Walks & Nature
From a 20-minute boardwalk to Shelly Beach, all the way to the full 10km Scenic Walkway. Manly is one of the great walking towns of Sydney, and you barely need a car.
Manly's geography is a gift to walkers. A narrow isthmus, a sandstone headland on either side, and protected reserves that have kept the bush right up against the beach. You can knock off a 20-minute boardwalk before lunch, or take on a half-day epic out to the Spit. Bring water, a hat, and reef-safe sunscreen.
Sydney's signature harbourside walk and arguably the best half-day you'll have in the city. Sandstone cliffs, hidden coves like Forty Baskets and Reef Beach, the Aboriginal middens and engravings at Dobroyd Head, and panoramic city views from Tania Park before you drop down to the Spit Bridge bus stop. Catch the 144 bus back to Manly when you're done. Bring 2L of water and decent shoes — there's no shop after Clontarf.
Flat, paved, pram and wheelchair friendly, and the most photographed stretch in town. You'll pass the Art Deco rock pools at Fairy Bower, the bronze 'Oceanides' sculptures rising out of the surf, then the boardwalk hugs the cliff line into Shelly — the only east-facing beach on the Sydney coast and the calmest swim around for miles. Coffee at Bower Restaurant on the way back is non-negotiable.
An eco-sensitive marine reserve between Manly and Shelly that's been a no-take zone since 2002. Mask up to swim with grey nurse sharks (harmless, honest), wobbegongs, blue gropers, weedy sea dragons and the odd green turtle. Best entry is off the Shelly Beach sand at the southern end of the bay. Calm conditions only — check the swell on Willyweather first.
A former military and quarantine site now run by the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust. Echidnas, the only mainland little penguin colony in NSW, and 180° views from Fairfax Lookout across the harbour mouth to the open Pacific. The Bella Vista loop (3 km) is the easy win; the full Native Heath circuit takes in the old gun emplacements and Q Station.
The lesser-known northern sibling of the Spit walk. Up the cliff stairs at Queenscliff, past the dramatic Freshwater headland (and Duke Kahanamoku's surf statue), then along the cliff tops to South Curl Curl with the open Pacific the whole way. End it with a swim in the Curl Curl rock pool and the bus back from Pittwater Road.
If you only do one short walk in Manly, do this. A flat clifftop loop ending at three lookouts that, on a clear day, take in everything from South Head to the city to the Blue Mountains. Sunrise here is properly memorable. Drive or grab the 161 bus from Manly Wharf.