Newcastle weekend guide: beaches, Nobbys and food

This Newcastle weekend guide gives you a simple two day plan: walk the coast on Saturday and eat around the harbour and Darby Street on Sunday. Newcastle is a harbour city on the New South Wales coast, about 2.5 hours by car north of Sydney. Its beaches, ocean baths and old headland are all close together, so you can see a lot without a car.

Sources for this section: Destination NSW, Newcastle.

Getting there and getting around

Destination NSW says the drive from Sydney takes about 2.5 hours along the Pacific Highway. Direct trains and buses from Sydney's Central Station take just under three hours. If you take the train, Newcastle Interchange is also the first stop on the city's light rail line.

The Newcastle Light Rail opened on 17 February 2019. It is a short street-running line of about 2.7 km with six stops: Newcastle Interchange, Honeysuckle, Civic, Crown Street, Queens Wharf and Newcastle Beach. That covers the city centre and the harbour edge, and it ends close to the sand. For the coast, you will walk.

Sources for this section: Destination NSW, Newcastle; Wikipedia, Newcastle Light Rail.

Saturday: the Bathers Way coastal walk

The Bathers Way is the best single thing to do in Newcastle. It is a paved coastal path of about 6 km that links Merewether Ocean Baths in the south with Nobbys Beach in the north. Visit Newcastle rates it Grade 2 and gives about 3 hours one way, not counting stops. You can start at either end. Starting at Merewether and walking north keeps the rest of the route mostly downhill or flat after the high point.

Along the way you pass these stops:

• Merewether, Dixon Park and Bar Beach: popular surf and swimming beaches, with kiosks for a coffee or a snack.
• Anzac Memorial Walk: a 450 m elevated walk with sweeping coast views and steel soldier silhouettes.
• Strzelecki Lookout: the highest point of the walk, and a spot where paragliders launch.
• King Edward Park: gardens and an 1898 rotunda. A short detour leads to the Bogey Hole, a rock pool convicts carved in 1819.
• Newcastle Beach and Newcastle Ocean Baths: street art, food stops and an Art Deco landmark for a swim.

The path is fully paved, but some sections are steep. Wear walking shoes, carry water and bring sun protection. Destination NSW notes that the Bathers Way does not suit everyone with access needs, so check the route first if that matters to you.

Sources for this section: Visit Newcastle, Walk the Bathers Way; Destination NSW, The Bathers Way; Destination NSW, Newcastle.

Nobbys Head and the breakwall

End the walk at Nobbys. Port Authority of NSW says Nobbys Headland is open to the public on weekends and public holidays from 8am to 4pm. From the top you get 360 degree views of the city, the working harbour and the coast. The lighthouse, first lit in 1858, is still active.

Nobbys Beach is a good place for families and new surfers. At the north end, the Macquarie Pier walkway runs out along the breakwall. It is the northern end of the Bathers Way and is open to walkers and cyclists only. From the Nobbys Beach car park it is about a 550 m walk to the headland gate, so it makes an easy out and back stroll.

Sources for this section: Port Authority of NSW, Nobbys Headland; Visit Newcastle, Walk the Bathers Way; Destination NSW, Nobbys Lighthouse.

Where to eat

Newcastle has three food areas that suit a weekend. Visit Newcastle describes Honeysuckle as the restaurant precinct. It sits on the harbour and has restaurants, cafes and bars with water views, from tapas and Japanese food to pub meals and craft beer.

• Honeysuckle: best for a long lunch or dinner by the water. It is also a stop on the light rail.
• Darby Street, Cooks Hill: sidewalk cafes, second-hand bookshops, independent shops and galleries. It is a good spot for lunch.
• Beaumont Street, Hamilton: bars, restaurants and cocktail bars, with pub lunches, dumplings and Mexican food. Hamilton also has a strong coffee culture from its Italian and Greek roots.

On the coastal walk, plan your breaks at the beach kiosks. Visit Newcastle lists kiosks at Merewether, Dixon Park, Bar Beach, Newcastle Beach and Nobbys. Venues change, so check opening times before you go.

Sources for this section: Visit Newcastle, Precincts; Visit Newcastle, Walk the Bathers Way.

Sunday: harbour, fort and a ferry

Use Sunday for the harbour side. Fort Scratchley is a harbour-view fort with tunnel tours. Destination NSW says it is the only fort in Australia to have returned fire on Japanese submarines, in June 1942. Then walk the foreshore to Honeysuckle, which Visit Newcastle says links Nobbys Beach to the harbour precinct.

For a change of scene, ferries run from Queens Wharf across the harbour to Stockton, where Stockton Beach has long sandy shores. If you still have energy, the Fernleigh Track is a 15 km shared path on an old rail corridor, running from Adamstown toward Lake Macquarie.

Sources for this section: Destination NSW, Newcastle; Visit Newcastle, Precincts.

Sources

1. Destination NSW, Newcastle: visitnsw.com
2. Destination NSW, The Bathers Way: visitnsw.com
3. Destination NSW, Nobbys Lighthouse: visitnsw.com
4. Visit Newcastle, Walk the Bathers Way: visitnewcastle.com.au
5. Visit Newcastle, Precincts: visitnewcastle.com.au
6. Port Authority of NSW, Nobbys Headland: portauthoritynsw.com.au
7. Wikipedia, Newcastle Light Rail: en.wikipedia.org