How to get there: Head out of Newcastle over the Stockton Bridge and continue along Nelson Bay Road for 50 minutes. Turn right at the roundabout at Salamander sporting field and follow the signs to Nelson Bay town.
Essential items: Swimmers, towel, hat, walking shoes, 4WD.
Who should go: Family groups, friends, all ages
What to see: Gan Gan lookout just as you're coming into the suburb on Nelson Bay Road. It's a sharp turn just after the crest of the hill and the 60 kmh speed sign. Wind your way up the narrow road until you get to the top. What you discover is a 180 degree view that sweeps from Shoal Bay to Soldiers Point. Great photo stop.
What to do: Swim, eat, shop, relax.
Where to eat: Breakfast: Blue Juice, Birubi Beach Surf Club. Bacon and eggs with a beach view. Lunch: At the Point, Soldiers Point Marina. Great lunches, reasonably priced, lovely waterfront location. Check out the docked boats after your meal. Dinner: Mavericks, d'Albora Marina. The Bay waterfront's newest restaurant, with a chic vibe, serving a tapas menu or a la carte right on the marina.
Best kept secret: Tomaree Mountain looms imposingly over Shoal Bay, forming one of the unofficial gates to Port Stephens by water, dubbed "The Heads".
An easy paved-stairs walk up the mountain will reward with 360 degree views that have to be seen to be believed. What many don't realise is that through the hospital grounds is the shire's most scenic picnic spot, out on the bluff at the base of the mountain.
THE water laps lazily at the shore, a whisper of a breeze hits the trees and the sapphire blue expanse sparkles before you.
With nothing but time to mull on life's big decisions to swim or not to swim, should I have that extra scoop of gelato, do I really need another pair of shoes? this is summer in Nelson Bay.
In less than an hour's drive from Newcastle via the Stockton Bridge, all the hustle, bustle and traffic lights fade into the rear-view mirror as you take a step out of the rat race and into the aptly named blue-water wonderland.
You may as well throw away your watch because you're on "Bay time" now.
And while the boutiques and buzzing cafes are all there for the taking, it's the little-known fishing spots, beach corners and vantage points that are worth discovering.
Port Stephens Visitors Information Centre, situated between the town and the marina in Victoria Parade, has all the information on tours you need for sailing the port, scaling the sand dunes in a four-wheel-drive or discovering the desolate fishing-shack village, Tin City.
The Stockton Bight sand dune stretches 32 kilometres between Stockton and Birubi and is the largest moving land mass in the southern hemisphere.
Only 10 minutes from the centre of Nelson Bay, entry to the dunes is best from Anna Bay and you can explore by foot, quad bike, horse, camel or four-wheel-drive.
Self-drivers, be sure to get a park vehicle pass at the Anna Bay service station before you drive off road.
Nelson Bay waterfront has emerged as a restaurant hub that boasts the best view in the port. Thai, Italian, Spanish tapas and seafood restaurants abound.
But don't let all there is to see on land distract from the real appeal of the Bay its beaches.
The family friendly beach at Fly Point is found around the bay from the marina, on the other side of the Cruise Inn booking centre.
If you get tired of the water there are lively markets held on the first, third and fifth Sundays of every month in nearby Neil Carroll Park.
Further along Nelson Bay Road the village of Shoal Bay rises out of the sand and its beach is a long strip of white sand with lolling waves. The beauty of Shoal Bay beach is that it's near enough to the village shops and cafes that you don't need to pack a picnic lunch.
Port Stephens Parasailing is an adventure activity on Shoal Bay beach that offers visitors a rare view of Port Stephens. A colourful parachute is towed 100 metres into the air from a speedboat and the choice is yours to fly tandem or solo, stay dry or take a dip.
To see the day out, a cold ale and a meal at either the Shoal Bay Country Club or Port Stephens Game Fishing Club directly opposite the beach are a must.
If you want your food to come wrapped in paper then the fish and chip shops in that strip are a summer institution among locals and visitors alike.
At Fingal Bay beach, lifeguards patrol every day in summer from the new surf club just opened.
Fingal stretches from Kiddies Corner near the boat ramp to the spit, which is a great walk at low tide.
But pick your times, because the tide rises over the sandbar and many a tourist has been caught out and marooned on the island.
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