Family-friendly travel hacks for a weekend at Corindi Beach

Real people. Real travel hacks

Talking of camping hacks, Hayley Bunting from Gather.ed hit up Corindi Beach with her family, to test out and feedback on the best family travel hacks. Here's her story...

An epic coastal getaway, full of simple joys

Exploring rockpools, birdwatching, surfing, swimming and scooting (there’s a great little skatepark right at the camping grounds!), Corindi Beach delivers on coastal family getaways!

We stayed in one of Reflections Corindi Beach’s Superior Cabins, complete with beach views that blew us away, especially at sunrise. Open the door of these ocean-front cabins and you can smell the sea and sense the opportunity for adventure straight away. Whilst in our two-bedroom cabin we experienced a wild coastal storm from the comfort of our deck, lightning show and all. Could hiring a cabin actually be the best travel hack? Check out our other hacks below and let us know!

Hack 1: Consider the season

We left straight after school on Halloween, and that turned out to be the first of our many “why didn’t we think of this sooner?” moments.

Instead of getting caught in the trick-or-treating chaos, we hid a handful of lollies around the cabin for the kids to find while they were sorting out their luggage in the car. Instant fun, minimal stress and 100% joy. Bonus points for Reflections Corindi Beach as our kids thought they had employed a special little Halloween fairy (ghost fairy?) to surprise them.

Hack 2: Driving time planning

Booking somewhere within a couple of hours’ drive means you wake up on Saturday already there. It honestly makes the weekend feel like three days long instead of two - less time packing and travelling, more time relaxing and exploring.

Hack 3: Scavenger hunts for kids (and grown-ups)

We love adding a scavenger hunt to any weekend away. I usually make one quickly on Canva (so easy), but you can also find plenty of free printable versions online. The Reflections “Outsider” magazine has a brilliant sensory scavenger hunt in edition two - grab one from reception when you arrive.

Our kids really connect with bird-watching ‘hunts’ (there were so many opportunities for bird-watching and appreciation at Corindi Beach) and they always love considering the rainbow colours of nature with a ‘colour-hunt’.

These are such a fun way to help kids connect to nature, explore their surroundings and use all of their senses. Our kids even took it upon themselves to pick up bits of rubbish as part of the “something that doesn’t belong” element of one of their scavenger hunts. A win for the planet and for parenting.

Hack 4: Pre-made breakfasts for a smooth start

When you wake up on the first morning of any getaway with kids, they want to rush out into their new environment and explore. But they also need the energy to do that, and you may just want to snooze in bed a little longer or watch the sunrise and not get caught up in the breakfast wars. To make our first morning easier, we pre-made breakfast before leaving home. Each child had their own muesli jar (they just added milk) and they enjoyed these on the deck first, then whilst wandering around chasing birds and patting dogs. A pancake mix made up at home is also another great pre-made option.

The muesli jars meant our kids could get up, pour the milk and go - leaving us with a slow coffee while we watched the sunrise and spotted stingrays in the lagoon below our cabin.

Hack 5: The ultimate dinner hack: platters

If you haven’t tried platter dinners on holidays, this is your sign. No cooking, minimal clean-up and everyone’s happy. We packed cheese, dips, veggies, crackers, meats, and fruit - all the good stuff. Kids love to explore new foods when it’s served in a non-pressured environment, so this is perfect for low-stress mealtimes away.

The night we enjoyed our simple ‘take what you like’ dinner, a huge storm rolled in, so we set up our platter on the cabin’s deck and watched lightning strike over the ocean. When the rain got too much, we just picked up our platters and headed indoors for a game of cards (another ‘hack is teaching your kids card games you love - this truly levels up your family camping experience). We’ve swapped ‘Snap!’ for a game we’ve renamed ‘Poophead’. If you know this game, you’ll know it’s a winner for time away with an easy dinner and drinks.

Hack 6: Kind of sneaky bedtime boundaries (that actually worked)

Our kids are what can only be described as ‘frothers’, and sometimes their excitement can be quite loud, especially early in the morning. We introduced a ‘wildlife rule’ inspired by our location - a little sign from the Animals of Corindi Beach (aka Mum and Dad) explaining the difference between “noisy time” and “nesting time”.

The kids loved it - they took it incredibly seriously, respected the quiet hours and everyone slept well. Parenting win! I just have to change the location of the animals for every campsite we visit from now on… and never let the kids find the framed sign.

Why we loved Reflections Corindi Beach

Corindi Beach itself is such a special spot. The combination of surf, bushland, rockpools and open space makes it feel wild yet peaceful - perfect for both adventure and downtime.

The Reflections Holiday Park Corindi Beach staff were lovely and welcoming, letting us know a storm was on the way… and that there were local blueberries for sale at reception. The park has everything you need for a comfortable, family-friendly stay: a playground, skatepark, clean amenities and cabins that feel more like coastal homes than holiday rentals.

Corindi is a place that invites you to slow down, breathe deeply and reconnect with nature, with your family and with yourself. Sometimes the best weekends aren’t the big overseas trips or expensive resorts - they’re the ones where you watch a storm roll in over the sea, eat cheese on the deck and fall asleep to the sound of the waves.

Tips for planning your own Corindi Beach escape

• Book early: Reflections Holiday Park cabins get popular in peak season - especially the oceanfront ones.
• Pack simple meals: Think breakfasts in jars, picnic lunches and platter dinners. The Corindi Beach Hotel is also a winner for lunch and dinner and it has a fully fenced outdoor area with a playground and soccer goal.
• Bring printable scavenger hunts or pick up your copy of ‘The Outsiders Magazine’ for Reflections’ sensory scavenger hunt: Perfect for exploring your new environment or for rainy afternoons.
• Check the weather: Uncertain weather shouldn’t be a deterrent to getting away - there’s something magical about watching the sky light up over the ocean while you’re cosy inside your beachfront cabin.

Final thoughts

Our weekend at Reflections Corindi Beach reminded us that travel with kids doesn’t have to be complicated to be memorable - we can take a break from our typical tent set-up and grab a cabin when they’re available. A short drive, some thoughtful hacks and a cabin by the ocean were all we needed for a genuinely refreshing break.

If you’re planning your next family weekend getaway in NSW, add Corindi Beach to your list. You’ll come home sandy, happy and maybe with a few new family traditions of your own.

Leave only footprints

Thanks Hayley - Corindi Beach is definitely one for the bucket list! And treating yourself to a cabin may just be our favourite hack! Check out more camping hacks here