Palm Beach and Barrenjoey Lighthouse

Palm Beach sits at the very end of Sydney's Northern Beaches, on a narrow peninsula with the Pacific on one side and the sheltered waters of Pittwater on the other, and it is the most beautiful beach day trip from the city. It is also the most exclusive: the hillsides are lined with holiday houses of the rich and famous, and the beach is known around the world as the setting of the television soap Home and Away. The best reason to come, though, is the walk to Barrenjoey Lighthouse at the northern tip of the headland. Built in 1881 from sandstone quarried on the spot, it stands 91 metres above the sea, and from the top you look down on the full length of Palm Beach, across Broken Bay to the Central Coast and over the waterways of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. There are two ways up from the Governor Phillip Park car park. The main access trail is about a kilometre each way and takes around thirty minutes, moderately steep; the Smugglers Track is shorter and steeper, built by customs officers around 1850 to watch for smugglers landing goods in the bay. The lighthouse, oil room and keepers' cottages are unpainted in their original stone, and you can walk around them freely; to see inside, join one of the guided tours that run on most Sundays. Back at sea level, swim in the ocean pool at the southern end of the beach or between the flags, then cross to the Pittwater side for calm water, boats and a long lunch.

Context: the headland is Garigal Country, and Barrenjoey has long been a landmark for anyone travelling by sea along this coast. The lighthouse was built because Broken Bay was a busy entrance for coastal shipping, and the customs station that preceded it was established to stop smuggling into the bay. Today the headland is part of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, which also protects significant Aboriginal rock engravings elsewhere in the park. On the Pittwater side, ferries run from Palm Beach wharf across the water, and seaplanes land in the bay, which is one way the very wealthy arrive for lunch.

How to do it well: go on a weekday if you can, and arrive in the morning to get a parking spot near Governor Phillip Park. Walk up to the lighthouse first while it is cooler; the climb is short but steep and fully exposed, so take water and a hat, and avoid it in strong winds, heavy rain or extreme heat. If you want to see inside the tower, plan for a Sunday tour. Afterwards, swim at the beach or the ocean pool, eat on the Pittwater side, and, if you have time, take a ferry across to the quieter villages on the far shore.

Practicals and fit: there is no vehicle access to the lighthouse, and parking at Governor Phillip Park and around Palm Beach is paid. By public transport, allow about an hour and a half or more from the city by bus via the Northern Beaches, so make a day of it. The beach is patrolled in season; swim between the flags. Park entry fees apply to vehicles in other parts of Ku-ring-gai Chase, but the lighthouse page notes street parking charges rather than park fees at this location, so check before you go. It suits couples, beach lovers and families with children who can manage the climb.