Byron Bay, known for its beaches, diving and surfing and also home to Australia’s most eastern point. If you’re like us and have planned a long weekend in Byron, the good news is you will have plenty of time to unwind and relax.

4 day itinerary for Byron Bay

Day 1 (half day): Arrive in Byron Bay late afternoon, check into your accommodation. Head out for some dinner.

Day 2 (full day): Spend the day beach hopping and enjoying the walks around Cape Byron and the Lighthouse

Day 3 (full day): Enjoy the fascinating places that are around Byron, such as The Farm.

Day 4 (half day): On your to the airport, enjoy a few stops along the way.

Getting to Byron Bay

The beauty of Byron Bay is that it is in close proximity to two local airports, Coolangatta and Ballina. Ballina is the closest airport to Byron at only around 30 minutes where Coolangatta takes around 50 minutes. However, Coolangatta often has more flight options to choose from and can often work out cheaper. We chose to fly into Ballina as we booked early enough and picked up some well-priced flights.

Getting around Byron Bay

Depending on where you stay, depends on how you get around. If you are staying in central Byron Bay, you could get away without a car and walk everywhere. However, if you’re staying slightly out-of-town, you will need a car to get around. We booked our accommodation a bit late and given it was over a long weekend we had to stay a little further out from the centre of town. We, therefore, needed a car, which turned out to be fantastic. It was a pretty hot weekend so the car came in handy when wanting to get to the top of Cape Byron!

Cape Byron Lighthouse

The most easterly point in Australia!

If that’s not impressing you then I’m not sure what will!! Cape Byron lighthouse is located on a rocky cliff, with a drop of around 100m. The views from the lighthouse are stunning and you can easily spend a few hours here.

We popped up for sunset one evening, and the colour of the sky was mesmerising.

We then drove back the next day to explore the area (parking cost us around $6 for a couple of hours).

We had perfect weather and made the most of the surrounding walkways, seeing some local wildlife and also some humpback whales! If you visit from the end of June to August, they are migrating north to the warmer waters. We were there in September and throughout that month and October, they return with their new babies! They were having an absolute ball, teaching their little ones breaching and slapping. We spent hours trying to capture them.

A guide to Byron Bay Beaches

With over 30km of beaches in the Byron area, it is hard not to find one that suits you! The water temperature is around 18°C in the winter to 26°C in the summer which makes it perfect for most of the year!

Watego’s Beach: Probably one of our favourite beaches in Byron. It is a well protected north-facing beach. It is a very popular family beach with free BBQ’s and picnic tables to use. We stopped by for sunset one evening (on our way up to the lighthouse for sunset) and then again for a swim stop the next day.

We spent a half a day relaxing and catching some rays at Wategos beach. If you like our personalised travel microfiber towels, click here to find out how you can get some of your own!

Cosy Corner & Tallow Beach: Cosy Corner and Tallow Beach are located on the south side of Cape Byron. Views overlooking these beaches are just as you exit from the lighthouse.  Cosy Corner is quite sheltered but you will need to pay the National Park fee of $6 to park there. Tallow Beach is meant to be a great fishing beach. It isn’t protected so if the wind pick up, it becomes choppy.

The Pass: If you’re into surfing, then this spot is meant to be the best and most popular. This is a pretty nice beach with a nice lookout as well.

Clarke’s Beach: Clarke’s beach is north facing making it very popular for swimmers. It is between Main Beach and The Pass and is perfect for water sports such as bodyboarding, windsurfing and paragliding.

Main Beach: If you’re staying in the centre of Byron Bay and don’t have a way to get around, this will be the beach you’ll spend most of your time at. It gets very busy given its location to the centre of town so you might want to get down there early on a to get a good spot!

Other places to see around Byron Bay

The Farm: The Farm is exactly what it says it is, a farm!

It is a working farm and there are plenty of things to see and do, especially for the kids. They run farm tours, have a bakery and a produce store, as well as the famous Three Blue Ducks restaurant (see below).

Byron Bay Community Markets: This market is probably the biggest in Byron Bay. There are plenty of stalls ranging from food, clothing, souvenirs and fresh produce. They are open on the first Sunday of each month but if you’re there in December and January, there are two extra market days on the third Sunday.

Where to eat in Byron Bay?

Three Blue Ducks: The Farm Byron Bay is home to the Three Blue Ducks restaurant.

The beauty of this restaurant is that it is located at The Farm, which is as you could guess, is a farm! They try to source as many ingredients as possible from the farm.

Everything they use is organic or spray free. The food is fresh and the grounds are worth a visit!

Balcony Bar & Oyster Co: This restaurant and bar is located in the heart of Byron Bay. It overlooks the main street and roundabout which is perfect for people watching if you are up on the veranda. The service was great and the food was amazing. Jenna had one of the best lamb ragu she has ever had at this restaurant.

Basiloco: If you’re looking for an Italian restaurant in Byron Bay, we can highly recommend Basiloco. The food was delicious and the servings were plenty! It is safe to say we over ordered, but somehow managed to get through it all!!

Byron Fresh Cafe: This place was just buzzing. When you have people lining up and waiting for a table, it must be good. And, no surprises – it was good!  We stopped there for dinner and had the burger options and the food was delicious! I would recommend eating here for breakfast as well as their menu and quality of food was really good.

Where to stay in Byron Bay?

Because we left our accommodation booking to the last-minute, there was nothing available in the centre of town. But, it was to our advantage. We booked at Tri Byron Bay and were glad we did. Located less than a 20-minute drive from the heart of Byron Bay, it is a great place to escape and simply relax.

The self-contained studios are well equipped, ours with a large bedroom with a king bed, overlooking the Byron hinterlands.

Do you have travel insurance?

Before travelling, make sure you get a travel insurance policy – you never know when you might need it! Click here for information on travel insurance, what company we recommend and a link to get an instant quote.

Alternative accommodation

If you’re looking for alternative accommodation to either save some money or share with friends or family, click here for information on Air B&B ($50 discount on your first booking), hotel price comparison websites etc.

“Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all of one’s lifetime.” – Mark Twain