Sydney to Kiama family flashpacking
The coast south of Sydney offers many cycling options for all kinds of bike riders. There is good mountain biking within the Royal National Park and the Illawarra, popular road cycling routes through the Royal National Park and some scenic bike paths along the Illawarra coast.
The Stanwell Park to Kiama bike route is an amazing beginners multi day bike adventure! It’s suitable for all ages and accessible from Sydney, by train or car. There are lots of activities along the way, some options for making the route longer or shorter, and plenty of good food and accommodation options.
Ride facts:
| Total distance: | 82km |
| Number of days: | 1-2 days |
| Type of trail: | Mostly bike paths, some quiet roads |
| Difficulty level: | Easy |
| Highlights: | Stunning beaches and headlands all along the way, the amazing Sea Cliff Bridge (between Coalcliff and Clifton), Kiama’s blowholes. |
Planning:
The first step is deciding on how may km’s you’d like to tackle in a day. This will depend on your group’s fitness and ability levels. The route is fairly flat but there are some up and down sections.
The first part from Stanwell Park to Thirroul mostly follows Lawrence Hargrave Drive with the bike path disappearing in some sections. There is also an occasional car parked across the path, forcing a detour on to the road. This makes this a bit more challenging with young children. If you have very young children you may choose to start in Thirroul or Austinmer instead of Stanwell Park.
Once you reach Thirroul the bike path leaves Lawrence Hargrave Drive and, except for a small section through quiet streets at the south end of Thirroul beach, follows bike paths all the way to Wollongong.
From Wollongong to Kiama there are some great bike paths and only short sections on quiet roads. There are some lovely coastal views especially in Minnamurra and the rock formations just before Kiama.
This ride is not a circular route but you can take the train back to your car or back home at the end of your ride. The ride also follows a train route most of the way so there are options for hopping on a train if needed.
What we did:
Day 1: Stanwell Park to Wollongong, 35km
Our plan was to reach the start of the ride at Stanwell Park on the train but we arrived at the train station to find that the trains had been replaced by buses! It’s always important to check this! Especially considering the thought of replacement buses had crossed my mind at some point on the preceding few days. Lesson learnt! We sent two people by bus (they would never have accepted 6 bikes!) and the rest went by car. We met at the start of the bike path which is just down the hill from the train station in Stanwell Park.
The bike path follows Lawrence Hargrave Drive until you reach Thirroul, including a section over the Sea Cliff Bridge between Coalcliff and Clifton. There are some excellent café’s and restaurants and we stopped for lunch at the Scarborough Hotel which has a lovely garden overlooking the ocean. We continued on from there, passing beaches and headlands, until we reached Bellambi Point where the path heads inland along the west side of the Bellambi Recreation Area. The path skirts around Corrimal Beach Tourist Park, then back to the coast at Towradgi Beach, and on to Wollongong.
We stayed at Boat Harbour Motel which was perfect for our needs. It’s situated close to Wollongong harbour and some rooms have harbour views. We were close enough to walk over to the beach for a swim, there were dinner options within walking distance and there was a café under the hotel serving breakfast in the morning. The friendly hotel staff allowed us to keep our bikes in their function room overnight.
Day 2: Wollongong to Kiama, 47km
Leaving the hotel in the morning we headed out to Flagstaff Point Lighthouse in Wollongong before following the bike path south, close to the beach. The path then heads west along Bank Street and then Corrimal Street and Springhill Road to Port Kembla. We stopped for morning tea at the café at Breakwater Battery. We then continued past Port Kembla’s beaches then inland towards Lake Illawarra. The bike path follows the main road here until you cross the Windang bridge at the inlet (Tom Thumb Entrance) where you can go under the bridge and back towards the beach. We actually had some rain during this ride and sheltered under the bridge for a while before heading to a café at Wanilla Beach for lunch.
After lunch we continued south, around Barrack Point and on to Shellharbour. Due to some building work in Shellharbour we had to check maps and detour, but hopefully this work will be finished soon. In Minnamurra there are some lovely coastal sections of path, with great views. The path stays close to the coast, passing the lovely rock formations of Cathedral Rocks, until you reach Kiama.
Kiama is a lovely seaside town with great beaches, ocean pools and blow holes. If you time your visit well, the Kiama markets are worth a visit on the third Sunday of every month.