Get driving directions

• Kurnell is on Captain Cook Drive, access is via Rocky Point Road, off the Princes Highway.
• At Kurnell, turn right off Captain Cook Drive into Cape Solander Drive
• To access Potter Point, turn right off Captain Cook Drive into Sir Joseph Banks Drive.

Parking

• Cape Baily walking track See on map

Road quality

• Sealed roads

Vehicle access

• 2WD vehicles

Weather restrictions

• All weather

Parking

Parking is available (including designated disabled spots in most car parks) at:

• Commemoration Flat
• Inscription Point
• The Leap
• Yena picnic area
• Cape Solander
• Potter Point

By bike

Kurnell is a popular area with cyclists.

To ride thre:

• Catch a train to Cronulla station, then ride north along Gerrale Street which becomes Eloura Road
• When you reach the roundabout at Captain Cook Drive, turn right and continue along Captain Cook Drive for 7km
• When you reach the roundabout at Kurnell, turn right to stay on Captain Cook Drive
• Follow the road until you reach the park entry gate located on Cape Solander drive.

By public transport

You can travel to the Kurnell area on public transport. Plan your trip using Transport NSW's Trip Planner.

With its picturesque views and whale watching vantage points, a visit to Kurnell is unmissable in winter. But its countless historic attractions, birdlife and walking tracks make it a joy any time of year.

Spring

Take the Cape Baily walk to birdwatch, see the Cape Baily lighthouse, and if you're lucky, spot humpback whales returning south. Visit in November when daylight saving begins in NSW - It's lighter for longer and the Kurnell area is open until 7.30pm. Pack a picnic and enjoy the cool sea breeze at Commemoration Flat.

Summer

Bring your scuba gear and explore the rocky reefs at Botany Bay's entrance, including Sutherland and Inscription Points and maybe even glimpse sea horses and sea dragons. Cool off with a quiet saltwater swim at Silver Beach. Pack a picnic and summer can be a busy time at this park.

Winter

Head to Cape Solander lookout to see migrating humpback whales swimming close to the coast. Winter is a very busy time in this park, and parking is not always available at Cape Solander. Set off on the extended Henry Head walking track to photograph the SS Minmi shipwreck, just off Cape Banks (low tide only).

Picnic tables

• Muru and Yena tracks

• Kurnell area factsheet
• Kurnell area map (1.9MB pdf)

Park entry fees:

$8 per vehicle per day applies in the Kurnell area only. The park has coin-operated pay and display machines - please bring correct coins. The park also has credit card accepting payment facilities.

• Cape Solander Head to one of Sydney's best whale watching spots. Cape Solander, located in the Kurnell section of Kamay Botany Bay National Park is an unbeatable lookout during whale watching season.
• Kurnell Visitor Centre Kurnell Visitor Centre is closed while a new visitor centre is being built. You can still contact our staff for maps, history and advice by email or phone. 
• Muru and Yena tracks Mura and Yena tracks form a short 2.5km loop walk and pass by Yena picnic area, in the Kurnell area. Enjoy coastal views, birds and wildflowers.

• Burrawang walk Take this short, wheelchair-accessible stroll along Burrawang walk in the Kurnell area and enjoy several historic sites. You can't miss the 3 bronze sculptures that mark the 250th anniversary of the encounter between Aboriginal Australians and the HMB Endeavour crew.

• Captain Cooks landing place Visit Kurnell to see Captain Cooks landing place and the place of encounter between Aboriginal Australians and the crew of the HMB Endeavour in 1770. This heritage-listed site is an important place in Australia's history.
• Commemoration Flat picnic area Commemoration Flat picnic area is in the Kurnell area of Kamay Botany Bay National Park. This beautiful grassy spot is perfect for seaside family gatherings.

Animals

• 

  White-bellied sea eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster)

  White-bellied sea eagles can be easily identified by their white tail and dark grey wings. These raptors are often spotted cruising the coastal breezes throughout Australia, and make for some scenic bird watching. Powerful Australian birds of prey, they are known to mate for life, and return each year to the same nest to breed.

Plants

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  Blueberry ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus)

  The blueberry ash is a rainforest shrub which produces blue olive-shaped berries and spectacular bell-shaped flowers, which often appear on the plant together. It is a tall slender shrub or small tree found in rainforest, tall eucalypt forest and coastal bushland in eastern NSW, south-east Queensland and Victoria.

• 

  Flannel flower (Actinotus helianthi)

  The delicate flannel flower is so named because of the soft woolly feel of the plant. Growing in the NSW south coast region, extending to Narrabri in the Central West and up to south-east Queensland, its white or pink flowers bloom all year long, with an extra burst of colour in the spring.

• 

  Old man banksia (Banksia serrata)

  Hardy Australian native plants, old man banksias can be found along the coast, and in the dry sclerophyll forests and sandstone mountain ranges of NSW. With roughened bark and gnarled limbs, they produce a distinctive cylindrical yellow-green banksia flower which blossoms from summer to early autumn.

• 

  Smooth-barked apple (Angophora costata)

  Smooth-barked apple gums, also known as Sydney red gum or rusty gum trees, are Australian native plants found along the NSW coast, and in the Sydney basin and parts of Queensland. Growing to heights of 15-30m, the russet-coloured angophoras shed their bark in spring to reveal spectacular new salmon-coloured bark.