Our favourite dog beaches in New South Wales

Sunny weekend with nothing planned? Pack the car and make a beeline for the coast.

New South Wales has some of the best beaches in Australia and so many of them are pooch-friendly year round. Here’s a round up of some of our favourite dog beaches to explore.

Top Sydney Dog Beaches

North Harbour Reserve, Balgowlah

If you’ve ever taken on the Manly to Spit Bridge walk on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, you’ll already be familiar with the absolute dog haven that is North Harbour Reserve in the suburb of Balgowlah. It’s an open, off-leash park where dogs can splash, swim and chase balls to their heart’s content. There’s even a poop station with bags and bins provided, but it’s always a good idea to bring your own just in case.

Silver Beach, Kurnell

Located in the Sutherland Shire with views of Botany Bay, Silver Beach is a great spot for dog owners living south of the city. Dogs are allowed off-leash at the western end of the beach in front of the Bonna Point Reserve car park. A boardwalk leads you down to a long strip of bright white sand with a roped-off swimming area for pet owners to cool off while their pups run amok.

Rowland Reserve, Bayview

Known to locals as the Bayview Dog Park, this off-leash dog park is one of the most popular in Sydney. The main reason – there’s no restrictions on when dogs can visit! While many other dog friendly beaches near Sydney allocate certain hours to dog visitation, Bayview Dog Park is an all-day fun park for pets. The beach is located on Pittwater, and when the tide is low, sand bars emerge from below the surface and provide even more terrain for adventurous dogs to explore.

More dog beaches in New South Wales

North Shelly Beach, Central Coast

The entire stretch between Shelly Beach Surf Club to Toowoon Bay is a dog friendly paradise, and it’s a social outing indeed. As one of the few off-leash beaches on the Central Coast, it’s not untrue to say that every man and their dog make their way to this stretch of sand every now and again. When the swell picks up, the waves can test even the strongest of four-legged swimmers, but there’s plenty of protected rock pools and inlets to explore as well.

Belongil Beach, Bryon Bay

Byron Bay is one of NSW’s most popular getaway destinations, and with more and more Aussie opting for road trips over flying, now you can take your beloved pooch to hang 10 at some of Byron’s best beaches. Laidback Belongil Beach is perfect for an afternoon stroll on the sand. To explore even further, the local council has created a map of the area’s dog friendly beaches and reserves (https://www.byron-bay.com/maps/dogmap.html).

Burrill Lake, Shoalhaven

Just south of Ulladulla, this little known slice of paradise is way too often overlooked by travellers making their way along the South Coast. It’s a “blink and you’ll miss it” type beach with a long winding inlet where the lake meets the sea. Here, dogs can swim and even give stand up paddleboarding a go with rentals available from the holiday park perched on the river mouth.

How to get to your NSW destination

Rex Airlines flies into 17 different regional cities throughout New South Wales from both Sydney and Melbourne. See the map below for details on how to travel to your destination in NSW and book your flight here.