Tin Can Bay is on the coast of Australia’s mainland, just below the most Southern tip of the famous Fraser Island, a World Heritage listed site. One of the real attractions of Tin Can Bay is its relaxed country feel and of course the water and beaches. Being in a bay, the water is more protected and provides excellent conditions for boating and fishing.
Accommodation is readily available but there are a few times each year when things get a little busy. The Seafood festival in September is one of those times. We stayed at the Tin Can Bay Tourist Park. It was comfortable and very reasonably priced.
For the explorers among you there are plenty of places to visit within short driving distance. We managed to take day trips to Rainbow Beach and Maryborough and there are plenty of houseboat and charter companies operating from the marina.
There is a thriving fishing industry operating out of Tin Can Bay. Prawns, fish and spanner crabs seem to be the most sought after prizes in this area and there are also a number of fishing charter operators. I have had the fortunate opportunity to take a three day charter from Tin Can Bay on the FV Nightbeat.
Possibly the most memorable activity of the weekend, certainly for the children, was hand feeding a dolphin. If you go to Tin Can Bay with children you just have to head down to Barnacles Bait and Cafe between 7.00 and 8.00am any day of the week. The dolphins (only one turned up when we were there) normally come in at around 8.00am, but being wild animals it’s impossible to know exactly when. You can buy fish to feed them with at Barnacles for $5.00 but I would get there closer to 7.00am to buy your fish. It’s getting more and more popular and the lines can be a killer for those of us with little patience.
Tin Can Bay is a great place for a relaxing weekend that won’t cost the Earth. The locals are friendly, there are all the shopping options you will need (I think it was a Super IGA) along with some nice cafes and restaurants. Most importantly there are plenty of beaches and parks and an abundance of water.
