcastle Art Gallery. 

Wollongong

Nestled between the Pacific Ocean and dramatic Illawarra Escarpment, ‘The Gong’ is the traditional land of the Dharawal people and has a history shaped by farming, coal mining and steelmaking.  

Take a scenic drive over the photogenic Sea Cliff Bridge, discover Indigenous heritage on a Gumaraa Culture Canoeing Tour or on-Country guided walk, then hop between the rock-carved ocean pools, beaches and renowned surf breaks. 

Bathurst

Bathurst is synonymous with motor racing, but it’s more than Brocky’s spiritual home. Australia’s oldest inland European settlement was founded on Wiradjuri Country and flourished during the gold rush of the 1850s – its heritage streetscapes are reminders of this boomtime.  

While crowds flock to Mt Panorama for ‘The Great Race’ each October, there’s also the National Motor Racing Museum, Victorian-era Machattie Park, Bathurst Rail Museum and the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum to explore.  

Tamworth

This ain’t Texas, but it’s close enough. Don your Akubra to visit Tamworth, Australia’s heartland for country music and rural life. It’s home to a 12-metre Big Golden Guitar, the Australian Country Music Hall of Fame and the annual Tamworth Country Music Festival. Beyond boot scooting, explore the wider region to sample local cool-climate wines and go horseriding in the surrounding countryside. 

Armidale

Home to big city sophistication with charming small-town energy, Armidale is a renowned university hub with elegant tree-lined streets and heritage architecture.  

Set in the wild and beautiful New England High Country within the Great Dividing Range, the region is a nature lover’s playground; it’s blessed with dramatic gorges, thundering waterfalls, granite landscapes and the World Heritage-listed wilderness of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.

On-Country tours to inspire awe

Gumaraa Aboriginal Experience, Dharawal and Yuin Nations

Based in Dharawal Country in the Illawarra region, Gumaraa offers wonderfully immersive Aboriginal cultural education and experiences that range from whale watching to a three-hour fishing tour.  

The latter is led by a local Indigenous guide, who’ll teach you how to find pipis, harvest bush tucker and explain traditional cooking techniques. You’ll also have the pleasure of feasting on what you catch. Other experiences include paddleboarding in the Illawarra River, a painting workshop and a traditional bush tucker and medicine walk. 

Bullanginya Dreaming, Bangerang Nation

A truly immersive experience in the Murray, this extraordinary laser light spectacle tells the story of the Bangerang Dreaming. Follow the 1.8-kilometre track, set on the banks of the Bullanginya Lagoon in Barooga, to absorb the 12 artworks that each tell a cultural story, from the cosmos to life by the river.  

The moving experience is designed to strengthen the bonds between the Murray community and the Bangerang people by sharing stories, an appreciation of legacy and important First Nations knowledge. 

Explore Byron Bay, Bundjalung Nation

Leave the beat of Byron’s town centre behind and join Arakwal Bundjalung woman Delta Kay of Explore Byron Bay on a tour that reveals the region’s Indigenous heart. With an Ancestral connection to Country that reaches back millennia, Delta takes visitors on a rich and authentic experience of the Northern Rivers.  

Choose from the Walgun Cape Byron tour, a bush food tour in the hinterland town of Bangalow, or even whale-watching through the lens of First Nations Custodians. 

The most beautiful walks

Tomaree Coastal Walk, Port Stephens

Following ancient Worimi routes, the 27-kilometre Tomaree Coastal Walk takes you from Shoal Bay to Birubi Point Aboriginal Place in Anna Bay.  

The walk starts with a bang, climbing the 161-metre Tomaree Head Summit, and traverses forests of bloodwoods and paperbarks, sandy beaches and rocky coast, with coastal villages Shoal Bay and One Mile your respite in between.  

Murramarang South Coast Walk, Pretty Beach

The spectacular 34-kilometre Murramarang South Coast Walk traces the dramatic coast between Ulladulla and Batemans Bay and adjoins one of the most significant Aboriginal sites in the state.  

Walk along the ancient sandstone coastline, wind through spotted gum forest, go barefoot on sandy beaches and swim in secluded bays along the way.   

Grand Cliff Top Walk, Blue Mountains

Linking Wentworth Falls and Katoomba, the 19-kilometre Grand Cliff Top Walk can be completed over two days, with an overnight stop in the pretty Blue Mountains village of Leura.  

The trail hugs cliff edges above the Jamison Valley before descending into fern-filled forests, passing waterfalls and Aboriginal sites, and ending at the iconic Three Sisters. 

Gidjuum Gulganyi Track, Tweed/Byron 

This four-day hike in the Tweed Byron hinterland skims around the top of a caldera as hikers wander across both Mount Jerusalem and Nightcap national parks for 45 kilometres.  

Traverse this ancient landscape of fern-festooned gullies, liquid crystal creeks and towering Gondwana Rainforest, before arriving at the spectacular Minyon Falls. Connect Adventures offers guided, pack-free walks of the track. 

The best ocean pools

Blue Pool, Bermagui

Ocean pools are a uniquely NSW proposition. You don’t really find them anywhere else in the country, at least not in the same abundance. They speak to our love of oceanside life and this Olympic-sized rock pool at Bermagui on the Sapphire Coast is certainly one of the most spectacular.  

The aquamarine beauty shouldered by cliffs certainly gets its fair share of Instagram Reels and you can even don a snorkel and dive under to ogle at marine life, which finds itself washed in and out with the undulating tide.  

Aslings Beach Rock Pool, Eden

The most southerly ocean pool in NSW, Aslings Beach Rock Pool is set at the southern end of the beach at Twofold Bay in Eden and is often overlooked in favour of its better-known neighbour, the Bermagui Blue Pool, found 1.5 hours up the Sapphire Coast.  

But this delightful dip is carved out below a chunk of pinkish white rock for a swim that demands a photo finish. Set by the coast-hugging, fish-hauling hamlet of Eden, it’s an idyllic place to jump in for a frolic after exploring the town’s fascinating Eden Killer Whale Museum. 

Fairy Pools, Forster

The plunge-able, glass-blown translucence of the rock pools between Forster’s Burgess and McBrides Beach on the Barrington Coast is what wild swimming dreams are all about.  

Found in the Booti Booti National Park at Cape Hawke, take the 1.2-kilometre, rocky walk (good shoes are advised) down past coastal scrub to the sparkling fairy pool for a pristine paddle. We’re awarding this one with true hidden gem status. 

The best places for stargazing

Kestrel Nest EcoHut, Mt Adrah

Off-grid and off-line, Kestrel Nest EcoHut is a true retreat in nature where bushwalking, fishing and outdoor bathing fill the day.  

Recognised as Australia’s first Dark Sky Approved Lodging, guests can enjoy an otherworldly celestial show while relaxing in dedicated stargazing hammocks.  

Warrumbungle Dark Sky Park, Warrumbungle

Dubbed the ‘Astronomy Capital of Australia’, Australia’s first Dark Sky Park promises extraordinary stargazing.  

By day, tackle the challenging 14.5-kilometre Breadknife and Grand High Tops walk, passing seasonal wildflowers and millennia-old volcanic formations, and head to the nearby Siding Spring Observatory for in-depth knowledge of the stars. At night, marvel at the cosmos firsthand from your campsite in the Warrumbungles.  

Jervis Bay Stargazing, Jervis Bay

Stargaze with the sand beneath your feet in  Jervis Bay. Follow a laser-guided tour with Jervis Bay Stargazing that brings the constellations to life through storytelling, and see the Milky Way in greater detail through a state-of-the-art telescope. 

The best pubs for a pint

Eltham Hotel, Eltham

Sitting between Lismore and Byron Bay, this watering hole in Eltham has been pouring beers for more than a century.  

While Eltam Hotel was refurbished in 2021, it still has an old-school pub feel and offers sophisticated fare – the menu was designed by ex-Saint Peter chef Alana Sapwell-Stone. Live music amps up the crowds come weekends.  

The Sir George, Jugiong

An iconic country pub with plenty of character, The Sir George is in the tiny village of Jugiong, beside the Murrumbidgee River. Founded in 1845, the pub has a long history of serving travellers on the Hume Highway, but it fell into disrepair when the town was bypassed in the 1990s.  

Following a major restoration, it reopened in 2016 and once again became the beating heart of Jugiong. Come for a drink in the shady beer garden, settle in for a meal or stay overnight in the heritage stone stables. 

Hill End Micro Pub, Hill End

Tucked into the historic gold-mining village of Hill End near Bathurst, the tiny family-owned Hill End Micro Pub packs a punch.  

It’s the kind of characterful place that draws you in – and its food and drinks are equally noteworthy, with a strong focus on regional producers. Stay upstairs in the heritage building if you want to linger a little longer to soak up the village’s gold-rush history. 

Rural stays with a luxurious twist

Warramba, Capertee Valley

Sleep in this lovingly restored 1890s homestead surrounded by 40 hectares of regenerated farmland in the Capertee Valley near Mudgee.  

Warramba is home to kangaroos, wombats and abundant birdlife – so much so that it’s recognised internationally as an Important Bird Area. Nearby Rylstone is an age-old town of sandstone cottages, delicious food and wine, and friendly faces.  

The Silos, Junee

On this working sheep farm, around a 40-minute drive from Wagga Wagga, a grain silo has been transformed into an architecturally beautiful stay: The Silos. Sleeping two, the circular, double-storey retreat features a loft bedroom overlooking paddocks and country views, plus a firepit for gathering beneath star-speckled skies.  

The all-inclusive stay in Junee includes a farm-fresh breakfast and dinner provisions; add a hot-air balloon flight over the Riverina for a truly special memory. 

Scribbly Farm, Southern Highlands

Set in the heart of the Southern Highlands, adults-only Scribbly Farm is the reset you need.  

Sleep in ‘bush domes’ complete with oversized windows and log fires, surrounded by a wild 40-hectare landscape. It feels like blissful isolation but is just 30 minutes from Bowral.  

Windy Station, Liverpool Plains

Experience real-deal station life on this working farm in the heart of the Liverpool Plains. Sleeping up to 30 guests across the property – including the 1901-built shearers’ quarters – Windy Station is ideal for families and groups, with Back Paddock Tours offering deeper insight into life on the land.