Accessible Beach In Alban PlaceTown Beach

Town Beach is the closest surf beach to Port Macquarie’s town centre. It features wide sandy shores popular with surfers and families, and is backed by a large skate park, playground and beachfront kiosks. The northern end of Town Beach is part of a landscaped park (Town Beach Park) with shaded picnic areas, playground equipment and a kiosk. A painted breakwall promenade connects Town Beach to the Port Macquarie CBD – as the council notes, you can “walk along the footpath to connect you to the Port Macquarie CBD and the outlying beaches”. This paved, level pathway is lined with café and picnic spots, making it easy to access the beach and nearby amenities on foot or in a wheelchair.

Accessibility and Amenities

Beach wheelchairs: Port Macquarie Council provides free “Sandcruiser” beach wheelchairs for hire at Town Beach (and three other patrolled beaches) during lifeguard hours. These large-wheeled chairs let users reach the waterline on sand. Borrowing a Sandcruiser is free, but you must book it (either via the surf club lifeguards or in advance by calling the Beach Safety Service at 0422 312 940). Beach wheelchairs require at least one or two assistants to push through soft sand – council guidelines warn that the sand can be hard to navigate without helpers.

Flat access paths: A paved promenade (the breakwall path) runs from the riverfront Town Green all the way to Town Beach. This pathway is flat and gently sloping, with wide ramps and surface suitable for wheelchairs, scooters or prams. Along the way are cafes, picnic tables and rest spots. In particular, this path provides wheelchair-friendly ramps down to the beachfront areas and the grassy park above the sand. (Wheelchair users note that the ramp at the river end is particularly gentle.) Because the whole route is level, prams and strollers can also move easily between the town center and Town Beach.

Accessible play and toilets: The playground at Town Beach Park includes a Liberty Swing that is designed for wheelchair users. (This swing requires a Master Locksmith Access Key (MLAK) to use – keys can be borrowed from the kiosk adjacent to the playground.) Near the playground there are public toilets – one of these is a wheelchair-friendly, MLAK-operated accessible toilet. (Other men’s and women’s restrooms also have enlarged stalls for ease of access.) The park’s facilities (toilets, picnic tables and kiosk) are all on a firm surface or boardwalk, so wheelchairs and prams can reach them without obstruction.

Nearby amenities: Town Beach Park provides car parking and picnic shelters close to the sand. There is a beachside café kiosk in the park, and the popular Salty Crew Kiosk sits right on the beachfront. The Salty Crew kiosk is easily reached by the promenade and has level access from the path. Overall, paved parking and drop-off zones are available along Stewart Street at the park, and from there it’s a short, level rollout to the beach area. Shaded picnic lawns and benches in the park are also fully accessible.