Home to a staggering 10,000+ beaches, and over 25,000km of spectacular, varied coastline to explore, Australia has some of the best beaches on the planet. It’s no surprise that Australia is famous for its laidback, beachside lifestyle, considering the large majority of the island nation’s population live close to the country’s coastline. Many an Aussie can happily recall fond memories of summers spent swimming, body boarding and surfing, playing beach cricket, snorkelling and building sandcastles at the beach!
Australian beaches come in a wide variety of landscapes, shapes and sizes, whether they be bay beaches (such as those found in Melbourne), exquisite surf beaches (for example, on the Gold and Sunshine Coasts), coconut-palmed, turquoise-water beaches (found in the Whitsundays and Tropical Far North Queensland), or rugged, back beaches where you are the only soul in sight (such as some of the back beaches found along the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria). Whatever sort of amazing beach you visit in Australia, you will be able to understand why they are some of the most famous beaches in the entire world.
Today we shall be focusing on some of the very best beaches in Queensland, Australia’s ‘sunshine state’, located on the eastern side of the country. We’ll begin with Burleigh Heads, on Australia’s famous Gold Coast, and work our way north, until we reach the breathtaking and number one beach, Nudey Beach (located on Fitzroy Island), as voted in Australia’s Top 101 Beaches awards for 2018.
Burleigh Heads, Gold Coast
Burleigh Heads, fringed with its enormous Norfolk pines, is a favourite amongst local, interstate and international visitors alike. Not only is Burleigh Heads one of the Gold Coast’s most pristine and picture-perfect beaches, it is also famous for its iconic barrelling surf, as well as its basalt boulders found at the south of the beach, which sit at the foot of lush natural headland and the nearby National Park. Burleigh Heads is also home to amazing walking tracks, dining options and picnic spots.
The natural headland offers protection from southerly winds, and hence Burleigh Heads is a great choice for swimming in the surf, alongside bodyboarding and surfing. Although Burleigh Heads beach is situated along one of the Gold Coast’s main roads (the Gold Coast Highway), it is pristine, relaxing and a fantastic alternative to other busier beaches in the area, like Surfers Paradise. Be sure to position yourself between the red and yellow flags, where the surf is patrolled by qualified and experienced lifeguards.
Image Credit: solnamara.com.au
Noosa Main Beach, Noosa Heads, Sunshine Coast
Noosa Main Beach, located in front of Noosa Heads’ famous Hastings Street village, is a beautiful, north-facing beach, which offers reasonable surf conditions and is one of the only beaches in the country that is patrolled by professional lifeguards 365 days a year. Noosa Main Beach is perfect for swimming, families, bodyboarding, stand up paddle (SUP) boarding, and of course, surfing.
When you’ve had enough of relaxing on the beach and swimming in the surf, you will find many outstanding cafes, restaurants and boutique shops along Hastings Street. Or if you’d like to immerse yourself in nature some more, make your way to the south of the beach towards the headland of stunning Noosa National Park. Via the park’s dedicated walking tracks, you’ll have the opportunity to discover along the way exquisite, unspoilt, smaller beaches, perfectly framed by National Park vegetation. It is also not uncommon for people to spot koalas up in the trees above, undoubtedly one of Australia’s most famous and cutest animals!
Image Credit: visitnoosa.com.au
Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands
Whitsunday Island, home to the world-famous Whitehaven Beach, is one of 74 islands that together comprise what is called the ‘Whitsundays’. Whitehaven Beach is one of the most photographed beaches in Australia, thanks to its brilliant, pure, white quartz sand, which is totally unique to Whitehaven Beach (this sand cannot be found anywhere else in the Whitsundays), and its crystal-clear, turquoise water.
There are many enjoyable ways to reach and explore Whitehaven Beach, whether you choose to travel by sail boat, yacht or ferry, or even via the air. Snorkelling the reef off the beach and hiking to Tongue Point Lookout (book with a local tour operator that includes the hike) to witness the breathtaking beauty of Hill Inlet’s swirling white sand and aqua waters are two spectacular ways you can explore the local area.
Image Credit: whitsundaysphotography.com.au
Nudey Beach, Fitzroy Island
Situated right on the Great Barrier Reef you shall find Fitzroy Island, an idyllic tropical island paradise, located a mere 25km off the coast of Cairns. Fitzroy Island welcomes day visitors as well as guests who wish to stay at the island’s exclusive resort (with accommodation to suit all budgets), and can be reached within 45 minutes, via Fast Cat from the Cairns Marina.
Fitzroy Island is home to famous Nudey Beach, and once you arrive at Nudey via means of a gentle stroll through the tropical rainforest vegetation from Welcome Bay, you will experience with your own eyes just why this beach was awarded the number one spot in Australia’s Top 101 Beaches awards for 2018. Immaculate white sand and warm and welcoming, crystal-clear aqua ocean waters are accompanied by a backdrop of large granite boulders and lush rainforest vegetation. On top of that, you can snorkel straight off the shore of Nudey Beach and witness the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef below!
Whether you choose to bring your own gear, or hire a snorkel, mask and fins from the Fitzroy Island Sports Hub, you can laze away the day snorkelling in the calm waters of Nudey Beach and have the chance to spot clown fish (Nemo!), gropers, numerous species of coral and tropical fish, and Fitzroy Island’s famous sea turtles!
