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Coffs Harbour - Home of the 'Big Banana'
 The New South Wales North Coast is a region famous for its contribution to Australia's fruit industry. 'The Big Banana' leaves no doubt about the major industry in the area.
But Coffs Harbour, a major coastal resort town, is as renounded for its fishing as much as for its banana plantations. 'Coffs' as the locals call it, is situated between mountains and sea, 558 km north-east of Sydney.
The former fishing town is now a significant city with a population of over 65,ooo resident and a skyline of high-rise units more reminiscent of suburban Sydney rather than a holiday resort. Nonetheless, the region is very popular among retirees seeking and holiday-makers seeking a subtropical pace of life.
Coffs Harbour was originally named Korff's Harbour by naval architect and shipbuilder, John Korff, who sheltered in the bay during a gale in 1847. The name was modified in 1861 when the town site was formally declared.
Coffs Harbour has a rich history spanning goldmining, woodcutting and timber milling, sugarcane, fishing - and bananas.
Until 1884 when the first access road to the town was completed, the town relied largely its jetty for communication with the outside world. When the railway arrived in 1915, maritime shipping declined and tourism increased.
Curiously, the railway's construction also gave rise to the banana industry after supplies from Fiji were proving insufficient to meet demand from the many local workers. The railway link to Sydney completed in 1923 further stimulated banana production.
Today, thanks to road, rail and air links, 'Coffs' is a major tourist destination especially in summer. Fishing, timber, engineering and tourism are the anchors of the local economy. But bananas still claim the mantle of fame for this once tiny seaside town.
What's there to see and do
You'll find plenty of opportunity for surfing, boating, snorkelling, bushwalking, hot-air ballooning, white-water rafting, canoeing, game fishing and horseriding and scuba-diving, a waterslide and numerous beaches close to town (Boambee Beach, Jetty Beach, Park Beach), and further north (Diggers Beach, Campbells Beach, Mid Sapphire Beach, Moonee Beach, Shelly Beach, Emerald Beach, Fiddamans Beach and Sandys Beach).
Other attractions include Coffs Harbour Historical Museum, South Solitary Island Lighthouse, North Coast Regional Botanic Garden, Beacon Hill Lookout, Muttonbird Island, the historic Coffs Horbour jetty (perfect for a pleasant evening stroll), the markets at the Jetty Village Shopping Centre every Sunday, Pet Porpoise Pool, The Clog Barn (miniature Dutch village complete with miniature historical buildings, waterfalls, canals, windmills and locomotive), Bruxner Park Flora Reserve, Coffs Harbour Zoo, George's Gold Mine, and, of course, The Big Banana (located three kilometres north of Coffs Harbour on the western side of the Pacific Highway).
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