Yamba, AU

A small contemporary dining room a few blocks back from the water serving a daily-rotating four-course set menu built on native and local produce, with sage and timber finishes that read as quiet rather than fussy. It is the closest thing Yamba has to a destination restaurant and books out from out-of-town. Best saved for a celebration dinner rather than a casual one.

A long-running High Street cafe with a Turkish-Mediterranean bent and a courtyard garden, serving the lamb kofta, Turkish eggs, and braised octopus that turned it into a Yamba breakfast institution. The coffee program runs on Allpress and the cakes are made in-house. The default morning move when you want something better than a beach kiosk.

A small brewpub a block off the main strip with house-brewed beers, a casual food menu of burgers and wood-fired pizzas, and a few rooms upstairs. Started in 2021 and has settled into the rhythm of being the locals' weekday after-work spot. Good for a relaxed dinner where the kids can run around and you can drink a beer made in the room next door.

The clifftop pub above Main Beach with full-height windows looking down the headland to the lighthouse, a bistro at the back, and live music a few nights a week. Classic Australian pub menu with local seafood specials and the kind of room where the view does most of the work. Best at sunset with a beer on the deck.

A modern waterfront tavern on the Mainbrace marina side of Yamba, away from the headland and main strip, with a wide deck on the Clarence and a large kids' play area. Bistro menu skews pub-classic with reasonable local seafood. The choice when you want a long lunch on the river rather than the ocean.

A casual Italian dining room on Coldstream Street known for wood-fired pizzas, pasta, and a longish list of locally-leaning toppings like the Yamba prawn pizza. Indoor and outdoor seating, takeaway available, and steady enough that locals send visitors here for a no-fuss family dinner. Good for groups when Karrikin is booked.

A small Neapolitan-style pizzeria and wine bar with a tight list of pizzas, a curated wine selection, and order-by-QR table service. Pizzas use organic flour and the room is more wine-bar than family pizzeria. Best as a pre- or post-dinner drink-and-snack stop rather than a full family meal.

A neighbourhood modern-Asian restaurant on Clarence Street with a small natural-wine list and a menu that swings between Southeast Asian, Japanese, and Chinese without trying to be a fusion gimmick. Crispy duck, prawns, and the wok-tossed greens are the steady orders. Good for a date or small group dinner in the centre of town.

A French-leaning Australian bistro on Clarence Street with a beach-house feel, leaning on local seafood and a short set menu option for value. Cocktails punch above the room and the kitchen is more ambitious than most of the strip. Best for a sit-down dinner when you want something fancier than the pub but less formal than Karrikin.

A casual Mexican on the strip doing traditional street-food plates rather than the burrito-bowl format, with margaritas built on decent tequila and a small room that turns over fast. Family-friendly without leaning into kid-menu shortcuts, and it has built a loyal return crowd.

A small burger joint a short walk from Main Beach doing wagyu burgers, hand-cut chips, and a credible vegetarian option in a casual takeaway-friendly room. The default lunch when you do not want a pub meal or a sit-down restaurant. Open later than most Yamba lunch spots, which matters when surfing has run long.

The town's go-to fish and chip shop on Yamba Street, with local catch when available, crisp batter, and outdoor picnic tables. No-frills service and big serves. Best as a takeaway picked up on the walk back from the pool or beach rather than a sit-down meal.

A roughly 7km one-way coastal walk linking Main Beach to Angourie via Pippi Beach, the headland tracks, and Spookys Beach, doable at low tide along the sand or higher up on the headland path. Ends at the Blue Pool or the Angourie cafes. The standard locals' long walk and the warm-up section of the Yuraygir Coastal Walk.

A 65km multi-day signposted coastal track running south from Angourie to Red Rock through Yuraygir National Park, with overnight camps along the way through heath, headlands, beaches, and a marine park. Most visitors walk the first day section from Angourie to Lake Arragan as a day-trip or shuttle hike. The full walk is one of the better mid-length coast walks in NSW.

An easy 2.5km one-way track through the largest remaining stand of littoral rainforest in NSW, part of the Gondwana Rainforests World Heritage Area, running from Long Street in Iluka to the Iluka Bluff picnic area. Mostly shaded and flat, supporting more than 140 bird species. Pair with the Clarence River Ferry from Yamba to make a half-day without driving the long way around.

A short paved loop from the Main Beach carpark up to Yamba Lighthouse and back down via the Convent Beach side, mostly under 1.5km return with views down the headland to the river mouth and across to Iluka. The standard sunset walk for locals. Good for kids and anyone short on time.

A 10km return moderate track in Yuraygir National Park linking the Mara Creek picnic area in the north with Shelley Headland in the south, through coastal heath and along the seaward side of a ridge with views over sheltered bays. Less crowded than the Yamba to Angourie walk because it sits further south. Roughly four hours return depending on stops.

The passenger ferry between Yamba and Iluka, the only practical way across the river without driving an hour around through Maclean. Doubles as a sightseeing run with at least four crossings daily plus a longer history cruise upstream. The ferry is the backbone of any day trip to Iluka's rainforest walk or beaches.

Founded in 1908 and one of the oldest surf clubs in the world, sitting in the middle of Main Beach with a kiosk for coffee and basic food and a clubroom upstairs that opens to members and visitors. The patrolled flags on Main Beach run weekends and school holidays from September to Easter. Watching the Sunday morning training swims is a Yamba pastime.

A right-hand point break declared a National Surfing Reserve in 2007, considered by Mark Richards among the best right points in Australia. Even non-surfers come to watch the line-up from the headland above on swell days. The reef is shallow and the local crowd is well-defined; this is a watch-or-respect spot rather than a beginner break.

A small surf beach south of Angourie Point named for either its isolation or a strange noise reportedly heard from the water, depending on which local you ask. Less surf-crowded than Angourie Point because the break is fickle, and effectively empty most weekdays. Reached on foot from the Blue Pool carpark in about ten minutes.

A small river-mouth beach on the Clarence side of the headland, sheltered from ocean swell and used by locals for SUP, kayaks, and a calm swim when the surf is too big. Faces the Iluka side of the river so afternoon light reads warm. Better for paddling and beachcombing than ocean swimming.

A small white lighthouse on Pilot Hill above the Clarence River mouth, surrounded by open grass that opens onto headland views in three directions. You cannot climb the tower, but the walk up from the carpark is the standard sunset routine for locals. Best paired with the Yamba Pool and Main Beach below for a single early-evening loop.

The patrolled town beach tucked into a small north-facing bay below the Pacific Hotel, sheltered enough for kids and beginners while the surf club watches over swimmers between flags. The ocean pool at the southern end and the surf club kiosk make it the default morning spot for families. Walk south along the rocks to reach Convent Beach and the ocean pool.

A 33-metre saltwater pool carved into the rock platform at the southern end of Main Beach, the most northerly true ocean bath on the NSW coast and a quieter alternative to the surf. The concrete is old and the texture rough, but the morning lap crowd has been showing up for decades. Good for lap swimming, small kids, and anyone wanting ocean water without rips.

A long unpatrolled surf beach south of the headland, with a wide open feel and shells the same name as the beach buried at the low-tide mark. The southern end is an off-leash dog area, which makes it the unofficial morning meeting point for locals with dogs. Better for walking, beachcombing, and longboard surf than swimming with kids.

A freshwater swimming hole in a former rock quarry that flooded in 1899 when miners hit an underground spring, now sitting just behind the dunes at Angourie Point. Cliff jumpers use the higher edges and swimmers float in surprisingly clear water. Pair with the smaller Green Pool a few minutes south and a walk to Angourie Point lookout.

The smaller, shadier sibling of the Blue Pool a short walk south, with a green tint from the surrounding vegetation and quieter crowds. Easier entry and shallower depths make it the better choice with younger kids than the cliff-edged Blue Pool. Combined with a walk out to Angourie Point and Spookys Beach, it is a half-day on its own.

A grassy headland on the north side of the Clarence River mouth in Bundjalung National Park, reached by a ten-minute walk from the carpark or as the endpoint of the Iluka Rainforest track. The view back over Iluka Beach to the river mouth is the one you save for a clear afternoon. Whale spotters set up on the bluff through winter.

A small pocket beach between Main Beach and Pippi, named for the convent that once sat on the headland above. It is the easiest beach to have to yourself on a busy weekend because most visitors stop at Main Beach without continuing south. Good for a swim away from the surf club crowds, with rock pools at the southern end.

A community-run local history museum on River Street that punches above its size, with maritime exhibits, two thousand captioned photographs, and a small Yaegl cultural garden behind. Volunteer guides do most of the talking and they know the river history first-hand. Worth a rainy-morning hour even if you do not normally do small-town museums.