Tea Gardens · Port Stephens · NSW

Tea Gardens & Hawks Nest

River, beach, bush, and a town that hasn't been discovered yet. 2.5 hours from Sydney.

The House The Place The Wildlife

Bennetts Beach

Port Stephens from above —
two beaches, one peninsula

Bennetts faces the open ocean with proper surf and some of the clearest water on the NSW coast. Jimmys sits sheltered on the other side — flat, calm, perfect for kids.

Aerial view of Jimmys Beach and Bennetts Beach peninsula, Port Stephens NSW
Sunrise at Bennetts Beach, Port Stephens with Broughton Island silhouette
Emerald green wave breaking at Bennetts Beach with Broughton Island beyond
Turquoise surf breaking at Bennetts Beach, Port Stephens NSW
Driftwood sculpture on the white sand of Bennetts Beach, Tea Gardens
Bennetts Beach at low tide with morning sunlight, Hawks Nest NSW
View from Bennetts Beach surf club across Port Stephens to the islands
Bennetts Beach on a busy summer afternoon, Hawks Nest NSW

Two beaches for the price of one. Walk to the surf. Walk back to the shallows. Decide which you prefer. Come back tomorrow and do it again.

Jimmys Beach & Little Gibber

Calm water, white sand,
and a horse named regular

Jimmys Beach is sheltered, shallow, and beloved by families. Little Gibber is a quieter cove just beyond — the kind of place you find by accident and tell no one about.

Jimmys Beach, Hawks Nest — white sand and calm turquoise water with Port Stephens islands
Horse resting on the sand at Jimmys Beach, Hawks Nest NSW
Child playing in the shallows at Jimmys Beach, Hawks Nest NSW
Wildflowers on the dunes at Little Gibber Beach near Hawks Nest NSW
Morning low tide at Bennetts Beach, golden light on the sand, Hawks Nest

Winda Woppa

A giant sand dune,
right on the water

Out at Winda Woppa, a huge white sand dune rises straight out of the clear green water of Port Stephens. It's great fun for all ages: climb to the top, slide back down, and cool off in the shallows at the bottom. Walk there, or pull the boat up on the sand and spend the afternoon.

The giant white sand dune at Winda Woppa rising behind the beach, seen from the green water of Port Stephens near Tea Gardens
Kids and adults sliding down the Winda Woppa sand dune, with a boat pulled up on the sand below

Mungo Brush & Myall Lakes

The dunes go on
further than you think

Myall Lakes National Park sits on your doorstep. The Mungo Brush sand dunes are unlike anything else in NSW — ancient, vast, and almost entirely empty.

Person sitting alone on the vast white sand dunes of Mungo Brush, Myall Lakes National Park NSW

Tea Gardens hasn't been discovered yet. That's either the best-kept secret on the NSW coast, or the most honest thing we can say about it.

Tea Gardens

The town, the ferry,
the wall that explains everything

A bakery, a pub, a ferry to the bay, and a café wall with the best local guide you'll ever read. Add sweet Myall River prawns in season (September to March) and Sydney rock oysters farmed just around the corner in Karuah. That's Tea Gardens. It's enough.

Hand-drawn local guide wall at a Tea Gardens café listing things to see and do
The Tea Gardens ferry on the Myall River, ready to cross to Hawks Nest
Fresh Karuah Sydney rock oysters and a chilled white wine on a sunny balcony overlooking Port Stephens
Wetlands and grasses reflected in still water under a clear blue sky near Tea Gardens

Ready to be here?

Drift sleeps 12 guests (up to 16), welcomes dogs, and books direct — no platform fees.

Check Availability See Inside the House