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PORT MACQUARIE
Ideally situated at the mouth of the Hastings River and the blue Pacific Ocean, Port Macquarie is a water lovers paradise. Fifteen pristine beaches, most of them patrolled, line the coast from Port Macquarie south to the Camden Haven. Enjoy the coastal walks, surfing, sail boarding, swimming, fishing, whale watching, and even camel rides. Many beaches feature barbecue facilities and playgrounds.
The European settlement of Port Macquarie was established in 1821, three years after John Oxley reached the region by trekking down the Hastings River from the New England area. It is one of the oldest penal settlements outside of Sydney. Many early structures still stand today, along with a range of museums and interpretive centres, ideally suited to the history buff.
Today, with a population of over 40,000 people, Port Macquarie is the regional centre for the area.
You will be impressed by the range of accommodation, the pubs, clubs and shops and the diversity of places to wine and dine, including several award winning restaurants.
Facts and Figures
Greater Port Macquarie is located midway between Sydney and Brisbane on the North Coast of NSW. It is only 260 km north of Newcastle, 420 km from Sydney and 510 km from Brisbane.
Geography: From the mouth of the Hastings and Camden Haven Rivers west to the Great Dividing Range with a coastline of 84kms. Total area is 3,739sqkms. The topography of the area is very diverse ranging from sand dunes, coastal wetlands, flood plains and mountain regions.
Climate: Temperature range is 7-27°C.The area enjoys the best climate in Australia, with the maximum daytime temperature not going above 30 degrees C or below 15 degrees C.
Major Towns/Suburbs: Port Macquarie, Wauchope, Laurieton, North Haven, Dunbogan, Comboyne, Kendall, Kew, Bonny Hills, Lake Cathie.
Transport Access: Air, rail, interstate and local coach services.
Surrounding Areas: Kempsey, Taree, Tamworth
Population: There were an estimated 71,407 persons residing in the Greater Port Macquarie region in 2006, an increase of 1.0% from the population level in 2005. The estimated resident population was greater than the number of persons counted in the region at the 2006 Census night (and therefore missing those persons not completing the Census) and is considered the more accurate measure of a region’s population. Over the past five years, the population of the Greater Port Macquarie region has been growing at an average rate of 1.8% per annum, significantly higher than the growth rate for both the Mid-North Coast (1.1%) and New South Wales (0.9%) over the same period.
Business and Industry
Greater Port Macquarie is perfectly located along the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, only 260km north of Newcastle, 420km from Sydney and 510km from Brisbane.
As well as being a thriving centre of tourism for many years, Port Macquarie is a mature, long-established community with regional centre status. This status comes from its broadly based public and private business sectors coupled with a dynamic retail and commercial district.
Holidays are only one reason people come to Greater Port Macquarie from all over the eastern states of Australia. Large numbers are also recognising the excellent lifestyle and business opportunities - the same advantages you will find detailed on the Port Macquarie Hastings Council website.
As a clean, green, friendly place to do business and make your home, Greater Port Macquarie is Just What You Need!
Getting Here
By Road
From Sydney follow the Pacific Highway north. It is a 4.5 hour drive to Port Macquarie. From Brisbane, it is a 7 hour drive south. The Oxley Highway, over the Great Dividing Range, provides access from Tamworth and Western New South Wales.
For Greyhound Australia coach information and bookings:www.greyhound.com.au
For Premier Motor Service coach information and bookings:www.premierms.com.au
Rail
CountryLink operates three XPT train services daily between Sydney and the Mid North Coast and return (stopping at Wauchope station). One service is supplied with a connecting coach service from Wauchope station to Port Macquarie, and Camden Haven is accessed by Kendall station.
For further information and on line bookings: www.countrylink.com.au or call 13 22 32.
Air
Port Macquarie is serviced by regular Qantaslink, Brindabella Airlines and Virgin Blue flights. Regular services between Sydney and Port Macquarie operate daily with flying time up to one hour on QantasLink and Virgin Blue, and 1.5 hours from Brisbane on Brindabella Airlines.
For Qantaslink flight information and bookings: 13 13 13 or
For Brinadabella Airlines flight information and bookings: 1300 66 88 24 or www.brindabella-airlines.com.au
For Virgin Blue flight information and bookings: 13 6789 or www.virginblue.com.au
Ferry
Port Macquarie is serviced by two ferries linking the central business district to the North Shore, providing access to Limeburners Creek Nature Reserve, North Beach and Crescent Head via Maria River Road (gravel road) and Point Plomer Road (4WD access only).
Settlement Ferry
Located at Settlement Point Road. 21-vehicle ferry. Operates 24 hours, 7 days a week. Except 3rd Wednesday of the month, closed for maintenance between 9.30am and 3.30pm.
Hibbard Ferry
15-vehicle ferry. Located at Boundary Street off Hastings River Drive. Monday to Friday - 6.30am to 10.00am and 2.45pm to 7pm. Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays - 8am to 7pm. School Holidays - 6.30am to 7pm.
Getting Around
Buses operate from the railway station, shopping centres and most beaches, and travel to most towns and areas around the Greater Port Macquarie region. Busways is the local bus company that services the Greater Port Macquarie region. A full range of local bus timetables is available at the Greater Port Macquarie Visitor Centre or on-line at www.busways.com.au.
Car Hire
Contact one of our local Car Hire companies, 1st Class Rentals.
1st Class Rentals & Car Hire
1st Class Rentals is the best value car rental on the Mid North Coast. With vehicles ranging from economy size to people movers, 1st Class has the right vehicle at the right price. 1st Class has locations and agencies servicing Port Macquarie surrounds & Airport. 1st Class philosophy is simple “Just one LOW all inclusive price”. Many Port car rental operators offer ‘price leaders of $33 p day” only for customers to find out at time of pick up that the price excludes Vehicle Registration Recovery fees, Stamp duties, Admin fees and Excess Reduction fees. This often ends up costing you over $70 per day.
At 1st Class Rentals, there are no surprises “Just one LOW all-inclusive rate”. So for cheap car rental in Port Macquarie, BOOK 1st Class We also guarantee that we offer the best value car hire on the Mid North Coast and should you find a better deal from our competitors, we will beat it by 10%.
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Crakka Rental, Car Hire & Camper Hire....ITS A CRAKKA!
Experience a new dimension in car rental!
Hourly - Daily - Weekly - Long Term
Our Prices include -Insurance - 24/7 Roadside Service - 250km Per Day
Car Hire
If you are looking for personal service, reliability and a hassle free experience, give us a call.
We provide airport pick ups and drop off on request. An after hours service is also available by appointment. Our fleet offers a range of vehicles from 2 person budget cars up to functional people movers.
Camper Hire
If you are a camper at heart and looking to explore our beautiful region, why not hire one of our camper vehicles?
The iconic Kombi van has a double bed and is great for short stopovers.
The Crakka Camper Van will suit those who want to explore the area for a little longer. The vehicle features a dining table, which converts to a double bed, kitchen sink with pump water, Eski and cooking utensils...ITS A CRAKKA! |
Research
Economic Statistics
Port Macquarie-Hastings Council produces a document titled Snapshots. This publication provides the latest statistical information in relation to the local economy. It is an invaluable resource for business people, investors, developers and the general public. Snapshots Edition Fourteen September 2008 includes population, gross regional product, labour market, building and construction statistics, property market statistics and investment opportunities information.
Review into Tourism in New South Wales - Final Report for the Premier of NSW The Hon. Morris Iemma MP by John O'Neill AO - April 2008
The John O’Neill Report is a comprehensive review of Tourism in New South Wales including marketing, infrastructure, regulatory and planning issues. The review has received a large number of submissions from individuals, individual tourism business operators, industry associations, Regional Tourism Organisations, Local Government and NSW Government agencies.
Visitor Profile and Satisfaction (VPS) Program
In 2007 Port Macquarie-Hastings Council's Tourism section entered into a contract with Tourism Research Australia (TRA) to participate in the Visitor Profile and Satisfaction (VPS) Program. This Project has been developed by TRA in conjunction with AC Nielson. The overall objective of the VPS Program is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the profile, travel behaviours and satisfaction of visitors to Greater Port Macquarie.
Tourism Profiles for Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Regional Australia
The Tourism profiles for LGAs in regional Australia have been developed to assist regional Australia by developing individual profiles for each area. Following is the Profile for Greater Port Macquarie. The survey data has been averaged over 3 to 4 years to June 2007.
Regional Tourism Profiles 2007
Regional Tourism Profiles 2007 are now available on the Tourism Research Australia website. The newly released Profiles and related documents can be downloaded free in PDF format, please 'click' on this link to view the available reports Regional Tourism Profiles 2007.
Tourism, Community and Service Signage Policy and Guidelines
To download a copy of the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Tourism, Community and Service Signage Policy.
An Assessment of the Australian Domestic Tourism
The three reports published by Tourism Research Australia seek to understand the characteristics of domestic tourism market and the main drivers behind tourism performance.
Tourism Research Australia: Tourism Forecasts Summary
A summary of the Forecasts from the Tourism Forecasting Committee (TFC). The TFC forecast represent the most likely outcome given past trends, current information, and the impact of policy and industry changes.
To view the Forecasts Summary - Issue 1, 2008 Fact Sheets,
To view the Forecasts Summary - Issue 2, 2008 Fact Sheets,
Tourism Australia Domestic Tourism Fact Sheets
A range of brand new domestic tourism fact sheets are now available on www.tourism.australia.com
The fact sheets provide a wide range of facts and figures about Australias domestic market, including domestic travel indicators, transport and accommodation.
To view the fact sheets,
NSW Domestic Travel Snapshots
Tourism NSW produces snapshots of the NSW domestic tourism markets and trends. To access the snapshot click on the year
Year ended March 2008
National Domestic Quarterly Indicators YE March 2008
The latest National Domestic tourism research from Tourism Research Australia is now available, for Domestic Travel Indicators year ending March 2008,
Travel by Australians 2008
The National Visitor Survey (NVS) is the major source of information on the characteristics and travel patterns of domestic tourists. It measures travel for all reasons, including holiday and leisure travel, business travel and travel to visit friends and relatives. To obtain the report containing the quarterly results of the National Visitor Survey to September 2008.
Business Tourism Report
The following report provides a detailed description of the international and domestic business tourism market in NSW. International data were sourced from the International Visitor Survey (IVS) Dec 2007 and domestic data from the National Visitor Survey (NVS) December 2007, conducted by Tourism Research Australia (TRA).
Business Growing Your Business - Destination Development Toolkit
A range of useful business tools produced by Tourism NSW under Business Resources are now available.
 Surfcam Port Macquarie Town Beach
Live video images of the spectacular views overlooking town beach, the breakwall and the north shore are captured by Coastalwatch surfcam technologies. The camera is hosted by HW Boutique Motel, located at 1 Stewart Street, Port Macquarie.
The surf and weather reports for Greater Port Macquarie are updated daily on Coastalwatch by Port Macquarie Surf School.
Click the link below to visit the Coastalwatch surfcam page for Port Macquarie.
http://www.coastalwatch.com/camera/cameras_large.aspx?cam=2600&mode=windows&state=NSW
Tide Times
If you are planning to spend some time on our beautiful waterways you can check the tide times before you set out, visit http://www.tide-times.com.au/ for up to date tide times information.
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Visitor Information Centres
Greater Port Macquarie Visitor Information Centres are the best source of local knowledge and advice, ensuring you make the most of your time in our region. Our dedicated staff and volunteers can assist you with accommodation, tour and entertainment bookings. Accredited Visitor Information Centres are located at:
Port Macquarie Visitor Information Centre:
Cnr Gordon & Gore Streets, Port Macquarie
Hours of Operation:
Weekdays: 8.30am to 5.00pm
Weekends & Public Holidays: 9.00am to 4.00pm
Kew Visitor information Centre:
Pacific Highway, Kew
Hours of Operation:
April to October: 9.30am to 4.00pm
November to March: 10.00am to 4.30pm
Weekends & Public Holidays: 10.00am to 4.00pm
Information & Bookings: call 1300 303 155 (available within Australia only) or +61 02 6581 8000 or email tourism@pmhc.nsw.gov.au
We are open 7 days, 364 days of the year (not open Christmas Day). |
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