Exploring BIG4 Easts Beach Holiday Park and beyond

White sandy beaches, a beautiful green mountain backdrop and charming seaside and rural villages. The South Coast of NSW between Kiama and Berry is the perfect place to relax and unwind.

Located just a few kilometres from the centre of Kiama, at the edge of the golden sands and pristine waters of Easts Beach, BIG4 Easts Beach Kiama has so much for families, it’s hard to know where to start.

There’s the two-level Sunny’s Aquaventure Park with two waterslides and a giant tipping bucket; an ocean-themed splash pad with loads of interactive features; plus a shaded water journey for babies and toddlers.

The partially shaded sun-lounge area is great for parents to relax while the kids splash. The pool complex has two swimming areas, a heated lounge pool with a children’s play area, plus a large main pool with two lap lanes and a disability ramp.

There’s also a fully-fenced jumping pillow surrounded by sand with a shade structure. It’s loads of fun for the young and young-at-heart, so mum and dad are encouraged to bounce about, too. A range of fun activities are available at the Krazy Kidz Club on weekends and during the NSW school holidays, such as cooking classes to learn how to whip up Mars Bar balls, a Crunchie slice and Malteser fudge, plus craft activities including slime making, sand art, foil art and scratch art.

For the explorers in the family, the 14-hectare park offers extensive walking and bike-riding opportunities, while budding anglers can fish in Munna Munnora Creek, which flows through the park.

BIG4 Easts Beach Holiday Park started life as a dairy farm, with passersby asking permission to camp in the paddock with the cows and spend a few days by the water. It didn’t take long for the owners to realise a winning idea and, and over hundred years later, the descendants of the East family are still running the park. While it has grown in leaps and bounds since its humble beginnings, this beachfront paradise retains the same Easts Beach family charm

Exploring from the park

If your kids your kids love the outdoors take them for a walk up the stairs on the northern end of Easts Beach, and around the headland to the Little Blowhole. While not as spectacular as its big brother below the lighthouse in town, locals say it is more consistent in mild conditions, so at least the kids should see a water spray or two on their visit.

The return walk to BIG4 Easts Beach takes less than an hour. The kids will love all the wildflowers blooming, the volcanic rock formations around the Little Blowhole and potentially spotting dolphins swimming off the coast.

Kiama

Kiama is an easy 90 min drive from Sydney if you head straight down the Princes Highway, or a little longer if you choose the scenic Grand Pacific Drive along the coast starting in the Royal National Park (Wattamolla Beach is a must-do picnic stop if you have time for a swim) and cruising through the coastal villages and towns including Port Kembla, Shoalhaven, Shellharbour and, of course, Wollongong.

Such is the ease of the trip if taking the highway that you can finish work at 5pm on a Friday and be sipping a cool beverage on the porch of your cabin by 7.30pm, staring out at the ocean as the last rays of sunshine strike the water before the sun sinks behind the green mountain backdrop. This was our plan and it worked a treat, even finding time to call into Red Rooster in the main street of Kiama and pick up a barbecue chook, chips and salad for our dinner on the way through – we love not having to cook on the first night.

Kiama has everything you’ll need including supermarkets, restaurants and plenty of specialty shops, so there is no need to pack a lot in the way of food (or gear, the cabins have a fully equipped kitchen each, and for tent campers, there is a fantastic communal camp kitchen with barbecues, a fridge and all the basics). The centre of town is only a few minutes drive from the holiday park, so it’s no problem to duck into town every day if you need to.

Read: The best things to do in Kiama with kids

Berry

The drive from Kiama to Berry is roughly 25 kilometres and will take you less than half-an-hour. The main street of Berry is filled with a mix of beautiful heritage-listed buildings and barn-style shopfronts with an eclectic mix of wares, anything from decorations to handmade timber furniture. There is also a wonderful children’s toy store off the main road.

Tucked down back streets is The Treat Factory & Dairy Bar, home to a fine selection of handmade chocolates, homemade sauces and jams. A great way to finish up any trip to Berry is a milkshake at the Berry Ice Creamery, and a dozen cinnamon doughnuts from the famous Berry Donut Van, although, for our young brood, this totally spoiled an attempt a couple of hours later to sit down to a proper dinner. C’est la vie – on holidays, sometimes you let the regular rules take a break as well.

This article originally appeared in Caravan & Camping with Kids magazine. To subscribe to the latest issue, click here.

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