Discover 5 Best Things To Do in Noosa 🏖

By Roberto – (Updated Jan 23)

⏱ 4 min

If you are planning to visit the Australian East Coast like we are doing on our epic 5-weeks Sydney to Cairns road trip, Noosa has to be a stop on your journey. This town would definitely appear in a Top 3 places to visit on a trip on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland. We stayed in Noosa for 3 days and 3 nights, and it was enough time to discover what Noosa has to offer, and relax at some of its beaches with clean blue waters. 

We went to Noosa Heads from Brisbane, spending around 2 h driving. While you’ll deviate from the M1 – the main Highway from Brisbane to Cairns – it is worth the extra time. Below, find our recommendations of 5 best things to do in Noosa. Of course, there are always more things to do!

Noosa is a touristic destination, and therefore, a bit pricey. We found it a bit more upscale and expensive compared to some other holiday destinations like Byron Bay. Try to avoid going on the weekend if you don’t want to share the hikes, beaches, and parking spots with the crowd. Either way, Noosa is a peaceful paradise, where order and cleanliness are always present. 

5 Best Things To Do in Noosa

Explore Noosa´s Beaches 

Noosa Heads contains Noosa National Park, which has several beaches, all of them with quality, blue water. The main and largest beach, Noosa Heads Main Beach, is good for families and very accessible but we recommend visiting the other small beaches.

As usual, the more difficult access a beach has, the more private it is. We loved Tea Tree Bay Beach, with some rocks and crystalline water, and Little Cove Beach, which is very close to Main Beach. Both are accessible through the main hike at Noosa National Park. 

Hikes in Noosa National Park 

You know we love hiking and exploring, and more when this leads you to magical spots, like waterfalls or beaches. In Noosa National Park, there are a few walks (from 1 km to 10.8 km) that bring you to some lookouts and beaches.

We did the hike that goes until Hell’s Gates lookout, (check number 4 in the map) but you can continue all the way through Alexandria Bay – a long solitary beach.  The walks are easy but remember to avoid mid-day sun, because there is no shade. Bring your water and your beach set, because probably you’ll want to stop at some of the beaches. We recommend you to! 

Another must stop in the main walk, are the Fairy Pools, two natural pools located between Dolphin’s Point Lookout and Hell’s Gates. Fairy Pools are only accessible with low tide, in certain hours of the day and very Instagrammable.

Shopping on Hastings Street

It’s impossible to miss Hastings St, the busiest street in Noosa. This street has restaurants, cafes, multiple stores and boutiques. It was difficult for Ellen to avoid the clothes stands, with their coral and beachy colors… If you have some money to spend or just want a souvenir, you have a good chance at finding something along this street.

Dining in Noosa

Since we have been mostly with the camper van and in the outdoors on our road-trip, we cook simple things in the van or prepare sandwiches with fruit. Also, it is a way to save some money for the other expensive plans. We had an amazing lunch at Noosa Waterfront, an Italian restaurant with an amazing location next to the bay, and with very good service – 100% recommended. 

You’ll find an array of restaurants in or around this street. Make sure you make reservations! – the area gets really busy. 

Shop Local at the Markets 

Another way to spend a morning, is to visit some of the markets they have on the weekends. On Wednesdays, there is the Eumundi Market, 15 minutes from Noosa, with more than 500! stands. Another option, on Sundays, is the Noosa Farmers Market in Noosaville, with local food products. You can check this website with more information about the markets.

We went to the Peregian Beach Market on Sunday, which was nice, but small. This market didn’t have so many stands, and the weather was terribly hot. However, this didn’t stop Ellen from buying some gifts. 

After 3 days here, we headed our next destination, Eungella National Park, doing one stop on the way.

Before that, we camped overnight and explored the area of 1770 and Agnes Water, which we recommend… to skip 😅.

Further Reading…

If you want to see more adventures around the East Coast of Australia, check these other posts about hikes, waterfalls, random places… and enjoy as we did!