Byron Bay Travel Information A sleepy coastal township only 20 years ago, Byron Bay took off and developed into one of the most popular travel destinations in Australia.
It is famous for the beautiful Byron Bay lighthouse; and the surf in Byron Bay is world-famous. Byron Bay beaches are excellent, but people also come here for Byron Bay yoga classes and alternative therapies. Also popular are the Byron Bay Markets and the huge number of Byron Bay restaurants. Here is some information on the town's attractions, and in the end of the page is accommodation and a Byron Bay map.
Old Hippie Haven Byron Bay Travel Information Established in 1890s, Byron Bay was a small coastal settlement of whalers, loggers, banana and pineapple farmers, until in 1970s it turned into an artists’ and hippie haven, and in 1980s it got famous for Hollywood celebrities who started to move in and build their huge mansions in the hinterland. Few travellers had bothered before to turn in to Byron from the highway, now everyone wanted to find out what was so special about the place. Tourists started to arrive, buildings started to rise and today Byron is a vibrant town with laid-back locals, travellers and backpackers who are known to end up staying here until their visas run out.
Town Centre and Central Byron Bay Beaches Byron Bay’s town centre is concentrated in the blocks around Johnson Street. Here you find the surf schools and dive centres, travel agencies, tour operators, alternative therapies and shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and nightclubs. North of the town centre is Main Beach; west of it is Belongil Beach and right of it are Clarks Beach and The Pass.
Byron Bay Restaurants The amount of Byron Bay restaurants and eateries will not leave anyone hungry: there are Boomerang Grill, Cyprus Tree, Dish, Driftwood Restaurant, Fig Tree Country Restaurant, Fishheads@Byron, Fresh, Great Northern Kitchen, Hogs Breath Cafe, Le Sirrocco, Olivo, Peppers, Piggery Restaurant, Raving Prawn Restaurant, Red Hot & Green, Sushi Wave, Thai Lucy and the Earh’N’Sea Amazing Pizza and Pasta Family Restaurant. And the nice thing is that the local Council has banned the fast wood chains from the town centre so MacDonald’s hasn’t moved in.
Byron Bay Entertainment The cafes, bars and nightclubs are also abundant. You can have a drink at the Beach Hotel, Cheeky Monkey’s or Railway Friendly Bar; go clubbing at C-Moog, La La Land or Cocomangas; and have a coffee at Artic Cafe, Belongil Beach Cafe, Cafe D.O.C., Cafe Spice, Caffe Raw, Espressohead, Harvest Cafe, Sails Cafe, The Pass cafe, Twisted Sista Cafe or The Big Blue Cafe. Other places to enjoy beverages include Byron Juice Bar, Byronian, Jack’s Place, Julian’s, Relish Byron, Macs Homestyle and Persephone’s Window.
Byron Bay Travel Information - Yoga and Alternative Therapies And you can see the influence of flower power: even though the streets are crowded with backpackers and real hippies are almost invisible, modern Byron Bay still enjoys the alternative lifestyle with yoga classes and alternative therapies offered by Ambaji, Samadhi’s, Medicine Wheel, Relax Haven, Intouch Yoga and Massage, Yoga Arts and Yoga with Flo.
Eastern Beaches - Byron Bay Travel Information East of the town centre is Cape Byron with Watergo’s Beach and Little Watergo’s Beach. As you enter the cape via the lighthouse road, on your left hand side is Captain Cook Lookout from which you can enter a bushwalking track that takes you all the way around the cape and to the lighthouse on the eastern side of cape.
Cape Byron Lighthouse and Byron Bay Whale Watching If you don’t want to walk, there are also a few drives on the Cape Byron that take you around and to the lighthouse. Cape Byron Lighthouse is just south of Australian mainland’s easternmost point. It is 22m high, was built in 1901 and was one of Australia’s most powerful lighthouses. There are some beautiful views across the water from here, and it’s an excellent place to watch dolphins in the water, or humpback whales passing by the coast on their yearly migration between August and October. The Pass, Watergo’s and Little Watergo’s beaches are Byron’s best beaches for surf in Byron Bay.
Byron Bay National Parks - Byron Bay Travel Information Further south along the eastern coast are Tallow Beach and Seven Mile Beach. Also south of town is the 98-ha Broken Head Nature Reserve – a remaining pocket of sub-tropical rainforest which once covered the whole area. There are bushwalking tracks through the forest and to King’s Beach which is popular with fishing.
Byron Bay Markets - Byron Bay Travel Information The first Sunday every month there are the Byron Bay Markets, a lovely event to go shopping, getting massage or just strolling around amongst tourists and backpackers.
Here's a Byron Bay map, with places mentioned on this web page tagged. You can click on the tags to see what places they are, and double-click anywhere on the map to zoom it in and see the places closer. Drag the map to move around, and if you want to see the satellite image with Google Earth, click on "Sat" in the top right hand corner.
NOTE: This website is written in British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all correct in the language used in Australia.
