Best Beaches in Newcastle: Merewether, Nobby's and the Coast Walk

Newcastle's coastline has a chain of surf beaches stretching from Nobbys Beach at the river mouth south through Newcastle Beach, Bar Beach and Dixon Park to the expansive Merewether Beach, the city's largest. Most are patrolled by surf lifesaving clubs in season, with flags marking the recommended swimming zones. Linking them is the Bathers Way, a clifftop and foreshore walk between Nobbys Beach and Merewether that passes two heritage ocean pools, the Newcastle Ocean Baths and the Merewether Ocean Baths, as well as the Memorial Walk on the Strzelecki headland above Bar Beach. Newcastle Beach sits at the CBD end of the walk and is easily reached by the Newcastle Light Rail and bus. The full walk takes about two to three hours return at a leisurely pace; you can also start at either end for a shorter stretch. North of the harbour, Stockton Beach runs on to the Stockton Bight sand dunes, which NSW National Parks describes as one of the largest moving coastal sand dunes in the Southern Hemisphere.