visitnimbin.com.au
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living nimbin
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living history
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health+wellbeing 8 scenic drives+walks on the cover It’s amazing what you can find in Nimbin’s Hemp Embassy
markets+events 11
visitnimbin.com.au
vi s itn im b in.co m . au
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where to stay
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village map
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living nimbin west
Nimbin, tucked away in the hills , was once a sleepy little dairying village in a lush setting of farmland and forest.
of Byron Bay
The Aquarius Festival of 1973 changed the face and community of Nimbin forever. The little village was transformed into the heart of Australia’s progressive alternative lifestyle movement. Nimbin became a mecca for hippies, environmentalists, creatives and pioneers in alternative energy, agriculture and sustainable living. Today, Nimbin is known the world over as Australia’s hippie destination and one of the world’s alternative lifestyle capitals.
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There are just so many things to see and do in Nimbin. This internationally famous village is intriguing and quirky with its unique mural streetscape of indigenous, rainforest and psychedelic facades and colourful local characters. With an amazing array of cafés and shops the village also features fascinating places like Djanbung Gardens, Rainbow Power Company and the extraordinary Nimbin Candle Factory.
Nimbin is known the world over as Australia’s hippie destination...
living nimbin
highlights • Explore the Nimbin Markets held on the 4th & 5th Sundays of the month
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• Learn about renewable energy at the Rainbow Power Company
‘May the long time sun shine upon you, all love surround you...’
• Enjoy a self-guided tour of the Permaculture Farm Djanbung Gardens by coin donation • Check out some of Nimbin’s fascinating cultural events • Enjoy a coffee, lunch or snack at a funky local café • Visit the Nimbin Candle Factory and see the traditional water powered dipping system in action
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• Check out some live music at the Nimbin Bush Theatre Cafe, at the Old Butter Factory and enjoy lunch or dinner too. • Join a yoga class, there’s plenty to choose from on our events page • Visit the Nimbin Farmer’s Market, every Wednesday across the road from the Visitor Centre. Or the Blue Knob Farmer’s Market on every Saturday just north of Nimbin at the Blue Knob Hall Gallery & Café.
local products ethical choices sustainable living massage
GOOLMANGAR GENERAL STORE A little country store with a BIG personality! a healthy lifestyle investment
1/39 cullen street nimbin
02 6689 1881
facebook.com/TheGreenBankNimbin instagram.com/thegreenbanknimbin
Local pies and bread, fruit and veg, roast chickens Fri-Tues, alcohol, groceries and take away sandwiches made daily (not Sundays)
851 Nimbin ROAd Goolmangar NSW 2480
02 6629 3178
Manufacturing non-toxic, handdipped, traditionally made candles
open 7 days 9 to 5 Monday to Friday 11 to 4 weekends & public holidays. Unit 5, Old Butter Factory 2 Blue Knob Rd, Nimbin NSW 2480
nimbincandles.com.au 02 6689 1010
living history
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a few intrepid souls stayed on to live the dreams
Nimbin holds a special place in the Aboriginal culture. Nimbin and its surrounding ranges are rich with stories reaching back to the dreamtime. Nimbin Rocks is an extremely significant cultural site, home to Nyimbunji, a little spirit man with great powers who watched over country. The early European settlers penetrated the Nimbin valley for timber in the 1840s. The area was first subdivided in 1903 and gazetted in 1906. As the timber industry declined, cleared land was turned into a thriving dairy and banana farming district.
Bundjalung
visitnimbin.com. au
Nimbin shot to fame when it hosted the 1973 Aquarius Festival, attracting students, hippies and visionaries from all over Australia. Once the bands left and the dust settled, a few intrepid souls stayed on to live the dreams and ideology of Aquarius, sowing the seeds for today’s vibrant sustainable community. The international fame that followed the Aquarius Festival also brought an influx of new settlers seeking an alternative lifestyle away from the city. Four decades later, it is this alternative culture for which Nimbin is still internationally renowned.
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immerse yourself..
soundtrails Nimbin Soundtrails is an immersive audio experience. From Dreamtime to farming time to Aquarius time, this Soundtrail is a sonic journey through the heart of Australia’s most famous alternative lifestyle destination. Download the app onto your smart phone or iPad, see yourself on a GPS map and walk freely in and out of sound fields; a rich weave of memories, voices, myths and archival footage. With original compositions, local voices, and world class production.
health+wellbeing
Invigorate your mind, body and soul in a region renowned for its therapies, practitioners and retreats. Find inner peace at a meditation retreat, take a walk on a rainforest trail, or explore ways to save the earth.
unwind with yoga, pilates, acupuncture, reflexology, aromatherapy, massage...
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H BU S
F A C T O R Y M U LT I V
alternative
Unwind with yoga, acupuncture, reflexology, aromatherapy, massage, reiki and day spa treatments with one of our many qualified practitioners. You’re sure to find something to lift your spirits! If you’re seeking spiritual guidance, get an astrology, tarot or psychic reading
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R e Music * Theatre * C SE v i L afé ts * OPEN EVERY DAY Ar
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blue
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nimbin
(02)
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... a visit to Nimbin isn’t truly complete until you’ve been here
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or commune with one of our local swamis, gurus, shamans, soothsayers or prognosticators. It’s all part of the enchanting Nimbin experience. Getting in touch with nature is certainly a great way to give your mind and body a well-deserved
break. You could take a leisurely stroll, bushwalk in a nearby national park or take a more extensive hike. There are beautiful rainforests and waterfalls to keep you thoroughly enthralled and delighted.
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scenic drives+walks
as beautiful
With a countryside there are just so many scenic drives that we’ll have you exploring for days, even weeks, if you like!
as ours
To get you started we have a couple of recommended drives below and a few more of our scenic drives in the Lismore section of this publication.
Nimbin to Border Ranges (Full day, easy-moderate)
the track meanders through rainforest for a kilometre
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Head out along Blue Knob Road until you reach Blue Knob Hall Gallery & Café. After the Blue Knob Gallery & Cafe, take the next left down Lillian Rock Road. At the end turn right, towards Murwillumbah, on the Kyogle/Muwillumbah Road, and then left into Creegan Road, which becomes Tweed Range Scenic Drive. This 64km gravel road traverses the eastern plateau of the World Heritage rainforest from Lillian Rock to Wiangaree and takes a leisurely 3-4 hours.
highlights • Blue Knob Hall Gallery & Café (open Thursday to Sunday) is perfect for lunch • Lillian Rock is a sacred landmark • The Pinnacle walk and lookout offers dramatic views of the Wollumbin (Mt Warning) Caldera.
Nimbin to Nightcap National Park (3km, 1.5 hours, easy-moderate) Enjoy Mt Nardi and the Matheson Loop by heading out through the lush rainforest encircling Mt Matheson. Drier vegetation communities are found near cliff edges. Depart Nimbin along Sibley St past the Bowling Club. Several kilometres out of town on the Tuntable Falls Road turn right for the Channon. Follow this road which becomes Newton Drive to Mount Nardi.
Pholis Gap (4km, 1.5 hours, moderate) Beginning at Mt Nardi the track meanders through rainforest for a kilometre before splitting off the Mt Matheson Loop and descending towards the escarpment edge. Walk to Pholis Gap which offers views of the surrounding valleys.
markets+events
April The Nimbin Art Fair An annual exhibition curated by the Nimbin Artists’ Gallery. The 4-week exhibition is staged in the historic Nimbin Town Hall and is one of the largest exhibitions in the region. There are daily recitals and performance art.
May Nimbin MardiGrass A law reform rally held on the first weekend in May. Highlights of the Nimbin MardiGrass include the street parade, Hemp Olympics, workshops, forums, comedy, live music and political discussions.
September Performance Poetry World Cup Poets from all over Australia and beyond gather in the forst week of September each year to perform at this entertaining event. Heats are held in the School of Arts Town Hall all weekend with the grand final on Sunday evening. Blue Moon Cabaret Held in March, September and November. A wonderfully diverse array of the performance arts: comedy, poetry, music, dance, acrobatics and circus. The licensed events feature an evening of fine food, wines and stunning entertainment that has developed into sell-out shows over the years.
Nimbin Roots Festival A celebration of American, Early Blues, Alt Country, Australiana and traditional music. Nimbin A&I Country Show A traditional agricultural show with horses, cattle, poultry, dog trials, art, craft, fruit, vegetables and horticulture. It’s a sustainable farming expo, promoting natural farming methods and building technologies, with an opportunity to sample food and wares from paddock to plate. Spring Arts Exhibition The exhibition presents an incredible variety of works by Nimbin’s finest artists, craft workers, designers, photographers and installation artists. The show is held annually during the spring school holidays with many local, interstate and international visitors attending.
markets Nimbin Market 4th & 5th Sunday Nimbin Community Centre, Cullen St, Nimbin 8am-3pm Farmers’ Market Every Wednesday The Greenbank Carpark, 39 Cullen St, Nimbin. 3pm-6pm Blue Knob Farmers’ Market Every Saturday 719 Blue Knob Rd, Lillian Rock. 8.30am-12pm.
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where to stay
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Nimbin is the perfect place to stay, to relax, rejuvenate and let Mother Nature work her charms. You can stay in a cabin , in a cosy caravan park and camping ground, in a delightful B&B or funky backpacker hostel, or perhaps in a teepee with spectacular mountain views.
nimbin accommodation
on the edge of the rainforest
nimbin visitor information centre Shop 3/46 Cullen Street Nimbin, NSW 2480 02 6689 1388
visitnimbin.com.au
b&b/guesthouse
caravan park
Whether you’re looking for a simple bed for the night or a luxurious hinterland hideaway, you can get all the information you need from the friendly staff at the Nimbin Visitor Information Centre. Swing by or give them a buzz.
Grey Gum Lodge
Nimbin Caravan Park
Guesthouse 2 High Street Nimbin 02 6689 1713 greygumlodge.com
Caravan Park 29 Sibley Street, Nimbin 02 6689 1402
Grey Gum lodge is a beautiful old Queenslander, full of atmosphere, just a 5 minute stroll to the centre of the village. With an elevated front verandah and gardens offering lovely views of Lillian Rock and the Border Ranges beyond, GGL has Nimbin’s most affordable ensuite rooms with air-con.
An oasis within the colourful village of Nimbin. • 3x Fully self contained cabins • 3x O/nite Hippie Vans • Bunkhouse sleeps 10 • Pet Friendly • 5 minute stroll to Nimbin Village • Guest Laundry • Camp Kitchens
To Blue Knob Gallery & Murwillumbah
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Factory Candle and ong Bringabnix Rising e o & Ph Café
Granny's Farm
GUNGA
Tennis Courts
VILLAGE MAP S ROA D
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Cullen Bridge
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SILKY OAK DRIVE
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YHA Hoste l Catholic Church
Rainbo Retrea w t
THORB URN S TREET
Nimbin Markets held here
Uniting Church
URN S TREET
Oasis Cafe
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Pizza
STREET
Optometrist Rainbow Lane Daizy Happy High Herbs P
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InformationP Centre ( n
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Vinnies Op Shop Police
“Peace Park” 7 on Sibley
Bowling Club Picnic Area Swimming Pool
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Rainbow Power Company
Caravan Park
Susukka Trading Craft Gallery Hotel & Bistro (ATM) Hemp Embassy & Hemp Bar Artists Gallery Town Hall P Perceptio
Cafés Hemping Around, Telephone and Laundry Post Office Wednesday Farmers Market The Green Bank Presbyterian Church Medical Centre Sports Field
Hospital
CULLE N ST REET
et (ATM) Supermark ) Bank (ATM Chemist Café ntre Ce t en Environm thecary po A , th Naturopa kery Nimbin Ba Café -Op Nimbin Co ery tt a H d Ma ng Fashionati Tattoo Terra Creative
Park
P Café Tribal Magic
Skate Park
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CULLEN
Ozkat Newsagent
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n no an h C e ap k Th htc Par To Nig nal & atio N
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Art Gallery
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REET SIBLEY ST
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Community Centre
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Toilet Hairdressers
Petrol & Auto Centre
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CECIL Anglican Church
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STREE
T to Dja n Permac bung ulture Garden s
Nimbin Showground
to Lismore and Nimbin Rocks viewing area (no access to Nimbin Rock s)
P Parking B Bus Stop
NIMBIN ROAD
Grey Gum Lodge
HIGH STREET (PLEASE RECYCLE THIS MAP , OR PASS IT ON)
Teretre Cabins
Nimbin Visitor Centre 02 6689 1388 www.visitnimbin.com.au NOT TO SCALE The publisher accepts no responsibility for any damage, loss, or action by any party arising from the use of this map.