📍13 Best Beaches Near Bundaberg For Swimming & Snorkelling At This Australia Day. (2024.)

Bargara.

One of the most beautiful places in Bundaberg is Bargara, a gorgeous coastal town northwest of the regional city. It’s such a beautiful and established place it is essentially a destination in itself, providing plenty of seaside fun, including some of the best beaches between Gladstone and Hervey Bay.

1. Bargara Beach.

As the name suggests, Bargara Beach is the town’s foremost swimming spot and the closest one to Bundaberg.

Walking or driving along the esplanade, you’ll notice the coastline covered in black rocks, which doesn’t make a good swimming experience. But a fraction south of the picturesque township is a clearing. That’s the beautiful Bargara Beach, and it’s a lovely place to enjoy a frolic in the ocean while exploring the stunning coastal area.

2. Neilsons Beach.

At the northernmost end of Bargara lies Neilsons Beach, one of the most popular beaches in Bundaberg for swimming. That is because it is one of only three places along this stretch of coastline that have lifeguards seasonally patrolling it during the warmer months, making it especially beloved for those looking for a safe ocean bathing experience.

Better yet, it sits directly opposite the Big 4 Breeze Holiday Park, making it a favourite for different types of holidaymakers looking for an affordable holiday by the sea.

3. Kelly’s Beach.

Kelly’s Beach is another much-loved swimming location in Bargara.

The lovely stretch of sand lies just south of the tiny township and has a more natural setting, with densely foliaged sand dunes separating the beachside from the road.

It’s another family favourite as it is the only other place in Bargara patrolled during the hotter months by lifeguards and the second of three along the Bundaberg coastline, making it a fantastic spot for all levels of swimmers to enjoy splashing around in the ocean.

4. Archies Beach.

For a more isolated beachside swim in Bargara, Archies Beach is a beautiful unpatrolled stretch of coastline just south of Kelly’s Beach.

More of a local haunt than anything else, this place is also great for family get-togethers as it has plenty of space to enjoy a range of beachside activities such as flying a kite or throwing a frisbee, or playing sports such as beach cricket or volleyball in addition to the regular things to do like building sandcastles and boogie boarding.

It’s great for surfing and hydrofoiling surfing. And when the wind is whipping up, it’s also ideal for more adventurous watersports such as wing surfing and para surfing, making it perfect for beachgoers of every kind.

Burrum Coast National Park.

A detour from the back road to the picturesque country town of Childers leads you to Woodgate and the entrance to Burrum Coast National Park, a beautiful coastal reserve home to more Bundaberg’s best beaches.

9. Woodgate Beach.

Woodgate Beach runs the entire length of the national park from north of the Kinkuna section camping area to the Burrum Point Camping Area at the edge of the Burrum River. That’s a considerable distance of 17km, meaning there’s plenty of space to find a little slice of paradise to enjoy yourself.

Pick an easy access place in front of the town, or embark on a leisurely walk past where the urban areas end and the national park begins to a place where there’s little foot traffic and you’re only accompaniment is the ambient sounds of the waves crashing, the breeze blowing, the birds chirping and your feet making the only human imprints in the sand.

Alternatively, If you have a 4WD you can reach the camping areas and even drive along the beach without needing a permit. There’s also the option of boating to a secluded spot.

10. Theodolite Creek.

One of the best beaches in Bundaberg is undoubtedly Theodolite Creek in Burrum Coast National Park. This spectacular waterway is perhaps the most beloved in the region, and certainly one of my favourite places and it’s easy to see why.

It’s gorgeous, pristine, isolated, shallow and sheltered. All these things make it an exceptional wild swimming hole, especially for families with kids, as it’s protected from the waves allowing them to safely do all sorts of beachside activities such as swimming, building sand castles, chilling on pool floaties, sliding around on skip boards and more.

The creek is also an excellent place to explore by boat, kayak or stand-up paddleboard. I loved paddling the north corner where the untouched sands and the flock of pied oystercatchers made me feel like I had stepped back in time to an era before human civilisation, which was incredible/ And when the tidal flats and their intricate patterns revealed themselves at low tide, they too, are were awe-inspiring to see.

Great Barrier Reef.

Something that not many people know about Bundaberg is that the ocean off its coastline forms the southernmost reaches of the Great Barrier Reef, the most expansive coral reef system in the world!

It’s well known that anything part of that collective ecosystem has incredible snorkelling opportunities. And that is the case with Lady Elliot Island and Lady Musgrave Island, the two spectacular islands accessible from Bundaberg.

12. Lady Elliot Island.

Lady Elliot Island is the Great Barrier Reef’s southernmost island and the most developed one, featuring a beautiful eco-resort, lighthouse and more. But you don’t need to stay overnight to discover the incredible marine life that lives off the shore of this spectacular Bundaberg beach.

The eco-resort also offers all-inclusive day tours to the island, including a glass bottom boat and snorkelling experience to see all kinds of coral formations and marine animals, such as majestic sea turtles, friendly reef sharks and giant groupers and schools of colourful fish.

While expensive, it’s an incredible opportunity and well worth every penny because it’ll leave you with unforgettable memories. I did it for my birthday one year, and it was one of the highlights of my Bundaberg trip. Oh, and did I mention that all-inclusive means scenic flights to and from the island and all meals, equipment, tours and amenities? It’s a very sweet deal and well worth the cost!

13. Lady Musgrave Island.

Much further north in the Coral Sea, Lady Musgrave Island is the second southernmost island in the Great Barrier Reef that also has outstanding snorkelling opportunities but unlike Lady Elliot, it is a much smaller, pristine and virtually untouched coral cay.

But you can still visit the wilderness heaven and the spectacular coral reef with a day tour with the Lady Musgrave Experience. However, that’s not the one I recommend.

The best thing I did, by far, during my Bundaberg trip was camping on the island for a week. There’s very little on the island, so it’s a self-sufficient endeavour where there’s virtually nothing except toilets, and you have to take everything yourself.

If you depart from Bundaberg (other companies depart from Gladstone and 1770), you still have to join the Lady Musgrave Experience to take you there, but once they drop you off, the island is yours to do as you will. (I very much don’t recommend them, but at the same time, it’s the only way to get there from Bundy, and the overt rudeness of many of their crew to what seems to be exclusively campers is thankfully vastly overshadowed by how spectacular camping there is.)

On land, thousands upon thousands of birds call the island home. Beware, you will get shat on! But that’s a small price to pay for getting to have a holiday in a National Geographic documentary.

And that extends underwater because the marine ecosystem there is spectacular, and there are much better opportunities to snorkel with myriads of incredible aquatic animals, such as friendly sea turtles, imposing grey nurse sharks and all sorts of different fish species, making it a magnificent wilderness adventure you’ll never forget. It’s seriously one of the greatest things I’ve ever done. And if you’re a diver, there are enormous manta rays to feel microscopic against, making Lady Musgrave Island Bundaberg’s best snorkelling beach by far.