Visiting Hervey Bay outside of whale season? Here is our list of 10 things to do in Hervey Bay when the famous whales aren’t around.
An introduction to Hervey Bay
Hervey Bay is a string of small coastal towns on Queensland’s Fraser Coast. The region is about a three and a half-hour drive from Brisbane, or a short one hour flight. Best known as a haven for whales on their journey up from Antarctica to the tropics in the winter months, this spot has so much more to offer than just these giant cetaceans!
Each year, from around July – November, humpback whales pass by the region on their journey up north along Australia’s east coast. They travel from Antarctica to the tropics to breed and give birth. The majority of towns along the east coast are graced with their presence, but the humpback whales in Hervey Bay are special! The new whale mums and their babies are known to actually stop in for a few days on their way back down to Antarctica. They relax and play in the sheltered waters of the Great Sandy Strait, making it a great spot to see them up close, before continuing on their journey south.
But if your visit is not timed during the whale season, there are plenty of other great things to do in this seaside gem, even when the whales aren’t around!
Things to do in Hervey Bay
Now that we call ourselves Queensland locals, we are on a mission to see as much of this beautiful state as possible! Our latest adventure was a weekend camping in Hervey Bay. We are so excited to venture back up to Hervey Bay during whale season to witness these giants of the ocean first-hand. But we were keen to check out Hervey Bay even without the whales present, and it was a great spot for a relaxing weekend camping! In our typical budget fashion, most of the things we did were cheap (or free!). So without further adieu, here is our list of 10 things to do in Hervey Bay – when it’s not whale season!
1. Go camping
Hervey Bay has been dubbed the caravan capital of Australia, and for good reason! The bay is absolutely jam-packed with caravan parks and campgrounds. Although technically ‘accommodation’, we think camping is an activity in itself, and a cheap one at that! We bought our dog Stanley with us, so we needed to opt for a pet-friendly park. Luckily this wasn’t hard to find, and we stayed at Discovery Parks – Fraser Street. We had a powered site, and may as well have been glamping the facilities were so nice! We were close by to a camp kitchen, the bathrooms were clean, and the showers hot. There was even a pool which I spent an afternoon floating in! The park itself is beautiful, with a big lake in the middle of it that was full of turtles. Three nights set us back $144.
If you are travelling sans dog, there is another chain of caravan parks that have literal beachfront sites! Fraser Coast Beachfront Tourist Parks have three different parks on the waterfront in Hervey Bay at Torquay, Scarness and Pialba. As soon as we saw them we knew that was where we would be staying next time! Without Stanley (sorry Stan).
2. Catch a sunrise
Nature puts on a free show for us every single morning, and Hervey Bay is blessed with some beautiful sunrises. Although the bay is on Australia’s east coast, it doesn’t face directly east. We found a good east-facing vantage point at Shelly Beach in Torquay to watch the sunrise. And we were treated to fairy floss skies that lit up all around us! It was the perfect way to start the day, and there were already plenty of locals up and about swimming in the bay, running and rowing. Urangan Pier would be another great spot to watch the sunrise if you’re up for an early start.
3. Have a coffee (or cocktail) at Enzo’s on The Beach
I think we visited Enzo’s at least three times during our three-day visit. This cafe/restaurant/bar is called Enzo’s on The Beach for a reason. It is literally on the sand, and there is absolutely nothing interrupting your view across the beach and into the bay. I don’t know why but it always feels like such a novelty to have your feet in the sand while having a drink, and Enzo’s did not disappoint! They had beanbags and low lounges on the sand, and we felt like we were sitting in a Bali beach club! They’re open early for coffee, and late for cocktails and either option won’t set you back too much.
4. Walk (or cycle) along The Esplanade
The Esplanade (also known as the Charlton Esplanade) is a 17km path around Hervey Bay. This walking/cycling path follows the coastline, and passes through all the towns from Urangan at one end, down to Point Vernon at the other. There are BBQs, parks, beach access points, shops and restaurants lining The Esplanade. And chances are you will end up on a portion of this trail at some point during your time in Hervey Bay.
We walked the stretch from Torquay to Scarness a couple of times, and there are parts of the path that turned into a boardwalk through a shady forest which was just gorgeous. Next time we’re in town without Stanley, we would love to hire a bike and ride the whole length of the trail. Hervey Bay Bike Hire rent traditional bicycles for just $15 for 4 hours – bargain!
5. See the sunset from Gatakers Bay
It’s no secret that we are obsessed with sunsets! Most of our days revolve around what time the sun will set, and where the best vantage point will be. Finding a westerly position isn’t always easy on Australia’s east coast, but Gatakers Bay in Point Vernon was the perfect spot! We brought along our picnic rug and some wine and watched the big flaming ball drop out of the sky below the horizon over the ocean. Hervey Bay really does get some gorgeous sunrise and sunsets, and it is well worth scheduling some time to sit down and enjoy one. All for the cost of a cheap bottle of red!
6. Walk along Urangan Pier
This epically large pier is almost a kilometre long, at 868 metres and is well worth a visit if you’re in Hervey Bay! It actually used to be longer, at 1,107 metres back in its heyday. The pier used to be used as a cargo pier for exports like sugar before part of it (239 metres to be exact!) was demolished. But luckily the locals rallied for the remaining part to be kept and restored. We wandered down on a beautiful sunny day and kept our eyes on the water. We were able to spot schools of fish, a ray gliding by, some sea birds duck diving and even a dolphin playing around! The water is so calm and blue, and we got some great shots from above on the drone. Cost? Free!
7. Explore the local markets
Every Wednesday and Saturday the Urangan Pier Park fills up with market stalls. Selling everything from fresh produce to handicrafts and hot food. The markets were great to wander through, and they had some awesome live music happening too. We grabbed a bite to eat (some mouthwatering salt and pepper calamari) and listened along for a while. The Urangan Pier Park Markets run from 7 am to 1 pm every Wednesday and Saturday.
8. Hit the beach
I’m not a big fan of waves, and when I go to the beach I want to float around in calm waters. Hervey Bay is the perfect spot for this! Nearby Fraser Island shelters the bay, meaning the waters are really calm, and there aren’t too many waves. There are kilometres of sand to choose from if you want to hit the beach. We settled for an afternoon on Shelly Beach near Torquay and it was a lovely relaxing few hours.
9. Rent a SUP or kayak
This is something we sadly didn’t do, as we were unorganised and the rental place had closed for the day by the time we got there. But, those calm waters are not just great for swimming! Kayaking or SUP’ing in the bay looked so relaxing, and with no waves to battle against it would be a great place for first-timers to learn. You can rent a SUP or kayak from Fraserjet, which is located next to another beachfront cafe, Aquavue. SUP rentals are $25 an hour, and kayaks are $20 for a single or $35 for a double. We will definitely be doing this next time!
10. Visit the Arkarra Lagoons
Another thing we didn’t do (we really couldn’t tear ourselves away from the beach on this trip!) was a visit to the Arkarra Lagoons. These gardens and wetlands feature several lagoons and look like a beautiful spot to wander around. The Arkarra Gardens Cafe is the on-site restaurant, and you can enjoy a cuppa or a meal in a gorgeous Bali-style hut in the gardens. You had me at Bali hut, and this is a must-visit for us next time!
Things to do in Hervey Bay: complete
We had a lovely, slow relaxing weekend in Hervey Bay. It is the perfect spot to chill out. With a combination of great things to do, without being too much that you don’t get to relax at all! We are really really looking forward to getting back up here during whale season. We will definitely be heading out on one of the many whale watching tours.
Have you visited the Hervey Bay before? Did you do any of these activities? If you haven’t been yet, which would be at the top of your bucket list? Let us know in the comments below!
