For a NSW holiday mecca with a reputation for surf, sun and sand, Port Macquarie, a four to five-hour drive north of Sydney, offers a great deal than at first meets the eye. Whether you choose to be active or merely find a tranquil corner to relax, there are so many fantastic things to do in Port Macquarie, from coastal walks and gallery tours to camel safaris, river cruises and scenic seaplane flights.
It doesn’t take long to realise Port Macquarie caters for different holidaying tastes and budgets. Named after NSW Governor Lachlan Macquarie, it’s hard to imagine Port Macquarie was originally a penal settlement for convicts from England. Today, it spells holiday bliss, its mid-North Coast address boasting a warm and temperate climate, ideal for some well-earned R&R on the beach – all year round.
Contents
- Port Macquarie
- 19 Things To Do In Port Macquarie
- 1- Attend ArtWalk
- 2- Go Whale Watching
- 3- Surf and Swim Port Macquarie’s Beaches
- 4- Admire The View From Tacking Point Lighthouse
- 5- Ride A Camel On The Beach
- 6- Pick Strawberries At Ricardoes
- 7- Get Lost In NSW’s Largest Hedge Maze
- 8- Taste Handmade Chocolates
- 9- Walk Port Macquarie’s Trails
- 10- Explore Burrawan State Forest
- 11- Visit the Koala Hospital
- 12- Visit Roto House
- 13- Don A Wig At The Port Macquarie Courthouse
- 14- Watch a show at the Port Macquarie Glasshouse
- 15- Eat Fresh Seafood
- 16- Go Cafe Hopping
- 17- Explore Sea Acres Rainforest Centre
- 18- Explore Camden Haven
- 19- Explore Kattang Nature Reserve
- FEATURED PORT MACQUARIE ACCOMMODATION
- 19 Things To Do In Port Macquarie
Port Macquarie
19 Things To Do In Port Macquarie
1- Attend ArtWalk
ArtWalk is an evening arts festival in Port Macquarie and a good excuse to visit in winter when the city is alive with art and music.
Museums and galleries are complemented by pop-up street art and light installations.
There are music performances, street food stalls and the public spaces to meet new friends and discuss ideas.
There’s a different theme each year. For the next ArtWalk see more information here.
2- Go Whale Watching
From May to November, thousands of humpback whales swim past Australia’s east coast on their long journey back to Antarctica.
They give birth in the warm waters of north Queensland and swim past Port Macquarie, where you can spot them from vantage points along the Port Macquarie Coastal Walk.
For a closer look, join a whale-watching cruise where you might get an eyeful of humpback whales breaching and spy-hopping around the boat. Book your PortJet’s Ocean Blast cruise here.
Whale watching fans, read these posts:
Where to go whale-watching:
- Whale watching in Hervey Bay
- Whale watching in Victoria (British Columbia)
- Whale watching in Juneau (Alaska)
3- Surf and Swim Port Macquarie’s Beaches
From the town centre to Laurieton, a 20-minute scenic drive to the south, the beaches of Port Macquarie are as inviting as they are portrayed on the tourist postcards and billboards.
Put on the swimming costume and splash on the essential sunscreen.
You can enjoy a dip – perhaps catch a wave or two – by surfing or merely body surfing at sought-after beaches around Port Macquarie.
Port Macquarie has some of the best beaches in Australia. Top Port Macquarie beaches include:
- Oxley Beach
- Flynn’s Beach
- Nobbys Beach
- Shelly Beach
- Lighthouse Beach
4- Admire The View From Tacking Point Lighthouse
It’s only when you take up a vantage point at the historic 1879-built Tacking Point Lighthouse, a favourite spot for seasonal whale watching between May and November, that you appreciate how popular the surf, sun and sand is to visitors.
Along this expansive nine-kilometre-long beach surfers share the same sands as fishermen and four-wheel drive enthusiasts.
5- Ride A Camel On The Beach
Don’t be surprised to see camels taking holidaymakers on a ride with Port Macquarie Camel Safaris.
For more things to do in NSW, read:
- 25 Things To Do In The Blue Mountains
- 22 Things To Do In Bowral
- 20 Things To Do In Wollongong
- 20 Things To Do In Yamba
- 19 Things To Do In Port Macquarie
- 17 Things To Do In Tamworth
- 17 Things To Do In Goulburn
- 17 Things To Do In Mudgee
- 12 Things To Do In Hunter Valley
- 18 Things To Do In Kingscliff
- The Carrington Hotel Katoomba
- 16 Things To Do In Maitland
- 15 Things To Do In Byron Bay
- 15 Things To Do In Newcastle
- 16 Things To Do In Port Stephens
- 10 Things To Do In Kiama
- 12 Things To Do In Windsor
- 20 Things To Do In Sydney For Couples
- 20 Things To Do In Sydney At Night
- 17 Things To Do In Central Coast
- 19 NSW Country Towns
- Reflections Holiday Parks
6- Pick Strawberries At Ricardoes
What began as a hobby on the outskirts of Port Macquarie has blossomed into a fruitful farming business for brothers Anthony and Richard Sarks.
The effervescent farming pair’s tomatoes and strawberries are so sought after, visitors will drive for hours to sample the juicy fruits, many choosing to roll up the sleeves to pick the succulent strawberries straight from the greenhouse hydroponically-fed vines.
From a modest market garden where the shop was a mere roadside table with an honesty box, Ricardoes Tomatoes and Strawberries – a five-minute drive west of the Port Macquarie town centre – has grown into a multi-award-winning tourist attraction, its Café Red a hive of activity for those wanting to enjoy morning or afternoon tea, lunch or sample the various sauces and jams offered for tastings.
Take a wander through the café and you’ll find all kinds of locally produced delights, the freshly-made strawberry jam and the Hobart gold medal-winning tomato and passionfruit jam favourites.
“We handpick more than one million tomatoes annually,” said Anthony, “What we don’t sell doesn’t go to waste,” he added, proudly holding a jar of their spicy Red Tomato Salsa, a bronze medal winner at the Sydney Royal.
Ricardoes Tomotoes is at 221 Blackmans Point Rd, Blackmans Point NSW.
7- Get Lost In NSW’s Largest Hedge Maze
Near the Hastings River town of Wauchope, a five-minute drive along a winding dirt road among the eucalypts in forested Bago, is a virtual oasis, where guests – young and young-at-heart – literally get lost, only to be rewarded afterwards.
It’s here at Bago Wines that visitors test their skills within the largest hedge maze in NSW – 200 metres of paths that twist and turn in an area spanning 10,000 square metres.
The hedge of Lili pili trees – planted 14 years ago – are shaved at 2.3 metres high, so unless you are a towering basketball player, you’d have little chance of seeing over the top.
For many, it takes around 20 minutes to complete. For others, the emergency exits are a handy option, providing you can find them.
Whatever the result, you can reward yourself with some wine tasting from the estate’s cellar door, where local winemaker and owner Jim Mobbs is often on hand to assist with information on the estate’s chardonnay – spritzy or traditional (unwooded) – and the regional favourite red wine, Chambourcin.
Then there’s the rare Norton red variety – if it’s not already sold out.
Bago Maze and Winery is at Milligans Rd, Wauchope NSW.
8- Taste Handmade Chocolates
In a private room in a corner of the cellar door awaits another mouth-watering treat – Baba Lila Chocolates – where Tash Topschij lovingly makes by hand chocolates inspired by her Russian mother’s family recipes yet spiced by native Australian flavours.
Her mother – Lila Topschij, was keen on making chocolates, so Tash decided to pass down the tradition by making her own versions.
Today, the thousands of chocolates made each week have an Australian slant and Tash’s daughter Rhianna is proud to talk about the 12 tasty truffles (suggest the Lemon Myrtle, Wild Lime and Prune ‘n Brandy), the inviting wine and chocolate pairings and Baba’s famous Chocolate Bark – seasonally flavoured chocolate slabs broken into shards.
9- Walk Port Macquarie’s Trails
Whether you choose to put on the walking boots to stretch the legs on a section of the nine-kilometre-long Port Macquarie Coastal Walk or head inland to Hastings River-side Wauchope for the 1.4km Rocks Ferry Walking Trail, hikers of different levels of fitness are well catered for in and around Port Macquarie.
From May to November, the coastal walk is particularly popular for its many whale spotting vantage points.
Don’t be surprised to also see dolphins sharing the same waves as the surfers.
The Rocks Ferry Walking Trail, while scenic, is easy to cover in 30 minutes.
10- Explore Burrawan State Forest
Also, easy to cover is the 600-metre loop walking track within the Burrawan State Forest.
It’s here that the Old Bottlebutt has stood for more than 200 years.
With a massive girth of 16 metres, this towering and the grand tree is said to be the largest Red Bloodwood tree in the Southern Hemisphere.
11- Visit the Koala Hospital
Despite being billed as the only one of its kind in Australia, the Koala Hospital at Port Macquarie receives no financial government support.
The hospital is self-funded, as it has been since nature-loving Jean and Max Starr founded it in 1973.
It’s, therefore, a good thing that animal-loving tourists include the hospital on their holiday plans and donate generously to the cause.
Arrive around 3 pm, and you can join a free “feed, walk and talk” tour to find out more about the cuddly patients, and how you can contribute to their survival through an adopt-a-koala scheme.
Any assistance goes a long way for the park which has been responsible for saving around 300 of the injured or malnourished marsupials in a year.
While these figures have dropped considerably in recent years, it is not a good sign as it is indicative of the predicted decline in the area’s koala population.
The Koala Hospital is in Lord Street, Port Macquarie.
12- Visit Roto House
Anyone who visits doesn’t leave without visiting the neighbouring and well-preserved 1890-built Roto House (museum), once home to land surveyor John Flynn and one of the few remaining 19th Century timber buildings in Port Macquarie.
Visiting this museum will take you back into history and enthusiastic volunteers are on hand to answer questions.
Roto House is right next to the koala hospital at 2 Roto Pl, Port Macquarie NSW.
13- Don A Wig At The Port Macquarie Courthouse
Since it opened its doors in 1869, the original Port Macquarie Courthouse and adjacent lock-up have seen their share of convictions in a 117-year history, including the trial of a woman accused but acquitted (due to lack of evidence) of poisoning her husband.
Today, the historic courthouse, designed by prolific and well renowned Scottish architect James Johnstone Barnet, is a fascinating museum where you can learn much about Port Macquarie’s early colonial days from volunteer guides such as former school teacher Colin.
Barnet was responsible for designing as many as 169 post and telegraph offices, including the Sydney GPO in Martin Place.
He also designed 130 courthouses, 110 gaols and 20 lighthouses, including the Port Macquarie Tacking Point Lighthouse.
For a bit of fun, you can dress in costume for the camera.
“But beware. You could be put on trial for impersonating a judge,” laughs guide Colin.
The Port Macquarie Historic Courthouse is at 35 Hay St, Port Macquarie NSW.
14- Watch a show at the Port Macquarie Glasshouse
Then explore the most contemporary building Port Macquarie, the Glasshouse, home to a number of air-conditioned theatres, a fascinating art gallery and the invaluable Port Macquarie Tourist Information Centre. Go here to see what’s on at the Glasshouse.
From comedy to dance, drama and opera, Port Macquarie’s Glasshouse offers a good choice of entertainment options for everyone.
There’s also an educational programme for children.
Glasshouse Port Macquarie is at 30-42 Clarence Street, Port Macquarie NSW.
15- Eat Fresh Seafood
From takeaway wraps of fish and chips to beachfront dining on fresh seafood and other locally-grown produce, seeking a spot to eat in Port Macquarie can be as fun-filled as it is tantalising. There’s a dining option for all tastes and budgets.
Here are five recommendations of restaurants in Port Macquarie that won’t disappoint.
- Whalebone Wharf
- Fat Fish restaurant
- Stunned Mullet Restaurant and Bar
- Mike’s Seafood for takeaway fish and chips
- Bills Fishhouse and Bar for casual dining
16- Go Cafe Hopping
Cafes are almost as prevalent as the pelicans which call Port Macquarie home, the Rivermark Café overlooking the Hastings River to the Rainforest Café within the Sea Acres Rainforest Centre.
Many locals find comfort in dining at one of the two affordable restaurants at the Westport Club while nearby Quay Lime Bar and Grill is another favourite for its fish of the day, oysters and chilli, lime and ginger dressing.
Bread and pastries are also much sought-after in Port Macquarie.
Walk down Short Street and you’ll find the German-inspired and family-owned Burkhardt’s Organic Bakery, while, also in the heart of town is the Urban Grain Bakery, popular for its sourdough bread, pastries and doughnuts.
17- Explore Sea Acres Rainforest Centre
Discover aboriginal culture and learn about bush tucker while you explore the rainforest on the 1.3 km boardwalk.
Along the way, look out for scarlet robins, goannas, diamond pythons and colourful sculptures.
This rainforest was home to the Biripai people, who used the python tree to make weapons.
Sea Acres Rainforest Centre has a cafe and gift shop, where you can buy local artwork. It also offers rainforest meditation sessions, educational programmes
Sea Acres Rainforest Centre is at 159 Pacific Drive, Port Macquarie NSW.
18- Explore Camden Haven
Take a drive to the sleeply villages of Camden Haven, where the Camden Haven River is a lovely place for a walk. The section between the North Haven break wall and Laurieton is a picturesque area and there’s a chance of seeing grey nurse sharks and dolphins.
There are tidal pools at North Haven and Dunbogan. The Dunbogan Baotshed has a lovely cafe, where you can enjoy your coffee with river views from the outdoor deck.
Camden Haven is 30 km to the south of Port Macquarie and can be easily visited as a day trip.
19- Explore Kattang Nature Reserve
Kattang Nature Reserve is a fabulous spot for nature-lovers, with stunning scenery and walking trails.
The 40 m cliffs at Perpendicular Point plunge into the Pacific Ocean and the view from the point is simply stunning.
The walk to the point offers scenic coastal views of Port Macquarie and the chance of seeing whales, birds and, in spring, the wildflowers are an uplifting sight.
Charles Hamey Lookout has a fantastic view of Gogleys Lagoon, North Brother Mountain and Dunbogan Beach.
FEATURED PORT MACQUARIE ACCOMMODATION
Sails Port Macquarie by Rydges
The water view from the balcony of suite 233 is as breathtaking as the sunrises and sunsets at Port Macquarie.
Dotted with rowing teams and sailing craft of all shapes and sizes, the Hastings River almost mesmerises guests of the Sails Port Macquarie by Rydges, from the early morning arrival of the resident dolphins to the regular afternoon visits by the pelicans from the adjacent island.
Below, along the meticulously grassed frontage, resident Eastern Water Dragons scurry across in search of a feed. So familiar are these lizards, staff looking after the cabanas around the retreat’s outdoor pool know each by name.
As one of the best resorts in Port Macquarie, whitewashed Sails is in a prime waterfront location to attract both wildlife and nature-loving holiday seekers – all year round.
Having undergone a stunning multi-million-dollar transformation from its early life as Pelican Shores, the “new” coastal resort boasts 92 tastefully-decorated rooms and suites, the self-contained suite 233 particularly attractive, not only for its water views but for its many features from the large fridge, stove and oven, microwave, dishwasher and iron and ironing board to the king-sized bed.
Dining at the resort centres on the appropriately named Boathouse Bar and Restaurant, the quality of the dishes on the evening menu matched only by the warmth and friendliness of the attentive staff.
For larger events, Sails also boasts a large ballroom on the added third floor, a waterfront wedding chapel and event pavilion on the ground level, and a tennis court often frequented by the friendly lizards.
Telegraph Retreat
In contrast to Sails, in the heart of Aussie nature, a 15-minute drive north of Port Macquarie is the multi-award-winning Telegraph Retreat.
Telegraph Retreat has three purpose-built timber cottages set in a tranquil rural corner of bush near the tiny trackside single pub town of Telegraph Point.
Two are self-contained studio cottages, located “up the hill” from the owners Melanie and Roger Marshall’s main homestead, in a secluded section among the gumtrees, home to ducks, kookaburras, magpies and kangaroos that graze at the front door each morning.
The retreat has all the hallmarks of a luxury farm stay, the rooms with their antique furniture providing a homely country feel – with some modern luxuries thrown in for good measure.
Outdoors, on the veranda, is a spa perfect for soaking the body under the blissful night’s sky, perhaps with a glass of bubbly bought from either the Cassegrain Winery in Port Macquarie or from Bago Wines – long after challenging the maze and munching on the Baba Lila chocolate truffles.
Here are more Port Macquarie accommodation options and the latest prices:
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