Byron Bay's bars are mostly packed into a few streets behind Main Beach, around Jonson Street, Lawson Street and Fletcher Street, with a couple of beach bars at Wategos and Belongil. This guide covers 16 of them. Cocktail bars come first, from a balcony for oysters and frozen Palomas to a rooftop-style bar steps from the beach, then the beach pubs, natural wine bars and Byron's breweries, with our top picks, a map and a walking route.
Last checked 14 November 2026. No bar paid to be included.
If you only have one night, start here.
Margaritas with an ocean view.
Byron Bay town centre650 natural wines and a Half Martini.
Byron Bay town centreFrozen Palomas and oysters over the street.
Byron Bay town centreCocktails on Wategos Beach.
WategosCocktails upstairs in The Souk.
Byron Bay town centreA beach shack at Belongil.
BelongilShuffleboard and DJs until late.
Byron Bay town centreLanterns, food and dancing.
Byron Bay town centreTap a pin for the bar. Numbers match the list.
Jonson Street, Lawson Street, Fletcher Street and Bay Street, a short walk from Main Beach.
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Cocktail bar
Up above Jonson Street, all white walls and rattan lights, with ocean views when the window awnings open. Five house Margaritas, four Espresso Martinis and a rotating bartender's cocktail, with live music and DJs and happy hour from 4pm to 6pm.
📍 9/4 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Balcony bar
Above the main street with balcony seats for people-watching, cocktails by the glass or carafe, frozen cocktails such as the Hinterland Paloma and eight ways to eat oysters. Happy hour runs from 4pm to 6pm.
📍 7/3 Lawson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Mediterranean bar
A Mediterranean-style cantina downstairs with tapas from Morocco, Greece and Turkey. Upstairs is The Souk, a bar with its own cocktail list for a drink before dinner or a nightcap.
📍 4/85-87 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Natural wine bar
A chic Parisian-style wine bar with a peach horseshoe bar and green leather banquettes, from the team behind Luna Wine Store. About 650 natural and biodynamic wines, a signature Half Martini and a soundtrack of afro beats, funk and disco.
📍 G9 Jonson Lane, 139 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Bar and club
A two-storey bar and club over the main street with a vintage clubhouse feel: shuffleboard and pool, a library bar with a fireplace, a balcony and DJs until late, open seven nights.
📍 32 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Bar and restaurant
Lanterns, cosy corners and rustic charm, with food, drinks and dancing on the same night.
📍 9 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Heritage pub
A heritage pub first opened in 1892 with live music every day: touring acts in the Back Room, local musicians in the front bar and a duelling piano bar that takes requests.
📍 35-43 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Beachfront pub
The Top Pub, across from Main Beach, with a big sunny beer garden and live music every night from touring Australian and international acts.
📍 1 Bay Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Pub
The Railway Friendly Bar has put on free live music every day for around 30 years, from funk and folk to reggae, with a beer garden.
📍 86 Jonson Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Wine bar and restaurant
Italian food with a coastal twist, modern and new world wines alongside Italian classics, plus classic cocktails with an Italian summer twist.
📍 139 Jonson Street, Byron Bay
Wine bar
A moody, monochrome wine bar on Bay Lane, marked by an illuminated crescent moon, where Japanese-style charcoal grilling takes centre stage. Bookings essential.
📍 Bay Lane, Byron Bay
North-west of the centre towards Belongil Beach, with beach shack bars and garden venues.
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Beach shack bar
A surf shack a short walk from Belongil Beach, with driftwood benches, palms and live music spilling onto the street. Three signature Margaritas, fruity cocktails and a coconut tequila Espresso Martini, with wood-fired pizza.
📍 25 Childe Street, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Hotel bar
Just outside town among gardens, with a sunny deck and lawn, locally sourced food, Stone and Wood on tap and DJs on Friday and Saturday nights.
📍 61 Bayshore Drive, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Below the lighthouse, Wategos Beach is the place for a drink with a view.
Beachfront bar
A casual beachfront bar looking over Wategos Beach, with Australian and European wines and coastal cocktails such as the Maca Colada with rum, macadamia liqueur and pineapple. Walk-ins only.
📍 6-8 Marine Parade, Wategos Beach, Byron Bay NSW 2481
A short drive south, for a drink by the pool in the rainforest.
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Poolside bar
The poolside bar at Crystalbrook Byron, surrounded by subtropical rainforest, with cocktails, mocktails and seafood.
📍 Crystalbrook Byron, 77-97 Broken Head Road, Byron Bay NSW 2481
Brewery
Stone & Wood's spiritual home in the industrial estate, with a 31-tank brewery, tasting room, canteen and leafy beer garden. Three Byron locals set it up in 2008.
📍 Byron Bay Industrial Estate
One route in walking order, with the time between each bar. See them all on a map.
8 bars · about 63 minutes on foot in total
Start with Loft Byron Bay and Bar Heather, then Balcony Bar & Oyster Co.. Our top 8 above covers the rest.
The town centre around Jonson Street and Lawson Street, where most bars are a few minutes' walk apart.
Loft over Jonson Street, Raes Cellar Bar at Wategos and the Beach Hotel across from Main Beach.
The Northern, The Rails and the Beach Hotel all have live music every day. Treehouse has bands spilling onto the street.
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This guide is written by the team at M.AD Agency. We run Cocktail Week, the ten-day cocktail festival held town by town across the UK and Ireland. Now we're bringing it to Australia. Since 2022 we have taken it to more than 20 towns and cities and worked with hundreds of bars. We put this guide together from our own research and trusted local guides, including Urban List and Australian Traveller.
No bar paid to be included and nobody can buy a place. We check the guide regularly as bars open, change and close.
Cocktail Week in Australia
Run a bar in Byron Bay that should be here? Get in touch at hello@cocktail-week.com and tell us about it.
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