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Byron Bay and Hamilton Island

8 Days in Jan
Australia/Oceania

Route Details

Days 1-4 Byron Bay

Byron Bay is a popular area on the eastern coast of Australia, between Brisbane and Sydney. It seems like a spring break kind of destination, but not wild-party, just chill-surfer spring break. A very bohemian feel to it, and we really liked it.

Sea kayaking – was fun but didn’t get to see dolphins like we hoped.

Cape Byron Light – walked to the lighthouse for sunrise, bit cloudy but on the walk back we had great views.

Bangalow Farmers Market – each Saturday from 8-11. Kind of a hippie town, very authentic experience. They also have one in Byron Bay on Thursdays from 8-11.

Lots of relaxing beach time

Days 5-8 Hamilton Island 

We took a bus from Byron Bay to the Brisbane airport (3 hours) and flew to Hamilton Island (2 hours), part of the Whitsunday Islands. The Whitsundays are a bunch of islands perfect for relaxing and exploring the Great Barrier Reef (think paradise). There are no cars on Hamilton Island and it’s very small/accessible. We stayed at the Reefview hotel, which was nice. Lots of kids in the pools, they made the area seem to be more for couples, but it was more families than we were expecting. There was a high risk of jellyfish when we were there, so there wasn’t a ton of people in the ocean.

Passage Peak – strenuous walk but definitely worth it. The 360-degree view at the top is great.

One Tree Hill – area on the northwest part of the island, really nice views here as well.

We spent one day sailing and snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef. Snorkeling was awesome, and sailing was a good way to see some of the nearby islands.

Another day we went on a scuba diving excursion. It was a bit disappointing because we didn’t really see anything super duper incredible, and it was fairly expensive. But we wanted to do it because.. great barrier reef!

Whitehaven Beach – this is THE beach everyone goes to but it was a rainy day.

Year traveled: 2018

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