Port Macquarie, New South Wales

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Port Macquarie
New South Wales

Location of Port Macquarie in New South Wales (red)

Population:

37,696^[1]

Postcode:

2444

Elevation:

5 m

Location:

400 km from Sydney
510 km from Brisbane
19 km from Wauchope

LGA:

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council

State District:

Port Macquarie

Federal Division:

Lyne

Mean Max Temp	Mean Min Temp	Rainfall
22.2 °C ^{72 °F}	13.1 °C ^{56 °F}	1539.7 mm ^{60.6 in}

Apartments in Port Macquarie at twilight - Hollingworth Street, Westport.

Port Macquarie and surrounding suburbs.

Port Macquarie is a large town on the mid-North Coast, New South Wales, Australia, located about 450 km north of Sydney, and 510km south of Brisbane. The town is located on the coast, on the south bank of the entrance of the Hastings River. The site of Port Macquarie was first visited by Europeans in 1820 when John Oxley reached the Pacific Ocean coast from the interior after his journey to explore inland New South Wales. He named the location after the Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie. Later the town was developed, initially as a penal settlement.

1 General
2 Transport Links
3 Annual events
4 External links
5 Radio Stations
6 References

[edit] General

Much of the land used to build the town's shopping centres and other structures in recent years was originally owned by the Roman Catholic Church, who many claim are in large part responsible for the town's growth and development.

Port Macquarie has two major shopping centres are Settlement City Shopping Plaza and Port Central. The CBD features many shops and boutiques, and the likes of celebrities such as Jennifer Hawkins and Kylie Minogue have been seen strolling Horton, William and Clarence Streets.

Port Macquarie is now popular as a retirement location and popular tourist destination. It is known for its extensive pristine beaches and untouched waterways. The town is also known for its Koala population, with many tourists referring to it as the Koala Capital. Port Macquarie is also the home of the world famous Koala Hospital run by the Koala Preservation Society. The Koala Hospital cares for koalas injured through bushfire, dog attacks and collisions with vehicles.

In recent times, Port Macquarie has become more commercialised despite protest from residents; in particular the Rydges Hotel (formerly Sheraton by Four Points) built opposite the Town Green attracted much opposition. Also the Port Macquarie Post Office in Town Green was torn down to make way for a new high rise apartment block. Town Beach now also features High Rise Apartment complexes, while Residential suburbs stretch as far as Lighthouse Beach to the south, Thrumster to the West and Settlement Point to the North. Settlement Point now also features new canal development, boasting the most expensive real estate in the city. Despite this, Port Macquarie still offers little in the way of night-time entertainment beyond a handful of nightclubs. Port Macquarie is currently the home of the Ironman Australia Triathlon and hosted the event for the first time, on the 2nd of April, 2006.

[edit] Transport Links

Port Macquarie is linked by daily air services to both Sydney and Brisbane.

Road access is via the Pacific Highway, but the highway itself does not go through Port Macquarie. If approaching from the south you exit from an interchange, which provides access to Port Macquarie (via the southern suburbs) and Wauchope. If approaching from the north, you exit from a T-intersection just after entering the floodplain and crossing the Hastings River. Both are well signposted. The duplication and creation of Freeway for the Pacific Highway means travel times to the area will be dramatically reduced.

Rail access to Port Macquarie is via bus transfer from the North Coast Railway Line which stops at Wauchope (19 km inland).

[edit] Annual events

Schoolies (November)
Ironman Australia (April)
Festival of the Sun (December)
Sundowner BREAM Classic (November)

[edit] External links

[edit] Radio Stations

2MC FM 100.7 (commercial)- Originally on 531 AM. Relays popular AM shows from Sydney. At other times, plays Adult Contemporary hits.
Star FM 102.3 (commercial)- Networked with a Hot AC format.
Raw FM 87.6 (commercial) - Live from Canberra. Featuring Dance and Rave Music.
Easy Listening 531 AM (commercial)- Originally 2MC's frequency.
Triple J 96.3 FM
Radio National 97.1 FM
ABC Mid North Coast 756 AM/95.5 FM
ABC Classic FM 98.7 FM
Racing Radio 92.7 FM
Rhema FM 99.9 (Christian)
2-Way FM 103.9 (Community)