Coffs Coast, NSW, Travel Information

Subtropical Wonderland

Coffs Harbour was simply an overnight stop for holidaymakers driving between the Gold Coast and the southern states, best known for its enormous concrete banana. But as more and more tourists discover its undeniable charms, Coffs Harbour and its surrounds has become a stand-alone destination. Some 90 kilometres of beautiful beaches, a balmy climate and a hinterland of wild mountains, lush rainforest and quaint villages, the Coffs Harbour region has something for everybody.

Accommodation includes up-market resorts, motels, hotels, B&Bs, cottages and farm stays. There are great restaurants and cafes, museums and art galleries, and numerous attractions and tours. Of course, one of the town’s traditional claims to fame still sits by the roadside north of the city centre.

Coffs Coast & Mid-North Coast NSW unique accommodation

At 11 metres in length and standing five metres high, the quirky Big Banana dates back to 1964 and was designed by a local engineer influenced by a prize-winning banana from the Coffs Harbour Agricultural Show. Today, the Big Banana is a massive tourist attraction, offering a monorail tour of the adjoining banana plantation, skywalks, historical exhibitions and an icerink.

Located 560 kilometres north of Sydney and 430 kilometres south of Brisbane, Coffs Harbour is well served by the Pacific Highway, as well as regular air services to Sydney and Brisbane. The region extends from Scotts Head in the south to Red Rock in the north, and inland to Dorrigo and the New England National Park. The region includes the towns of Dorrigo, Woolgoolga, Bellingen, Sawtell, Nambucca Heads and Bowraville.

Originally named Korff’s Harbour after a sailor who sheltered in the bay during a fierce storm in 1847, the region was well known to timber cutters for its expansive and valuable cedar forests. As the surrounding countryside was cleared, farmers moved in and various crops, including sugar, were tried and discarded. Eventually it was the banana-growing industry that dominated until the late 1960s, when tourism began to take hold.

The Coffs Coast has some 15 national parks and reserves and 37 state forests. This includes the 71,000 hectare Solitary Islands Marine Park, which extends 75 kilometres along the coast. It is home to 280 species of fish and around 90 species of coral. Aside from relaxing around resort swimming pools, activities such as boating, cycling, 4WD touring, sailing, surfing, horse riding and scuba diving at the Solitary Island Marine Park can keep visitors occupied for weeks.

There are 11 golf courses in the area, while beach, river, deep-sea and estuary fishing is extremely popular. For the culturally inclined, the Coffs Harbour Historical Museum details the life of the early timber cutters, farmers and miners. There’s also the Coffs Harbour City Gallery and the North Coast Regional Botanic Garden, which has 20 hectares of native flora and rainforest. Touring from Coffs Harbour presents some pleasant surprises.

Nearby is the Orara Valley, where the discovery of gold in the early 1880s spurred a brief gold rush. One of the settlements, Nana Glen, is home to actor Russell Crowe. About 25 kilometres north of Coffs Harbour lies Woolgoolga. The distinctive white dome of the Sikh temple gives an indication of the area’s sizeable Indian community, which started in the 1940s when they arrived to work on the banana plantations. Nambucca Heads is the southern gateway to the Coffs Coast. At nearby Bowraville is an interesting Folk Museum, as well as the Frank Partridge VC Military Museum. At Taylors Arm, near Macksville, you’ll find the hotel that inspired the famous Slim Dusty song, The Pub with No Beer.

Immediately west of Coffs Harbour, accessed by a dramatic, winding road deep into the rainforest, is Dorrigo. The town sits on the eastern escarpment of the Great Dividing Range at an altitude of 762 metres. Timber cutters, then dairy and beef cattle farmers, settled the area during the second half of the 19th century. The Dorrigo National Park is a World Heritage-listed site and visitors should spend some time at the outstanding Dorrigo Rainforest Centre. Although the Dorrigo Steam Railway and Museum has yet to open to the public, the 21 hectare site already has an enormous collection of the nation’s railway heritage dating from the 1850s.

Festivals on the Coffs Coast Festivals such as the Coffs Coast Food and Wine Festival, Sawtell Chilli Festival and Dorrigo Folk and Bluegrass Festival are spread throughout the year and are well worth a look-in.