Find a marine gemstone.

Marine Discovery Centre Hastings Point is a great way to explore the region’s marine wonderland. The Marine Discovery Centre, Hastings Point, allows you to take a deeper dive into the aquatic wonderland of the area through interactive, audiovisual, and more traditional displays. Our beaches, dunes, reefs, rocky coasts, and wallum heathland will never be taken for granted.

Eat at the Pandanus Cafe

Pandanus Cafe is a family-owned restaurant located at the Cabarita Surf Life Saving Club, just 10 minutes away from the Discovery Centre. The Pandanus Cafe offers international cuisine (the famous seafood pie is a top pick), with an emphasis on using local ingredients. You can also enjoy views of breaching humpbacks. Try their signature cocktail, the Soft Rock Sour. It contains whiskey, lime, aquafaba, and pineapple juice.

Discover the Tweed’s Heritage

The Tweed Regional Museum will take you back to the past. The Tweed Shire Museum contains more than 15,000 historical items, as well as stories and information about the Tweed Shire community. Land Life Culture, an award-winning exhibition, is located at the Murwillumbah Branch. It includes an animated video showing 25 million years in geology since the Wollumbin Mt Warning eruption, as well as videos telling cultural stories by Bundjalung nation members.

Then, eat at Mavis’s Kitchen.

Enjoy a delicious meal at Mavis’s Kitchen after a walk around the organic gardens and orchards on this 10-hectare estate at the foothills of Wollumbin Mount Warning. The light-filled dining room opens onto the wraparound verandahs. Seasonal menus are based on local, sustainable products. (Do you have a dog with you? You can take the food to a tree that provides shade and eat there. The 15-minute drive to Murwillumbah is well worth it for the delicious dishes like Drake Creek duck, Jerusalem artichoke, and tamarillo, as well as the idyllic setting.

Enjoy art on the Ocean.

Mist Gallery is located just across the street from the magical Cabarrita Beach. Helen Otway, an artist from Tweed, established the studio to showcase local artists’ work. She now displays pieces not only from the Tweed but also all over Australia. There are paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and much more. If you’re lucky, you might be able to take part in an art workshop. Recent offerings include the Drawing from the Heart Series and a Watercolour Workshop.

Eat at…Paper Daisy

Halcyon House is a former surf hotel that was transformed into one of the most beautiful boutique hotels along the East Coast. It also houses the equally stunning hatted restaurant Paper Daisy. The executive chef Jason Barratt, who was previously at Attica, serves sophisticated simplicity, such as kingfish cooked in local kelp with sweet corn and smoked onion, all in a style that celebrates Cabarita Beach.

Enjoy Art with a View

The Tweed Region Gallery & Margaret Olley Arts Centre is a stunning architectural building that houses the gallery. It is hard to choose between the breathtaking art and the picturesque views of the Tweed Valley. The Margaret Olley Centre is located in the gallery and features work by Australian artists such as Ben Quilty and Nicholas Harding. It also houses a recreation of legendary Australian artist Olley’s home studio. The impressive exhibition calendar includes 25 new exhibits in 2021.

Then, eat at Tweed River House.

The Tweed House is just three minutes away, a grand homestead dating back to the early 1900s that overlooks the Wollumbin ranges and hinterland. Try the seafood chowder made with local cuttlefish and Ballina pipis. Also, the mussels, fish, and vanilla creme brulee, which uses Davidson’s Plums from Buck’s Farm. Enjoy a memorable afternoon by dining on the terrace and watching the river flow.

Visit a local arts district to meet artists.

Why limit yourself to one art experience when there are so many others available? The Arts Precinct is home to 28 small creative businesses. Visit a micro-gallery to buy flowers or art supplies. You can also watch artists in action, purchase arts and crafts, and have a picture frame. Before we even get to the food…

Arts Precinct

Arts Precinct has you covered. KatHarvey’s Cheese is a deli and emporium that offers what many people consider to be Australia’s best-tasting cheese toastie. Ben’s Patisserie offers croissants, French desserts, and shared plates. Bistro LIVI has fine wines and shares plates.