There are 87 scenic coastal miles in Australia’s Grand Pacific Drive in New South Wales (NSW). You can certainly drive it nonstop. But, you wouldn’t really see much while behind the wheel. Although I won’t be the one driving. I’ll be chauffeured by my wonderful husband, like “driving Miss Daisy”. I planned many stops along the way to explore each area and travel beyond the suggested drive. So, 10 days it is. It also gives us lots of time to explore towns and villages “off the beaten path”.
Here are just a few fun facts I learned about Australia. Australia is one of the largest countries on Earth, and the only country that covers an entire continent. They also have more kangaroos than people. There are about 25 million people and 50+ million kangaroos.
Most people don’t realize that Australia is really large, in-fact it’s about the same size as the continental USA. But the entire country of Australia only has a population about the same size as the state of Texas.
This is a map of our 10 day coastal road trip which includes the Grand Pacific Drive section. We picked up our rental car when we left Sydney and started our road trip. Let’s see how driving on the left side of the road works for us.
Royal National Park
Our journey on the Grand Pacific drive begins just south of Sydney in the Royal National Park. Established in 1879, it is the world’s second oldest national park. There are 58 square miles of lush forests, waterfalls, cliffs and trails. It’s only a $12 daily pass per car and you can explore as much as you like. Today started out with a misty rain and overcast skies, but that didn’t deter our plans. First stop is Wattamolla Waterfall and viewpoint. It’s a great picnic and beach spot and there weren’t many people out today.
Next stop is the smaller National Falls. We entered the falls near the top. However, there was very little water flowing down to the bottom due to the drought and lack of recent rains.
Bald Hill Lookout
Our final stop in the park is Bald Hill Lookout. This is one of Australia’s most popular viewpoints. It offers spectacular and sweeping views of the iconic Sea Cliff Bridge. You can also see the splendid coastline and vast Pacific Ocean. This area is internationally acclaimed for hang-gliding and paragliding. There’s a free car park and also a cafe here. We are disappointed that the sky is still foggy and misty. The cloudy photos just don’t do justice to the views and turquoise water when it’s sunny. It’s absolutely an incredible view.
Sea Cliff Bridge
The Sea Cliff Bridge is unique for its construction. It is one of only 7 bridges in the world that is built offshore and parallel to a coast. The bridge follows the s-shape curving line of the coast over the ocean. It also includes a pedestrian walkway. You can walk from one end to the other in about 15 minutes. In whale migration season, the bridge becomes a perfect viewing platform.
After crossing the bridge, we stopped to enjoy the views near Coledale.
Cottage on the beach
We finally arrived in Corrimal for our 3-night stay at a small cottage on the beach. Corrimal (1839) is a suburb just north of the city of Wollongong. Our cottage is at the entrance to the beach. The last photo shows Wollongong in the background.
Shellharbour
We drove to the small town of Shellharbour. Our plan was to check out the beach and this quaint coastal town. There is a swimming pool on the beach which was quite cool looking. We also had lunch at this awesome Indian restaurant while we were here.
Kiama
Kiama is another quaint coastal town with lots of things to see and do. Besides the beach and surfing, the town offers shopping and dining.
There’s also the Kiama blowhole and lighthouse. Kiama was the site of two strong volcanic flows and the blowhole formed as the black rocks eroded. When the surf is strong and tides are high, there is a tall gusher of water exploding from the hole. Unfortunately it wasn’t blowing the day we visited. Danny did read the injury and death warning signs. Despite this, he had to climb over the rocks on the cliff for the view and a few pictures. Yes, I always keep his insurance paid in advance 😉.
The Kiama Lighthouse (1887)is adjacent to the blowhole. Its construction is brick and concrete. The original green light had 15 lenses and was later automated and unmanned in the 1920’s. We also spotted whales breaching the surface. If you look closely, we managed to capture a photo of its back and spout of water.
Berry
Driving to Berry, we pulled over on the highway to enjoy the view. Everywhere you look on the Grand Pacific Drive there’s an amazing view, beaches and charming towns to visit.
We finally arrived in Berry after sightseeing all day. I mentioned to Danny how great a job he’s been doing driving on the other side of the road. It’s quite stressful doing things in reverse. These driving tasks include entering roundabouts from the opposite direction. They also involve using signal indicators on the right side of the steering wheel rather than the left. I can’t tell you how many times the wipers were turned on by mistake. Additionally, you need to watch for traffic coming from a different direction. It’s very different from our normal driving back home.
In Berry, Danny backs into the parking spot on the main street in front of a busy cafe. Suddenly, I hear (and feel) a CRUNCH! Oops, it seems Australia does not make street curbs as strong as they used to. Thankfully, the car is just fine…for now, but it’s still early in our adventures. Over the years, I have learned to ALWAYS purchase the insurance on a car rental. This helps us avoid any surprise charges when we return it. You can learn about our rental car mishaps in my previous posts. Check out Funny Travel Mishaps 20 years ago and More Funny Travel Mishaps.
Wollongong
On our final day in our home base, we decided to start the day with a couple more lookout points. We awoke to overcast and cloudy weather, so no full sunshine again today. First stop is Sublime Point Lookout. It has views over the sea, the rainforest, and the 17 beaches that span the coastline to Wollongong. It’s just about 20 minutes from our beach cottage.
After the lookout, we drove down to Wollongong harbor to see the two lighthouses. It’s the only point on the eastern coast with two. The Harbour Lighthouse (1871) is the original. The second lighthouse, Wollongong Head Lighthouse, built in 1936 was designed to be automatic and not require a keeper.
We still had a bit of time in our day. So, we ran into the mall to restock our wine supply. Halloween ended just a few days ago, but the Christmas decorations are already out in force. Finally, when in Australia everyone says to visit the “outback”. So we did.
Huskisson
We are now driving further south down the coast toward our next home base in Ulladulla. The first place we visit is the village of Huskisson on Jervis Bay. It dates from the 1840’s and is known for its white sandy beaches and turquoise to emerald waters. There’s a huge public pool on the water. We had a picnic lunch in the park and walked around town. It’s also a busy spot for whale watching. Huskisson was crowned the best Tiny Town in Australia for populations under 1,500.
Hyams Beach
Hyams Beach is another seaside village on the shores of Jervis Bay. This beach is known for its incredibly clear waters. The sugar white sand here is rumored to be one of the whitest in the world. It is absolutely beautiful and the prettiest of all the beaches we visited.
Ulladulla
Along the drive to Ulladulla, we did see warning signs you won’t see in the states. The first is for kangaroos. Though we haven’t seen a kangaroo yet, at least not a live one. Quite a few were hit by cars and are on the side of the road. Later, we spotted another sign. This time for wombats. Ulladulla is coastal city with a population of 7,600 people. There’s a harbor, sandy beach, sea pool, lighthouse and water activities. Warden Head Lighthouse (1873) is an active lighthouse and one of only two wrought iron lighthouses in New South Wales.
Milton
Milton is an historic village founded in 1860 with a population of about 1,500. The Princes Highway runs through the center of town so there are shops, cafes, and bars among the heritage buildings.
After a couple of days wandering around in the Ulladulla area, we head next to Canberra for 4 days.
Batemans Bay
The first stop on the way to Canberra is Batemans Bay. It’s a small coastal town where river meets the ocean. Notice the population sign? Someone must have had a baby. This bay area is also known for its oysters. It’s the closest coast to Canberra, so it gets lots of weekend visitors from the capital. It also happens to be a haven for retirees.
We walked around the downtown area and peeked into an upscale seaside restaurant that wasn’t open for lunch yet. So, we returned a bit later. We are so glad we did because it is one of the best meals we enjoyed in Australia. We ordered the 2 and 3 course lunch. I’ll give you one guess who had the 3 course lunch and it wasn’t me. They then surprised us by serving us 2 extra courses at no charge. Needless to say, we were stuffed! The entire meal was delicious and beautifully presented.
Braidwood
Settled in the 1839, historic Braidwood is filled with history. Gold fever struck this town in the 1850s and soon over 15,000 miners came to seek their fortunes. Today, it’s a small village with about 1,700 people. Downtown has many heritage buildings filled with cute shops and restaurants. Walking down the main street feels like being in an old western movie. The Catholic Church of St. Bede’s was built in 1866.
Canberra
Canberra is Australia’s capital and home to its federal government. It is entirely a planned city and built specifically as the capital from 1913. Interestingly, architect Walter Griffin and his wife from Chicago won the 1912 competition to design this city. Griffin’s concept for the city is one built on a straight axis. The city is built surrounding this axis. Their original plans created Canberra’s current layout.
We checked into our downtown apartment and then went to Costco for supplies. I’ll post something about our visit there later. We then enjoyed a glass of wine ( or two) on our balcony overlooking the city lights. Speaking of wine, when we checked into our first apartment in Australia, I searched every drawer in the kitchen. There was no corkscrew! Thankfully, I remembered we packed one with us, but we never used it. None of the apartments we rented had a corkscrew because Australia only bottles wine with a screw cap. There are no corks, so no corkscrew needed, who knew?
Futuro House
In an earlier post about Paris Flea markets, I mentioned that there is a Futuro House there. It’s one of only about 50 remaining “UFO” houses which were originally built as portable chalets in the 1960’s. They were basically portable tiny homes. When I heard that there is one at the University of Canberra, I wanted to visit. There are only 7 known to exist in Australia. I think they are really cool and they won’t be around for long. I wonder what they looked like originally with a kitchen, bedroom, bath, dining and sitting area. It must have been tight inside.
Pink Lake
Just a few minutes away from the University, is Pink Lake. The naturally occurring pink lake comes from a microfern that is native to Australia. Its color ranges from bright pink to a reddish hue depending upon climate and other conditions. A very cool and unusual phenomenon. We then drove on the rainbow round about to stop at a cafe for coffee.
Mount Ainslie Lookout
Just a short drive from the city center, the Mount Ainslie Lookout offers panoramic views over Canberra. The view from above the Mount is a must see. The most notable buildings and attractions line up in a straight row. Mount Ainslie peers over the Australian War Memorial. It gazes down Remembrance Avenue and across Lake Burley-Griffin. In the distance, Old Parliament House and the current Parliament House cap off the straight lineup. The huge man made lake is visible from every view.
Australian War Memorial
The Australian War Memorial is the nation’s war memorial and museum dedicated to all Australians who died during war or in service. This site opened to the public in 1941. It is free to visit, though you do need to reserve a ticket for timed entry. There are five buildings and a sculpture garden along with thousands of items on display. It is a very moving experience.
Parliament House
The Parliament House is home to Australia’s government. It’s also called Capital Hill. It is where the legislative and executive branches of the federal government meet. It is also the office for the Prime Minister. Queen Elizabeth opened this building in 1988. It covers 2.7 million square feet and has over 4,500 rooms. They do allow you to watch the House of Representatives and Senate proceedings from the public galleries. But unfortunately they were not in session the day we visited. The last photo shows the Old Parliament House (1927) before the building of the new one.
We walked around our neighborhood filled with shops, pubs, restaurants and a couple of malls all within walking distance. One of the pubs advertised a lunch special of steak au poivre, fries, salad and a glass of wine for $27 AUD which is $18 US. We couldn’t pass it up. Neither would we pass on this amazing gelato shop around the corner. Not only beautiful, but delicious too—dark chocolate, passion fruit and coconut. YUM!
Weekend Markets
After a low of 48 degrees Friday night, we awoke to a gorgeous sunshiny Saturday. The high is 74, just perfect. We headed out to the Capital Region Farmers Market. It’s open every Saturday 7-11:30 a.m. on the grounds of Exhibition Park In Canberra. There is farm fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and poultry. But there are also flowers, plants, baked goods, dairy and prepared food as well.
The one Aussie food item you see everywhere is savory meat pies. They come in dozens of flavors and meats. In Batemans Bay, we went to Hayden’s Pies to try one (see their menu in the photo) and it’s very good. Imagine a handheld pot pie. It had a flaky puff pastry dough and a filling thick with meat, veggies, and sauce. It doesn’t even drip when you eat it. We tried another one today with chicken, cheese, veggies and bacon.
I also read about a vintage and antiques market called Dirty Janes. So I added that to our to do list this weekend. This shop is actually a warehouse with 90 dealers selling new, vintage and antique goods. Too bad we only have carry-on luggage, as there are several things I want to take home. However, that cashmere scarf I found will fold up perfectly!
The Old Bus Depot Market is a Sunday market with lots of local vendors. They are celebrating their 30th birthday today. The cannolis are delicious.
Monuments
We left the market to visit a few monuments around town. One of the interesting things about Canberra is that it is the only capital city that surrounds a lake. But, it isn’t a naturally formed one. It was created by damming a river in three places to create an ornamental lake. Renamed Lake Burley-Griffin after the architects that originally designed the city. Though the lake is included in Griffin’s original plans, excavation didn’t start until 1960. The lake is a prominent feature of the city’s landscape. Its surface is almost 7 square miles.
The National Carillon (1970) Is the large tower by the lake. The entire tower is a musical instrument with 57 bronze bells. The largest bell weighs 6 tons. Musical performances can be heard over the lake and in the surrounding park. It’s undergoing maintenance currently, so we didn’t get to hear it ring.
Also in the park is the Captain Cook Memorial Jet. It shoots water up to 375 feet high. There is also the National Police Memorial. This memorial honors Australian police who have died during service. The last monument by the park is the Australian-American Memorial. It commemorates the help given by the United States during the Pacific War. From afar, the eagle looks like a chicken. Some locals refer to it as “chicken on a stick”.
After all this running around today, it was time for lunch. Of course we didn’t pass up their homemade desserts. Which one will we have?
Bowral
We left Canberra for our final stop in Bowral before returning the car in Sydney. Overlooked by Mt. Gibraltar, Bowral (1861) is a charming town. It’s filled with historical buildings, boutiques, art galleries, antique shops, wineries and cafes. It’s about a 90 minute drive from Sydney. The town is absolutely worth a stop over for the last night of our road trip.
Corbett Gardens
Corbett Gardens is a public park in the center of Bowral. It’s one of the area’s oldest and most beautiful parks. It also serves as the centerpiece of the Tulip Time floral festival. During the festival, over 100,000 planted tulips are in bloom.
Mary Poppins
A life-size bronze Mary Poppins Statue is found in town to commemorate the author PL Travers. She lived in Bowral with her family as a child and teenager from 1907-1917. It’s the place where the author first conceived the character as a bedtime story for her younger sisters.
Everywhere we went here, the food is amazing and the people super friendly. Since we traveled during the U.S. election, several people chatted with us about it. They wanted to know both about the election process and voting. They told us that Australian citizens are required by law to vote in state and federal elections. Anyone who does not vote will be fined. We thought that was interesting and certainly different from our process at home.
We’re returning the car today with just a little more “wear and tear” than before. Thankfully, the decimated curb doesn’t count 😉. Although what is this front bumper damage? Oops, and was there always a missing hubcap? Hmm… I’ll never tell.
You understand now why I always buy the insurance. You just turn in the keys, say sorry and walk away. 👍
As much as I tease Danny about his driving, he did amazing on the left side of the road. Way to go!
Our 10 day road trip on the Grand Pacific Drive has come to an end. The time has gone so very quickly. Up next in our journey around Australia is Melbourne. Stay tuned for more…
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