Destination overview

The Great Lakes Region is a natural paradise, stretching from Hawks Nest in the south to Forster and Tuncurry in the north and encompasses Wallis, Smiths and Myall Lakes. It is celebrated for its magnificent coastline, numerous national parks and state forests and basks in a year-round temperate climate.

Forster and Tuncurry, located 312 kilometres north of Sydney, are now essentially one conglomerate city separated by a very large concrete bridge. They sit on opposite sides of the entrance to Wallis Lake which is 26 kilometres long. Thus the two towns are fronted by the ocean to the east and the lake to the west.

The stunning waters that surround Forster Tuncurry are enjoyed by many, and offer all kinds of watersports activities for all the family, including swimming, fishing, surfing, whale watching, diving and water skiing.

There are a number of great beaches to choose from. The Bar is located at the southern end of Nine Mile Beach which extends northwards from Tuncurry to Hallidays Point. It is a good surfing area with a rock pool, grassed areas, a children's playground, and a pleasant bathing and picnic area with barbecue facilities. You can walk out to the end of the breakwater where dolphins can sometimes be seen at play.

A little further east is The Tanks, an unusual rock formation where the waves spray water into a protected safe swimming area. Further east again is Bennetts Head which is named after the family who built a home at the foot of the headland in 1864. There is a lookout with views south over One Mile Beach, west over the hinterland and north to Manning Point. A paved walkway provides a scenic walk.

Burgess Beach is a small and quiet beach accessed by a steep path. It is a good spot for families with shelter on three sides and plenty of small rock cave formations.

You'll find many picnic areas are scattered around the shores of picturesque Wallis Lake, which is famous for the superb oysters that are farmed from this region. There is a modern harbour at Forster and a full range of marine services that enhance the lake's recreational potential. Hire a boat, launch your own or take a cruise on Wallis Lake. Also look out for pelicans, pied oyster catchers, cormorants and majestic black swans.

A short drive away you'll find Cape Hawke, one of the most northerly points of Booti Booti National Park. There is a very steep 440 metre path which winds its way to the summit of the hill. Thankfully there are several rest benches en route. As you ascend the headland the views are increasingly spectacular. At the apex (233 metres above sea level) is a cairn noting that Captain Cook sighted and named Cape Hawke on May 12, 1770. A raised viewing platform affords quite spectacular views north along the coast over Forster to Hallidays Point, north-west to the meeting of the Wang Wauk River and Wallis Lake, west to the Great Dividing Range and south along the spit.

For motoring enthusiasts and history buffs, The Curtis Collection consists of vintage cars, including the first Australian car, motorcycles, horse-drawn vehicles (including the original Cobb & Co stage coach), telephones, cameras, toys, police displays, bottles, musical instruments and artefacts from the two World Wars.

If you're a keen golfer Forster/Tuncurry offers two first-class 18 hole golf courses; one at Tuncurry with and another 18 hole course in Forster situated adjacent to One Mile Beach. Both feature modern air-conditioned clubhouses for you to relax in after a round of golf.

For more hedonistic pursuits, you'll find many superb seafood restaurants, relaxing outdoor cafes, and some really exciting specialty shops, plus plenty of arts and crafts, with many galleries and antique shops to browse through.

The Great Lakes Region is one of the state's largest coastal lake systems - a Ramsar Wetland of International Significance - and 40 kilometres of beaches and rolling sand dunes make Myall Lakes one of the most visited parks in Australia. The Grandis, a magnificent 76 metre high flooded gum, is one of the tallest trees in the state.

Wallignat National Park offers one of the best natural viewing platforms on the central coast, Whoota Lookout, which provides magnificent views of 100 kilometres of coastline from Port Macquarie to Port Stephens. The park contains Eucalypt forests supporting a number of threatened plant (cabbage palm and flooded gum forests) and animal species.

Some of the animals that inhabit the park are Green Tree Frog, Jervis Bay Tree Frog, Peron's Tree Frog, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Grey Butcherbird, Glossy Black-Cockatoo, Regent Honeyeater, Powerful Owl, Parma Wallaby, New Holland Mouse, Yellow-bellied Glider, Grey-headed Flying-fox, Stephen's Banded Snake and the Diamond Python.

Graced by the stunning surf of Blackhead Beach, and majestic Norfolk pines planted by two generations of tree-lovers in the early 1920's and in 1946, Hallidays Point has long been a favourite fishing and leisure spot.

The natural beauty of the town has been enhanced with a rainforest walk linking Red Head and Black Head promontories, the walk embraces striking coastal landforms and littoral rainforest remnants. The bush tracks off the main walk lead visitors through bush that hosts a delicate balance of flora and fauna, and have been designed to accommodate people of all fitness levels.

For a laid back holiday in one of Australia's most beautiful and accessible areas, you can't go past Forster/Tuncurry and the surrounding Great Lakes Region.