In the Murramarang National Park (ranger tel 02/4478 6006), a small coastal strip just north of town, there are campsites at Pretty Beach , Pebbly Beach and Durras Beach - popular not only with campers but also with kangaroos, which come here at dawn or dusk to frolic on the beach. Rumour has it that they even enjoy body surfing. You can stay at Murramarang Resort (tel 02/4478 6355, murra@batemansbay.com ; cabins and on-site vans $50-70), where there's bike and canoe rental available, plus organized geology walks, lake rides and fishing cruises, or at Pebbly Beach where there's a basic campsite (tel 02/4478 6006).

From MOGO , 10km to the south, you can visit the open-air Old Mogo Town museum (Fri-Sun 10am-4pm, Mon-Thurs 9am-5pm during school holidays; $12; tel 02/4474 2123, www.oldmogotown.com.au ), a reconstruction of a mid-nineteenth-century goldrush town near an old gold mine. The best time to come is Sunday morning when there's a bric-a-brac market held here. Twenty-five kilometres south of Batemans Bay, just before Moruya , a small, unsealed road turns off the highway to the west, heading through a pretty valley and then up over hills at the edge of the remote Deua National Park to the former goldrush town of Araluen where, between 1868 and 1872, about fifteen thousand prospectors congregated in the hope of striking it lucky.

Batemans Bay Tourist Information is on Princes Highway, at the corner of Beach Road (daily 9am-5pm; tel 02/4472 6900 or free call 1800 802 528). As you'd expect of a resort, accommodation consists mainly of motels and a wide range of holiday units; most of the latter require a minimum week's booking during peak summer times. However, there are also two hostels: Shady Willows Holiday Park (tel & fax 02/4472 4972; cabins $35-115, dorms under $20), is close to town (but not the beach), with a YHA hostel section attached, while Beach Road Backpackers , at 92 Beach Rd (tel 02/4472 3644; dorms under $20), is a small independent place; the owner here will book tours and cruises. Otherwise, try Bay Surfside Holiday Flats , 7km out of town at 662 Beach Rd (tel 02/4471 1275; $50-115), whose units sleep up to six and have all mod cons. There's camping at eight caravan parks including the Coachhouse Marina Resort , by the beach on Beach Road 1km south of town (tel 02/4472 4392; cabins $50-150, on-site vans $35-115), with a pool and tennis court; or the excellent River Breeze Caravan Park (tel 02/4474 2370, www.riverbreeze.com.au ; four-person cabins $50-70, bunkroom bed under $20), a five-minute walk from the coach stop on the Princes Highway in Moruya. Mogendoura Farm , on Hawdons Road, 8km west of Moruya on the Moruya River (tel 02/4474 2057, www.southcoast.com.au/mogendoura ; $70-115), offers week-long cottage farmstays with horse riding, canoeing and bushwalking opportunities; occasionally overnight stays are also possible.

There's a range of restaurants in Batemans Bay, mainly with fish and seafood-based menus. Cheap and healthy luncheon fare - mugs of coffee and home-made savouries and cake - can be found at the Good Food Cafe on 45 Orient St. Rafters , 28 Beach Rd has a relaxing, intimate atmosphere, with A  la carte dining and vegetarian options. On the promenade, Seagulls serves rather overpriced seafood and steaks, but the sweeping waterfront views make it worth the extra expense (closed Tues; tel 02/4472 0253), while the trendy and popular Starfish Deli also has a marine panorama with a modern menu, including a variety of wood-fired pizzas and many veggie dishes. Jameson's on the Pier offers fine dining on fresh fish and is set on its own jetty opposite the promenade, jutting out over the river.