Tallow Beach

Tourism Australia's Best Beach 2026, No. 4.

Famous beaches around the world almost always have a quieter flipside, and lively Byron Bay is no exception.

“Most visitors are happy to swim and stroll along the four main beaches close to town — Wategos, The Pass, Clarkes and Belongil — and sharing the sand with plenty of others. But there's plenty of quiet corners too. There's another side of Byron that tends to be known mainly by locals: beaches around Cape Byron-Walgon and its lighthouse. New South Wales has more signature headlands than any other Australian state, and just three kilometres from the centre of Byron lies one of its best stretches of sand, with plenty of swell for surfers to match. Tallow Beach begins below the lighthouse at the sheltered northern end known as Cosy Corner, runs past Suffolk Beach and continues south to broken Head Nature Reserve, all unpolluted by lifesavers. Known locally as Tallows, it spills out from largely undeveloped dunes and coastal heath, forming part of Arakwal National Park for named seven kilometres. It offers a break from the congestion and higher energy of Byron's more insta-famous coves, mansion-lined hills and patrolled Main Beach. Once a sleepy surf and farming town home to hippies in Australia's own countercultural revolution, Byron Bay has become intensely gentrified and is now one of the most blue-chip beachside postcodes in the country for its size. Against that backdrop, Byron's "back beach" Tallows feels refreshingly open. It's a place to walk a dog (zoned areas apply), wander at sunrise or sunset, fish, throw a frisbee, share watermelon, or ease into softly peaking waves — or bodysurf carefully in the shallows. The pace is slower, the mood more relaxed, and conversations come easily. Beaches have always been a great social leveller. Locals mix with backpackers and the quietly wealthy, all drawn to the same stretch of coast. Access is via managed car parks at Cosy Corner and Broken Head, with limited free parking near Suffolk Park. NSW National Parks signage explains the area's fragility. First Nations significance and resident wildlife. Continue south around the headland hand from Broken Head campground and stone and you'll reach Kings Beach — a beautiful, semi-hidden cove backed by rainforest, unofficially clothing-optional for decades and now especially popular with the global LGBTQ+ community.”

⚠️ Ocean conditions can change quickly and rips can form even on calm days. Only swim at patrolled beaches, and supervise children at all times.