Byron Bay

Byron Bay wraps around a bay below Cape Byron, the easternmost point of the Australian mainland, marked by a lighthouse built in 1901 that stands white against the headland with a walking track looping around the cape below it. The town went from a whaling and meatworks port to a surf and counterculture destination in the 1970s and has since become one of the most visited places on the coast, with a dense scene of yoga studios, restaurants, markets and festivals. The surf breaks at The Pass and Wategos are long and forgiving, dolphins are often seen from the headland, and humpbacks pass close between May and November. Development pressure and housing costs are constant local issues.

History

The area is the land of the Arakwal, Minjungbal and Widjabul peoples of the Bundjalung Nation, who have lived on this coast for at least 22,000 years; the township area was called Cavvanbah, meeting place, and tradition holds that the creator Nguthungulli rests at what are now the Julian Rocks. In 1770 James Cook found safe anchorage here and named Cape Byron after Vice Admiral John Byron, grandfather of the poet, European settlement followed in the 1830s, and cedar logging was the first industry, its log chutes remembered in place names such as Possum Shoot and Coopers Shoot, until it faded after the First World War; gold was found on the beaches in 1870 (Wikipedia, Byron Bay).

What's there

• Cape Byron Lighthouse - the 1901 tower at the mainland's easternmost point.
• The headland walk - the loop track around the cape with ocean views.
• The surf breaks - The Pass, Wategos and Main Beach.
• The whale migration - humpbacks passing close from May to November.

When to go

April to November for the mildest weather and the whale season; summer is humid, crowded and expensive, with January and Easter at their peak. Festivals in winter and spring fill the town. Weekdays outside holidays are noticeably calmer.

Things to know

Byron is expensive and crowded, with parking scarce and paid, and accommodation prices among the highest on the coast. The lighthouse car park fills early and a shuttle operates in peak periods. The town's popularity has drawn considerable local resentment about housing and short-term letting.

Nearby

Nimbin lies inland; Lennox Head and Ballina are south, the Gold Coast north.

Key facts