Macquarie Nature Reserve
Overview
Visit peaceful Macquarie Nature Reserve, where you can enjoy a family picnic and explore historic heritage at nearby Roto House Historic Site. It’s also a great place for weddings near Port Macquarie.
Read more about Macquarie Nature Reserve
Close to the heart of Port Macquarie and just a few hundred metres from the beach, Macquarie Nature Reserve offers a peaceful setting surrounded by the region’s past.
Driving up the long curving driveway, you’ll be thrown back in time as you catch glimpses of the beautiful old Roto House. The nature reserve is also an important wildlife corridor, and is home to a koala hospital. Children will love learning from the volunteers about the work of the Koala Preservation Society to rehabilitate and release sick and orphaned koalas.
It’s so picturesque here that many choose to have their wedding or special celebration in the lovely gardens. Others prefer to spend a relaxing afternoon picnicking in the shade of the large old magnolia tree near Roto House, or wandering through the extensive grounds of tall eucalypts, exotic plants and gardens.
Local alerts
For the latest updates on fires, closures and other alerts in this area, see https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/visit-a-park/parks/macquarie-nature-reserve/local-alerts
Contact
- in the North Coast region
Macquarie Nature Reserve is always open but may have to close at times due to poor weather or fire danger.
-
-
Port Macquarie office
02 6588 5555 for general enquiries only, no bookings.
Contact hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 4.30pm. - 22 Blackbutt Road, Port Macquarie NSW 2444
-
Email: npws.hastingsmacleay@environment.nsw.gov.au
-
Port Macquarie office
Visitor info
All the practical information you need to know about Macquarie Nature Reserve.
Map
Map legend
Getting there and parking
From Port Macquarie CBD:
- Head east along Gordon Street to the roundabout intersection with Lord Street
- Turn right into Lord Street and head south
- Follow the brown and white tourism signs for Historic Roto House and the Koala Hospital, turning left into Roto Place.
- Turn right into Roto House historic site
From Wauchope:
- Head east along Oxley Highway to Port Macquarie and continue along Gordon Street to the roundabout intersection with Lord Street
- Turn right into Lord Street and head south
- Follow the brown and white tourism signs for Historic Roto House and the Koala Hospital, turning left into Roto Place.
- Turn right into the Roto House historic site
By bike
Check out the Bicycle information for NSW website for more information.
By public transport
For information about public transport options, visit the NSW country transport info website.
Best times to visit
there are lots of great things waiting for you in Macquarie Nature Reserve. Here are some of the highlights.
Autumn
Autumn is a very attractive time in the park as the days grow crisper and the light becomes softer.
Spring
Visit the park in spring to see the busy birds and the magnolia in bloom.
Winter
Enjoy the cosy atmosphere of Roto House on a cold day.
Weather, temperature and rainfall
Summer temperature
Average
18°C and 27°C
Highest recorded
42.3°C
Winter temperature
Average
8°C and 19°C
Lowest recorded
0°C
Rainfall
Wettest month
February
Driest month
September
The area’s highest recorded rainfall in one day
298.2mm
Maps and downloads
Prohibited
Pets
Pets and domestic animals (other than certified assistance animals) are not permitted. Find out which regional parks allow dog walking and see the pets in parks policy for more information.
Smoking
NSW national parks are no smoking areas.
Nearby towns
Port Macquarie (2 km)
Vibrant Port Macquarie is surrounded by beautiful waterways - the Hastings River, canals, creeks, bays and the Pacific Ocean. The city also has a five-star collection of golden-sand beaches stretching from Port Macquarie Beach to Town Beach and north along the 16-km swathe of North Beach.
Wauchope (20 km)
Wauchope is great base for exploring nearby national parks that are part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area. Follow the Hastings Forest Way to Werrikimbe National Park, a rugged wilderness of outstanding beauty spread with short and long walks. Willi Willi National Park is a rainforest mountain park with three beautiful walking tracks that follow the river and lead to a sparkling waterfall.
Kempsey (51 km)
Kempsey is a historic river town close to national parks and majestic beaches. Kempsey is a convenient place for an overnight stop for anyone driving between Sydney and the North Coast.
Learn more
Macquarie Nature Reserve is a special place. Here are just some of the reasons why:
Visit historic Roto House
The distinctive feature of Macquarie Nature Reserve is the lovingly preserved Roto House, a rare surviving example of a late Victorian country house. Built for surveyor John Flynn in 1891, the house was occupied by his family right up until 1979 and was restored by the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service in the early 1980s. Walk around the rooms imagining life for the area's settlers before enjoying a picnic in the pretty grounds.
Meet the local wildlife
Surrounding Roto House and the Koala Hospital is open woodland with grassed areas, and you'll find heritage plantings dotted around the grounds. These are the remains of an orchard, vineyard, garden and exotic plantings. Look out for the large old magnolia, and its springtime fragrant white flowers, the size of a dinner dish. A gnarly mulberry bush can be seen at the southern end of the house, and large Norfolk and Bunyah pines are to the north of the house, where the Flynn family once had garden parties and played tennis with their guests. The reserve is part of a major habitat corridor for the koala and other animals native to the Port Macquarie region. Since 1975, the Koala Hospital has provided a shelter for koalas and is one of the leading koala recovery and rehabilitation centres in Australia. Other threatened species in the reserve are the barred cuckoo-shrike, square-tailed kite, grey-headed flying fox and glossy black cockatoo.
Explore diverse habitats
Amid the urban landscape of the seaside town of Port Macquarie, the reserve and historic site protect a significant area of diverse vegetation, including rainforest, sclerophyll woodland, swamp vegetation and coastal banksia.
Education resources (1)
What we're doing
Macquarie Nature Reserve has management strategies in place to protect and conserve the values of this park. Visit the OEH website for detailed park and fire management documents.