When planning out the final days of our Australia itinerary, we were deciding between a few different options: an overnight trip to the Blue Mountains, wine tasting in Hunter Valley, or spending a night near Avalon and exploring Sydney’s northern beaches. They all seemed fine, but I thought we could find something else that was even more exciting.
Luckily, I somehow came across this blog post about Hyams Beach and immediately thought to myself, “Yes! I want to go to there!” I showed the gorgeous beach pics to Aaron, and he was on board right away as well. Jervis Bay was the perfect destination for our quick getaway from Sydney.
Jervis Bay, where your biggest worry will be choosing a favorite beach
Since we got a bit of a late start on planning and it was right before Christmas, most of the accommodation in the area was already booked up. Had it been available we probably would have stayed at The Huskisson, but we settled for an Airbnb room in Sanctuary Point that worked out just fine.
Our Airbnb host told us to park there, I swear!
The towns in the area are a bit spread out, so we were glad that we hired our own rental car in Sydney* rather than taking a shuttle from the airport. Without traffic, the drive between the Sydney airport and Jervis Bay should take about 2 1/2 hours, but we made stops in Gerringong and Berry along the way.
Quick stop in Gerringong
Jervis Bay is famous for dolphin and whale tours, beautiful camping sites, and sprawling national parks. Both nature-lovers and beach bums alike love it there, and for good reason. I actually did a day trip to Jervis Bay back in 2005 as well, but we had dreary weather and the only thing I remember about it was collecting shells on a pretty but gloomy beach. We may have done a dolphin boat tour as well, the memories are very blurry. Little did I know, Jervis Bay is home to some of the most stunning beaches I’ve ever seen anywhere. What a difference good weather makes!
Deep thoughts in Jervis Bay
We only spent one night in Jervis Bay, but we made the most of our time there and attempted to visit as many beaches as possible. One of the best ways to accomplish that is by doing the beautiful White Sands Walk. Although it was impossible to choose a favorite, our top five beaches in Jervis Bay were:
- Hyams Beach
- Hole in the Wall
- Cave Beach
- Greenfield Beach
- Blenheim Beach
Hole in the Wall
Hole in the Wall
Blenheim Beach
“Hi, Mom!” at Hyams Beach
Cave Beach
Selfie at Greenfield Beach
There’s a large Coles supermarket in Vincentia, but we decided to go out for all of our meals since we were only there for a short amount of time. We recommend:
- Breakfast at Huskisson “Husky” Bakery & Cafe
- Coffee at Supply Jervis Bay
- Lunch at Hyams Beach Cafe & Store
- Dinner and live music at The Waterhouse Jervis Bay
- Snack on the way back to Sydney at The Famous Berry Donut Van
Hyams Beach Cafe
We were so happy with our decision to spend one night in Jervis Bay. If you’re looking for a quick overnight trip from Sydney, definitely check it out!
* Quick note about renting cars in Australia. If you reserve a car for 9:00 am during the holidays, you need to actually pick up your car at that time. Otherwise, as we unfortunately found out, they will rent your car to someone else!
Peonies to Palm Trees 