Think of Byron as your typical hippie beach town, except everyone is trying a little too hard. To be honest, my sister and I loved Byron Bay. We were there in March of 2024, the weather was beautiful, the water was like swimming in bath water and you’re expected to have your toggs (swimsuit) on 99% of the time.
We stayed in two hostels while we were there. One being Vali Byron Bay, probably one of our favourite hostels while traveling up the East coast, which by the looks of it, I think they have either closed down or have turned into The Drifter Byron Bay. This is about $60aud/night for a 10 bed mixed dorm. And the second hostel was Arts Factory Lodge by Nomads, about a 20minute walk to the main road, Jonson St. The cheapest dorm is about $38aud/night for a 6 bed mixed dorm – not too bad. I think this is where we saw the most amount of tye dye in our lives and we thought the check in came with poi ball spinning class.
Let this be a warning, this town is expensive mostly because when you visit no one wants to leave, so if you do decide to move there, getting a job is one thing but finding a place to rent… Well best of luck to you my friend.
What to do in Byron
Sunrise hike to the Cape Byron lighthouse (Free)
We signed up through our hostel for the sunrise hike to the Cape Byron Lighthouse. You can absolutely do this on your own, but we just thought it would be a nice way to meet and chat with other backpackers.
From our hostel in the town centre, the hike was 3.5km and took around 45 minutes to 1 hour. There is also a section where you stand in the most eastern part of Australia, which we thought was pretty cool. With the hike you get spectacular views of the sun rising over the ocean. Well worth it
The Wreck (Free)
Since both my sister and I packed our snorkel masks and we spent most days on the beach, we were in the water a lot. One day we stumbled across The Wreck This was located about 30 or so meters offshore. If you’re a strong swimmer it’s absolutely beautiful, at one point we even spotted three turtles in and around the wreck. Now do not pay for this! We also met two girls who told us they paid to go on a tour and I feel like they were scammed, maybe it included the equipment, but honestly, you don’t need to pay for it. If you don’t have your own mask, rent one from a local shop and go explore on your own.
Dueling Piano bar ($20 admission + drinks)
If you’re looking for a fun night out, this is it. The Northern Hotel has dueling pianos every Thursday – Saturday they have fantastic pianists that play together and will play your requested song- you just have to either tip or think of a creative way to give it to them. For example, my sister wrote her requested song on a piece of paper and I said if she wanted the song played she should give it to one of the pianists with it in between her lips. We were a little tipsy at this point, but hey it worked!
Day trip to Nimbin ($50-$99)
This might not be for everyone, but if you’re into a cheeky joint (or if you just like the vibe) this might be a great day trip for you. If you don’t already know, Nimbin is often described as Australia’s weed capital, even though cannabis hasn’t been legalized recreationally nationwide.
We decided to take the Happy Coach hippie bus, the driver even introduced herself as “Princess Fiona.”
The drive itself is about 1hr &15 min one way and they drop you off in Nimbin at a candle factory. She gave us a quick tour but honestly, the candles were nothing special and felt a little overpriced in my opinion. One of the main things that Princess Fiona told us was to be careful: if you ever hear the word “TAXI”, you should put anything“illegal” you may have bought away. Locals use it as a code word to signal that police are around.
If you plan right, you might be able to catch Nimbin’s “Mardi Grass” festival, an annual event about legalizing cannabis in Australia. It is usually held on a weekend in May and features tons of events, from fastest, most artistic, and rolling in the dark joint competitions, to a parade/ protest/ rally and of course live music. Mardi Grass entry tickets go for about $30. Have fun, be safe, you stoner.