Main Beach, which runs immediately in front of town, is terrific for swimming and people-watching. At the western edge of town, Belongil Beach is clothing-optional. Clarkes Beach, at the eastern end of Main Beach is good for surfing but the best surf beaches are further along: the Pass, Watego's and Little Watego's.

Tallow Beach is an amazing stretch of beach that extends 7km(4.3mi) south of Cape Byron to a rockier stretch around Broken Head. Here a succession of small beaches dot the coast before opening onto Seven Mile Beach which goes all the way to Lennox Head.

Drive right up to the picturesque 1901 lighthouse or alternatively get some exercise and walk to the summit. If on foot, be wary of hoofing it back to town after dark, especially if alone: the terrain is isolated and you'll be dodging unseen cars on the narrow roads.

The grandfather of the 'mad, bad and dangerous to know' poet Lord Byron was a renowned navigator in the 1760s, and Captain Cook named this spot, Australia's most easterly, after him. (A star-struck clerk in Sydney thought the grandson was the one being honoured, and subsequently named the streets in the town after poets: Keats, Jonson, Shelley.) On the cape, the views are beyond perfection on all sides and the ocean is alive with schools of dolphins. Humpback whales pass nearby during their northern (Jun-Jul) and southern (Sep- Nov) migrations. Keep your peepers especially peeled: there's a whale they call Migaloo that's been known to be fond of Byron waters. He's the only known all-white humpback whale in the world.