Heading north from Sydney, New South Wales to Brisbane, Queensland is a quintessential part of the east coast road trip in Australia. With stops at iconic hippie town Byron Bay and driving on the beach in Newcastle, this road trip is packed with beach time, bush walks, wildlife and memorable views in Australia.
Leaving Sydney to head north leaves behind the cold winter temperatures, making it a great road trip for the winter months.
This lag of road tripping on the east coast can be done before or after heading to Melbourne from Sydney and the Great Ocean Road. In this road trip guide from Sydney to Brisbane, I’m including where to stop, what to see and do in those spots, and options for free campsites (when available). All of the campsites below are campervan-friendly by having washroom facilities.
Visiting Sydney? Check out this guide on what to do in Sydney for a week to feel like a local and see the best of the city!
This isn’t necessarily the quickest route from the two locations. But rather than speeding through, my guides focus on seeing the best of Australia at any pace. And of course this road trip guide can be done in either direction!
Table of Contents
Road Trip: Sydney to Brisbane
Total Drive Time: 13 hours
Recommended Minimum Days: Six
Day 1: Sydney, NSW to Watagans National Park
Drive time: Two hours
Despite my best efforts, I always seem to leave Sydney late. It’s nearly impossible to actually leave in the morning with doing the rest of the ‘city things’. And then, there’s always traffic somewhere. This is why it’s good to plan a short drive for the day and have time to relax in a peaceful national park.
Watagans National Park is exactly the park for this. Not only is it a short drive from Sydney, but it has multiple free campsites and plenty of walking tracks and lookouts.
The only downside about heading towards this park is the rough road. It’s not impossible, but it’s smart to take it slow in a conventional vehicle.
To get some views on the area, both Monkey Face Lookout and Gap Creek Lookout are close together. Not only do they both have diverse and breathtaking views, but they’re just a short walk from the other. Follow the bush walk trail between the two which follows the cliff’s edge. Otherwise The Narrow Place Lookout is another option for the area, with a view out towards the Hunter Valley.
To see a subtly high waterfall, head down to Gap Creek Falls, which is conveniently located right next to Gap Creek Campground. The trail itself is a bit overgrown at times and it’s steep, but down at the bottom is this peaceful waterfall. The water is comes through the cracks in the rock’s wall.
Free Campsites
As mentioned, there’s two free campsites in Watagans National Park, Gap Creek and Bangalow. They’re both just down/up the road from each other.
The drop toilets are a bit better at Bangalow, but it’s targeted more towards tents rather than campervans. Gap Creek, is a bit more spread out so it’s easier to feel like you have your own space, even if it’s busy. Both are great campgrounds, and it’s even better that they’re free.
Day 2: Watagans National Park to Newcastle
Drive Time: One hour
Just south of Newcastle is Caves Beach, which when the tide is out, visitors can walk all through the actual caves of the beach. It’s a great stop on your way towards Newcastle.
Before visiting Newcastle, many Australians told me to just avoid it altogether. They said the city had nothing to do, it was industrial-focused, dirty and boring. How wrong these people were.
Initially heading north up the east coast I did skip it, but heading back down I stopped in and was blown away with the beauty of the surrounding area, complexity of the city and beauty of the ocean.
Part of the surrounding area of Newcastle that shouldn’t be missed is the Stockton Sand Dunes. This sand dune lands 30 metres above sea level and is always moving. If you have a 4-wheel drive vehicle, you can drive onto the beach, with the right permit. Otherwise it’s okay to park your vehicle and walk over to the beach.
In terms of city life, Newcastle is definitely smaller than neighbouring Sydney, but it’s also more relaxing. For some free whale watching, head over to the Newcastle Breakwall. There’s ocean baths in both Newcastle and Merewether for relaxed swimming.
And to catch the sunset or sunrise, check out Shepards Hill Lookout or Strzelecki Lookout for views of the ocean.
Free Campsites
Being a city and all, Newcastle doesn’t have any free campsites within the city. These free campsites listed are a good distance outside of the city, but make for a good drive.
- Buchanan Rest Area (West and East)
- Gap Creek campground
- Bangalow campground
- Tattersalls campground
- Coopernook Forest
Day 3: Newcastle to Port Macquarie
Drive Time: Two and a half hours
Day three of the road trip from Sydney to Brisbane, and the ocean views keeps getting better. Port Macquarie is famously known for its Koala Hospital, which received waves of donations from the 2019/2020 bush fires. The hospital used to be open for walk-in visitors but has now switched to a booking system, adapting to the pandemic.
The Koala Hospital is just outside of town, on the west side of the highway, (heading east is how to get to port).
In Port Macquarie, you can’t miss stopping for coffee (or brunch!) at Bandwagon Cafe. Not only do they make cold brew, but they’re conveniently located a few blocks from the ocean—the perfect starting point to a beachside walk.
Port Macquarie has some beautiful beaches and even fancier walks that hover above said beaches. For an easy peasy stunning walk, start from Oxley Beach’s walking path and head north. Stop first at the Flagstaff Lookout to see in between the below south and west beaches.
Continue west above Town Beach, which joins onto the Port Macquarie Breakwall. This is where the brightly coloured and fancy painted rocks are. I’m not sure if there’s a ‘reserve a rock’ system to painting the rocks or if people are free to pain any rock.
After admiring the rocks, keep walking west. The path heads through other beach side parks and eventually back into town. This is close to where Blue Cow Gelato is, and you should definitely stop in. I was skeptical before going, because a lot of places receive hype that don’t amount up to amazing gelato.
Blue Cow Gelato does live up to the hype. Not only do they have rotating artisan picks, but interesting flavours such as Black Hawaii, which is charcoal, coconut and chocolate. There’s also vegan options!
And for those interested in craft beer, Port Macquarie has three breweries! All breweries are open on staggering days of the week, so at least one brewery should be open during your day’s visit. This includes Wicked Elf Beer, Moorebeer Brewing Co and Black Duck Brewery.
If you’re interested in big trees, stop in at the Old Bottlebutt, which is located in Burrawan State Forest. This 200 year old Red Bloodwood tree has a girth size of 16 metres above it’s base.
Free Campsites
Often times it seems the better the area, the less free campsites are around. This stands true for the Port Macquarie area, there’s only one free campsite around, and it’s Ellenborough Reserve. The camp is about a 45 minute drive from the city and has a few rivers for swimming.
Day 4: Port Macquarie to Coffs Harbour
Drive time: One hour and a half
Coffs Harbour isn’t a big city, but rather big and dispersed. I ended up driving around more, rather than walking much.
I don’t usually go to all the botanical gardens in each city, but I was rather surprised with the North Coast Regional Botanic Garden. Something unique about this area is that there’s a natural water feature (Coffs Creek) which surrounds the area. So relax, take a walk in the park and enjoy this 50 acre garden.
If you’re interested in the beach, head towards Jetty Beach, but first stop at Beach Hill Lookout to get a better look of the area.
And if you’re into cheesy tourist snaps, don’t leave Coffs before seeing The Big Banana! Also, stock up on grocery store items, as Coffs Harbour is one of the last major towns for a bit.
Free Campsites
Coffs Harbour is a bit of an odd spot for free campsites. As you head north, free campsites dwindle for sure, and this is where that begins. One option is to head towards Roses Park campsite, south west to Coffs Harbour. Otherwise continue heading north for other free campsites.
Day 5: Coffs Harbour to Byron Bay
Drive time: Three hours
This is the day for Byron Bay! Previous to going to Byron, everyone just told me, “You have to go there!” but didn’t explain why. I made no mistake by going, because it was flash.
To explain Byron Bay a bit, socially it’s a blend of chill surfers, barefooted hippies and wealthy tourists. The town itself is a mix of small independent stores and bigger names, such as Patagonia. Aside from a few streets of shops though it has bars, restaurants and cafes aplenty. But what’s really happening is the beach and the surf.
Due to Cape Byron, Main Beach has calmer waters and is great for swimming. You’ll get quite the entertainment when using the toilet facilities by the beach, thanks to the automated robotic voice walking you through the bathroom experience.
One of the nicest walks on the east coast you’ll take is around the Cape Byron Walking Track. Most of the track sits within the borders of Cape Byron State Conservation Area, so it’s woodsy and relaxing. The track passes by beaches, deep turquoise waters and a rocky coast before heading up.
At the most northern point of Cape Byron is also the most easterly point of Australia’s mainland, and it’s a great spot for seeing sea life. This may include sea turtles, dolphins and rays.
The path continues to Cape Byron Lighthouse before turning towards the town again through the bush. There’s lots of other smaller trails around the area, if you have more time to kill, feel free to get a bit lost.
Something else you cannot miss in Byron Bay is the amazing markets. There’s both a day and night market on different days. The Byron Community Market is on the first Sunday of the month. The Byron Twilight Market takes place November to April on Saturday evenings.
The biggest is the community market, which sells everything from handmade clothing and jewellery to cold pressed juices and vegan jerky. However some similar stands take part in the Twilight Market.
Further outside of town, there’s also two distilleries, a brewery and a coffee roaster.
Free Campsites
It should come as no surprise that there are zero free campsites around the Byron Bay area. Stealth camping is also harshly penalized in the entire Byron Shire. This includes all roadways, parks and reserves. Mainly due to the fact that the town was once over run with people doing just that, and it got out of hand.
It might be a good time to pay for a campsite to take a good shower. I’ve known people that camped at the local rest area off the highway, but it’s pretty noisy and not exactly legal.
Day 5: Byron Bay to Springbrook National Park, QLD
Drive time: One hour and a half
Time to exit NSW and head to (possibly) bright times in Queensland—which is known as the sunshine state. This is due to its tropical, warm, sunny climate.
This lag of the journey is the first introduction to Queensland’s national parks, with Springbrook National Park. This park boasts what Queensland is known so well for, including waterfalls, rainforests, reptiles and other tropical anomalies.
On a limited amount of time, get a good view of the park by doing the Purling Brook Falls and Warringa Pool Walking Track (which can be done as a complete circuit). And if you’ve never seen them, there’s glow worms in the Natural Bridge cave, however the worms can be seen throughout the trail—not just in the cave.
Check out my post about the Purling Brook Falls and Warringa Pool and my full guide on visiting Springbrook National Park.
Free Campsites
Again, there’s no free campsites around Springbrook National Park or near Gold Coast. While in the area, I stayed at Mt Nimmel Lodge, it’s a family-run campsite in the woods.
It has great amenities and is a well-maintained campground. Although it’s called a lodge, there’s an area for camping as well as renting cabins. There’s both a full kitchen and a barbecue available for use, as well as covered picnic areas. Despite this site running at A$15 a person, they consider it a budget campground. It gets full on long weekends quick, so make sure to call ahead during busy times.
Day 6: Springbrook National Park to Brisbane
Drive time: One hour and a half
Finishing up the road trip from Sydney to Brisbane, this drive is a short one. It’s a good day to stop in and visit Gold Coast, the city is mainly known for surfing and partying. So if that’s not your vibe, keep going.
Brisbane is sincerely underrated. There may not as much to do there as there is in Sydney, but it’s a good place to visit for a few days. South Bank is a good walking point to see the area. In the summer it has a free public swimming pool throughout multiple areas. There’s a small park area with wild goannas and a Nepalese pagoda. And, there’s a picturesque walkway covered in bright pink flowers.
Next to the parklands is a few ferries (some which are free), they go across the water. Pedestrians can also cycle, scoot or walk across the Victoria Bridge towards Brisbane’s Central Business District.
Close to the bridge, still on the South Bank side is the Queensland Art Gallery, which features modern and Aboriginal artwork. The art gallery has daily free walking tours to get acquainted with the gallery. It’s possible to forget about time in the art gallery.
On the other end of the bridge, Reddacliff Place is where one of the Brisbane City Markets takes place on Wednesdays. The market features local artisan food booths, produce stands, and the best ever macadamia stand.
For more road trips, including what to do, see and where to camp, check out Brisbane to Cairns heading north. And for heading south, check out Melbourne to Sydney the coastal route, and inland.
