Get ya Hippie on | Discover Nimbin On A Quirky Nimbin Tour From Byron Bay

Are you wanting to hippie out on a Nimbin tour from Byron Bay? Or are you just wondering ”Is Nimbin worth visiting?” This blog post is going to tell you all about the hippie village of Nimbin in New South Wales, Australia so that even if you want to go by yourself, you can see whether it is worth your time. I will also include the things to do in Nimbin and information about the Happy coach ( a company running a Nimbin tour from Byron Bay).

This blog post is all about Nimbin and the Happy Coach, a Nimbin tour from Byron Bay.

Nimbin’s location:

Nimbin is a small village located in New South Wales in Australia. It lies approximately 70km West of Byron Bay in the hinterland and 30km North of Lismore.

It takes approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes to drive to Nimbin from Byron Bay. Nimbin is quite small, so if you were daytripping from Byron Bay, you could combine it with either a waterfall (Killen Falls is where we went – see below for more information) or you could stop at some of the other small hinterland town such as Mullumbimby or Bangalow. They are pleasant little towns to wander, grab a coffee and see hinterland life before continuing the drive towards Nimbin. Markets are really popular in this area, so check local websites and information boards for up to date information about when the markets are on in this area, as if you are lucky enough to travel on market day, be sure to take a pitstop there and sample the local goods. Check out this link for more information on market dates.

Another small town which you could visit is Channon. If travelling at the weekend, be sure to stop at Channon Craft Market. This market operates the 2^nd Sunday of every month and is one not to be missed. It can have over 250 craft stalls and is one of the most popular markets in the region! 

[Related Post: If you are staying in and around Byron Bay – don’t forget to check out Crystal Castle – Read all about it here]

Why is Nimbin famous?

Nimbin is often known as one of Australia’s most famous hippie towns, and an alternative lifestyle capital. In the past, not much happened in Nimbin, it was a village surrounded by a dairy and timber industry.  However, in 1973, an Aquarius Festival was held there and thousands of Australian students came to Nimbin for the event. After the festival, many hippies stayed in Nimbin and continued living an alternative lifestyle there and have never left.

Things to do in Nimbin:

Nimbin is a small village, however, some of my top recommendations of things to do in Nimbin are:

• Visit the candle factory and watch a candle being made
• Discover the bright intriguing street art
• Try some of the delicious local eateries
• Go shopping and explore colourful art, crystals, and eclectic clothing
• Visit the H.E.M.P Embassy and learn about what the Embassy is doing to advocate for legal change to cannabis laws.

See further down this post for more information about these things to do in Nimbin.

Happy Coach: The Nimbin tour from Byron Bay:

Now for the part about my experience with the Happy Coach who are a Nimbin tour from Byron Bay with a twist. They pick you up from a central location in Byron Bay or they can pick you up directly from your Byron Bay hostel at around 10am in a hippied out bus! Now it isn’t every day you get to travel like this!

It seems to attract to a younger crowd, mainly backpackers who have bought the tour through their hostel. However, it is also possible to buy directly on the Happy Coach’s website.

The day I went, there were around 13 of us, so a reasonable nice size for a day tour. The tour itself, is more of just a transport option for those who do not have their own vehicle. The driver doesn’t really tell you much about the places we visit, just the odd fact here and there, but gives you a set time at each place to go and explore.

I found this great, as it gave you freedom to go off and explore what you are interested in instead of having to follow a guide who was controlling what you see. So, if you are someone who is looking for a tour with a lot of information, this tour might not be for you. However, if you are just looking for a transport option to be able to get to and from Nimbin from Byron Bay, then this Nimbin tour from Byron Bay may be for you.

The First Stop: Killen Falls:

The first stop we made was to Killen Falls, a waterfall 24km away from Byron Bay which takes approximately 30 minutes to get to. The driver dropped us off and gave us some time to walk down to the viewing platform or down to the waterfall itself.

The viewing platform is only around a 660 metres return walk from the car park, and is on a fairly flat track making it accessible for most people.

The walk down to the waterfall itself is around 1km return, but is a grade 3 track as at the bottom it is a bit uneven and steep so it may not be suitable for everyone. Once at the bottom of the falls, you can walk across the uneven stones to the waterfall, swim and relax.

Personally, I didn’t go swimming as we didn’t have much time here, however, if you were driving yourself and exploring Killen Falls, it would be very refreshing on a hot day!

After climbing back up the path and back to the bus, we got back on the bus for stop 2 on our Nimbin tour from Byron Bay in the Happy Coach.

Stop 2: Eltham Hotel

Our next stop was around 30 minutes down the road where we made a short stop at the Eltham Hotel. The driver told us that this hotel is over 100 years old and used to be a place for mud brick builders, artists and intellectuals to meet from the little township.

We stopped here just for a drink.

Note: There is a small art gallery and coffee shop next to the hotel which has some interesting artwork in, and is worth taking a little look.

Stop 3: Nimbin Rocks

Now it was finally what we had all been waiting for, it was time for us to head to Nimbin. We made a quick stop on the side of the road to look at Nimbin Rocks (however, only from the road), which is a special place for the Bundjalung people. These rocks were once used as an initiation ground for their boys.

Stop 4: The bottom of the village:

Then we continued on into the village itself. Our first stop on our Nimbin tour from Byron Bay was at the bottom of town – the candle factory and a small  café called the Nimbin Bush Theatre Café which are both located in the Old Butter Factory down by Mulgum Creek.

Nimbin Candle Factory:

This was a great place! I first went into the Nimbin Candle Factory – it is like stepping into a rainbow! So many colours all over the place, coloured candles on shelves, on the tables, hanging from above.

The man who worked there was very friendly and chatty. He even showed us the process of how he makes the candles, dipping it into the hot wax using a water driven dipping deck. He then showed us  how he shapes the candles using a hot iron. It was really cool to see.

All their candles are made in the factory and contain no animal products, just vegetable dyes.

There was no pressure to buy at all, the staff were very happy with you just coming and taking a look around!

Be sure to check out the Australian style candles they make, such as the Platypus!

The Bush Theatre Café:

Just next door to the Candle Factory, there is a beautiful café called the Nimbin Bush Theatre Café which is right next to the creek. You can sit outside in the courtyard where there are many metal art installations hanging alongside the plants. It is a really nice space. The food here was very good, and seemed to be homemade. For those on a backpacker’s budget, the price was a little steep. Afterwards in the main village, there were some other cafes who seemed to be serving food at a lower price. However, the relaxed atmosphere down by the river was very peaceful and overall I thought it was worth the price for the quality that you got.  

Stop 5: Nimbin village:

Shopping:

After some time here, the driver took us back up the hill to the main part of the village and gave us time to walk around on our own and explore.

The village itself consists of one main colourful street, covered in bright rainbow colours and signs of weed. Most shops are selling weed related things or hippie clothing/ accessories. A very alternative place.

Be sure to see this funny sign!

Street Art:

All over the town, you will find cool street art. Here are some which I found:

A lot of the public bins have beautiful artwork on the sides of them or are just brightly coloured.

The public toilets are painted very brightly and by the side of the public toilets there are also some very brightly coloured buildings.

In the small park between Sibley Street and Cullen Street, there is a lot of small pieces of street art.

The Aboriginal Centre on Sibley Street has this beautiful exterior.

The general store also has a nice mural on it:

[Related Post: If you enjoy street art, check out my guide to street art in Byron Bay]

Eateries:

There are also a few cafes dotted around, so if you didn’t want to eat down at the Bush Theatre café, you could find something to eat in the main village.

The H.E.M.P Embassy:

Check out the H.E.M.P Embassy to see Nimbin’s views on Cannabis.

Back to Byron Bay:

After 2 hours of free time in Nimbin, it was time to get back onto the bus for our final drive back to Byron Bay. We arrived back at around 4pm.

My impressions of Nimbin:

It is a very odd place, a village stuck in time. To me, it seems like a lot of these hippy residents are pensioners now but are extremely proud of Nimbin. Drugs are very apparent there, and it is extremely likely on your visit that people will approach you trying to sell you drugs or “cookies”. However, they were very friendly and didn’t hassle you as soon as you declined.

Is Nimbin safe?

I was only in Nimbin during the daytime, but I found it to be perfectly safe and I had no problems walking around as a solo female traveller. There may be a drug influence on the village, but the residents seem very relaxed and friendly.

Is Nimbin Worth Visiting?

Overall, I would say yes. If you want to experience a very quirky and alternative town and see a very different way of life to the typical Australian towns, then Nimbin could be a good destination for you. I would highly recommend Nimbin if you enjoy street art, as there is a wide variety here and they are very colourful too.

If you had your own car, I would highly recommend combining it with somewhere else on a day trip, like Killen Falls or another hinterland town in order to pad out the day. Even though Nimbin is interesting, it is quite small, so it could be hard to pass a whole day there.

Would I Recommend using Happy Coach?:

It depends. If you are a backpacker or without your own transport, YES.

If you have your own transport, then NO. You would be better off driving yourself to allow yourself to go at your own pace.

Positives: Cool bus that adds to the hippy experience, transportation to go to see Killen Falls and Nimbin, easy to organise, they operate most days.

Negatives: The timing is a little rushed

However, it is perfect for people such as backpackers who do not have their own car, and it is great for solo travellers as a way to meet like-minded people.

Overview of a day on the Happy Coach:

1. 10am leave Byron Bay
2. Killen Falls
3. Eltham Hotel
4. Nimbin Candlemakers
5. Nimbin town
6. Back to Byron Bay 4pm.

Well, I hope this blog post has given you an insight into the Happy Coach, a Nimbin tour from Byron Bay, given you some things to do in Nimbin if you wanted to explore on your own and answered the question of “is Nimbin worth it?”.

If you do head to Nimbin, enjoy, embrace it and have fun!

Love,

This blog post was all about A Nimbin tour from Byron Bay with the Happy Coach.