A locals’ guide to summer in Port Lincoln
Summer is here! What makes an Australian summer great ?! Sunshine, ocean swims, local seafood (chuck another prawn on the barbie?), coastal adventures and outback fun (...to mention a few). What makes a Port Lincoln and Eyre Peninsula summer great ?! Native bushland that stretches undisturbed from east to west, hundreds of kilometers of untouched coastline, enough seafood to last multiple lifetimes, crystal blue oceans, white sandy beaches, and plenty of history, adventure and fun to go with it.
I’m going to share with you THE best way to spend your summer in Port Lincoln and the Eyre Peninsula.
Whether you’re looking for food, fun or relaxation - it’s all here, and you won’t miss a beat. You can opt to join us on an all-inclusive tour to see and experience it all, or grab an Electric Mountain Bike and experience it for yourself - two wheels and a whole network of trails, cafes, views, coast and bushland. Port Lincoln for your summer this year, why not?!
Things to Do in Port Lincoln - Sun, Sand, Sea, Surf
If you’re totally into beaches, sand dunes, coastline, fishing and seafood...we have all the options for getting your summer fix (actually, year round). And if you’re into getting out on the ocean in a boat, we can help you there too...
The great Southern Ocean borders the edge of our coast down here in South Australia. Being so far away from the ‘big city life’, you’ll often find yourself to be the only person on multiple miles of sandy beach bordered by protective cliffs or sloping sand hills - remote beaches and solo swims, something you would never ever (ever!) see on the more ‘popularised’ and populated coasts of Australia. There are beaches for wading, paddling, surfing, and gazing - sand hills for sand boarding, 4WDing, having fun on foot, and the perfect photo opportunities.
The ocean down here is not only cold (we like to use the word ‘fresh’...) but it is FULL of wildlife - and home to native species found no where else in the world. You could head to the beach for a casual swim, and end up spotting schools of Salmon being rounded up by pods of dolphins, Australian Sea Lions (found only in South Australia and Southern Western Australia!) and Long Nosed Fur Seals frollicking in the surf, soaring Osprey and Eagles, flittering Terns, Oystercatchers and Cormorants, and most likely a flock of Pacific or Silver Gulls along the shoreline or floating overhead somewhere. The water is so fresh and clear that you’ll be gazing at hues of blue, as far as the eyes can see.
If you’re wanting to up the ante a little, and get out on the water and into the ocean with some our our iconic marine species - you could opt for a day out snorkelling with Australian Sea Lions, or cage diving with Great White Sharks. Port Lincoln is the only location in Australia that you can dive with Great White Sharks (and only one of few around the world!), and one of 3 places in all of Australia (and the world!) that you can swim with Australina Seal Lions. You could spend a day or two touring the best of the Port Lincoln and Coffin Bay areas, and then join a snorkelling or cage diving tour the next!
Australian nature and wildlife in Port Lincoln
Summer is all about getting out and about, being outside and in nature, and hanging out with family and friends. As well as beach visits, you can bush walk, 4WD through the National Parks, and hang out with our classic native Aussie wildlife.
Just take a hop, skip, and a jump away from Port Lincoln town...and you’ll find native Mallee bushland, sand dunes dotted with Samphire, salt lakes edged with Paper-bark trees, cliffs rounded with Nitre-bush, and beaches lined with Coastal Pigface. Not only that, but the animals making homes in these beautiful landscapes are just as spectacular as the views are of our ocean and natural landscapes. Of course, no Aussie beach break would be complete without our classic native Australian wildlife. You can find three of our most iconic Aussie native animals right here on the Lower Eyre Peninsula - the kangaroo (Western Gray Kangaroo), Koala, and the majestic Emu (read more about these quirky animals here). Imagine exploring through the sand dunes of the Lincoln National park and groups of hopping kangaroos meandering their way through the scrub, families of Emu wandering their way across the road as you roll through Coffin Bay Park, and Koalas so close that you could literally reach out and pat them (but sorry, it's not actually a petting zoo)...and also way too many to count too.
On the Lower Eyre Peninsula we have hundreds of square kilometers of National Parks, within 45 minutes of each other, and just 10 minutes out of town! There’s so much untouched native Australian bushland ready for you to go walking, hiking, picnicking, exploring, driving, swimming, and camping. If you’re totally keen to get out and see all the nature that Port Lincoln and the Lower Eyre Peninsula has to offer, and get off the beaten track to discover raw and remote places that you’ll need a little more local knowledge to get to...join us out here this summer!
Port Lincoln Seafood indulgence
Nothing like a 'prawn on the barbie', am I right?!
Port Lincoln holds the largest fishing fleet in the entire Southern Hemisphere. Now that’s really something to boast about. Everything from Spencer Gulf King Prawns, Boston Bay Mussels, Coffin Bay Oysters, Yellow Tail Kingfish, Black and Green Lipped Abalone, Crayfish, Southern Blue Fin Tuna, Shark, and then good old King George Whiting, Calamari, and all the other regulars you see at the fish-n-chip shop.
On our seafood tours you not only get to eat the seafood (yep, probably the most important part), but you get to experience and learn all about the history, how they catch and process and market the seafood, and also enjoy the product straight from the water or straight from the market on the same day that it was collected. Because of our incredibly clean and fresh oceans down here in the South, this creates an incredibly fresh and clean seafood product. Not only this, but each fishery industry is monitored closely by the authorities to ensure that sustainability and ethical harvest remains. There’s not a whole lot more I need to say to convince you that we have the best of the best seafood in the world (yep, I went there…). Enough said.
Not into guided tours? Take an Electric Mountain Bike and DIY
Not interested in hearing and seeing it all from a local’s perspective? No worries, you can take it at your own pace and hire our Electric Mountain Bikes - the perfect way to cruise around town, along our popular Parnkalla and Investigator Trails and even head out into the National Park. You could spend hours, and days on all the trails that are on offer. Imagine this; bike stop #1 Boston Bean Coffee, stop #2 wander the front street and foreshore of Port Lincoln, before stop #3 heading out along the trails all the way out to Proper Bay, and maybe even Lincoln National Park. The day is yours to enjoy at your own pace
You can hire our bikes for a few hours, or even a few days - head here for all the details.
Get in contact with our epic team, to discuss your summer beach holiday with us this year.
Not only go to the beach - but stay at the beach!
Want to experience a beach holiday AT the beach? Stay in our beach house - your own private beachfront accommodation.
