A surfer checks out the waves at Brunswick Heads

Brunswick Heads
Peaceful and pleasant holiday location on the Brunswick River estuary.
Located 797 km north of Sydney at the mouth of the Brunswick River, Brunswick Heads is a charming mixture of quiet holiday retreat and large commercial fishing fleet. Given that many of the towns in the immediate area, most notably Byron Bay, have in recent years attracted large numbers of holiday makers and alternative life stylers, Brunswick Heads has remained remarkably immune from the changes in the area. The town is simple and unassuming. There is an ambience of peacefulness and an easy sense of holiday making which pervades this quiet town.

Prior to European settlement the area around Brunswick Heads was inhabited by the Banjalang Aborigines. In 1828 Captain Rous discovered the Brunswick River which he named after Queen Caroline of Brunswick who was the wife of King George IV. Cedar cutters moved into the area in the 1840s and by the 1850s and 1860s the area was being settled and timber was being shipped out through the Brunswick River. The mouth of the river was always dangerous with the bar being both shallow and narrow.

Surfing at Brunswick Heads

One of the first settlers was a cedar cutter named Steven King who moved to the Brunswick River area in the late 1840s. Such was the richness of the timber cutting that by the 1870s there were nearly 100 cedar cutters working in the hinterland. Around this time a pilot station was established at the mouth of the river to help the timber barges to navigate across the bar.

The town's importance diminished dramatically with the arrival of the Sydney to Brisbane railway line in the late 1880s. The residents had hoped the railway line would pass through Brunswick Heads. Instead it was routed through Mullumbimby. Since then the town has continued to develop slowly. Its major economic activities are tourism and its fishing fleet.

The town has managed to maintain its integrity in an area where developers are always eager to turn everything into a profit making venture. The Brunswick River is a still a peaceful haven, the local pub retains a simple rustic charm and there is a sense that the other places on the coast have been overdeveloped by comparison.

Things to see:  

Low tide leaves pleasure craft high and dry in Simpsons Creek

Holiday Activities
Brunswick Heads is a popular fishing, surfing and swimming holiday destination. There is an interesting quasi-pirate ship located in the river near the main beach. Near the pirate ship both canoes and paddle boats can be hired.

Brunswick Heads Nature Reserve
When you cross the Brunswick River (if coming from the south) take the first right which leads through the alluvial sands of Brunswick Heads Nature Reserve. This piece of sub-tropical rainforest is an interesting combination of mangroves and rainforest habitat both of which sustain a rich variety of birdlife.

	Motels
	Chalet Motel Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1257 Facsimile: (02) 6685 1257 Rating: ***1/2
	Harbour Lodge Motel 6 Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1851 Facsimile: (02) 6685 1089 Rating: ***
	Heidelberg Holiday Inn The Terrace Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1808 Facsimile: (02) 6685 1673 Rating: **1/2
	Hotels
	Brunswick Hotel Mullumbimbi St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1236 Rating: *
	Apartments
	Beach View Holiday Apartments 14 South Beach St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1206 Rating: **
	Breakwater Villa Holiday Apartments 4 South Beach St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1206 Rating: **
	Brunswick Lodge Holiday Apartments 9 Mullumbimbi St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1322 Rating: **
	Pacific View Holiday Apartments Mona St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1322 Facsimile: (02) 6685 1016 Rating: **
	Holiday Homes & Units
	The Breakers at Bruns 32 Fingal St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1010 or 0418 647 322
	Cottages & Cabins
	Tree Tops Cabins & Flats Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1242
	Caravan Parks
	Ferry Reserve Caravan Park Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1872 Facsimile: (02) 6685 0135 Rating: ***
	Massey Greene Caravan Park Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1329 Facsimile: (02) 6685 0139 Rating: ***
	Terrace Caravan Park The Terrace Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1233 Facsimile: (02) 6685 0071 Rating: ***
	Restaurants
	Billies Thai Restaurant Shop 8/ 1 Wilfred St Billinudgel Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6680 3352
	Blue Water Grill Mullumbimbi St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1236
	Far East Oriental Restaurant 15 Tweed St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1674
	Pacific Bistro Brunswick Heads Bowling Club Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1853
	Papa's Seafood Vegetarian Restaurant Cafe 26 Mullumbimbi St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 0222
	Pizza Shop Pacific Hwy Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1755
	Thyme By The River 2 The Terrace Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1808
	Torakina Mullumbimbi St 2 The Terrace Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1785
	Cafés
	Crocadillia Cafe 33 Broadway St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6677 1287
	Dominic's Italian Cafe Fingal St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1688
	Happy Dolphin Cafe 8 The Terrace Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 1355
	Pippi's Cafe River St New Brighton Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6680 3368
	Pogels Wood Cafe Lot 1, Federal Dve Federal Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6688 4121
	Sunrays Cafe 2 Park St Brunswick Heads NSW 2483 Telephone: (02) 6685 0113