Best museums in Newcastle, NSW
If you’re looking for museums in Newcastle, New South Wales, save the Newcastle Museum for if you’ve got plenty of time. Fort Scratchley is more interesting.
There are a fair few attractions in Newcastle, New South Wales, that allow you to dip into the city’s history. The most obvious of these is the Newcastle Museum, which opened inside the Honeysuckle Rail Workshops in 2011. It has won awards, but in all honesty it’s a bit patchy and lacks proper story-telling drive. Nonetheless, it’s a handy overview. The main section has displays on the geology of the area – the rich coal beds are a result of prehistoric forests and coastal swamps – and exhibits including Aboriginal stone adzes.
9 cool Newcastle experiences you need to book in advance
- An Adventure boat cruise along the Hunter coast – with thrills and scenery.
- A mobile phone-based scavenger hunt – explore the city differently.
- An architecture and street art walking tour – see all the best murals.
- A whale-watching tour – get close to the migrating humpback whales.
- A two hour city highlights tour by bus – get orientated when you first arrive.
- A scenic helicopter flight – see the spectacular coastline from above.
- A three hour craft beer and food-matching tour – get a taste of the drinking and dining scene.
- A food, drink and history walking tour – hear stories and indulge at the same time.
The bitty displays touch on how Newcastle was founded as a hard labour secondary punishment centre for convicts who reoffended. They also look at the growth (and in some cases, decline) of the city’s industries.
Best museums in Newcastle, NSW: Fort Scratchley
The best museum in Newcastle, however, is Fort Scratchley – one of Australia’s most important World War II sites. Built in the 1880s on Signal Hill, for a long time it played a key part in Newcastle’s coastal defences. Some of the guns there are still fired on special occasions.
Volunteer tour guides take visitors deep inside the fort to learn what life was like for those working there.
There’s also a cracking war story to tell. On June 8th, 1942, a Japanese submarine opened fire on Newcastle, firing 34 rounds at key targets. Luckily, only three of the shells exploded – it’s thought that the Japanese were using faulty British-made ammunition from 1914 and it hadn’t been looked after properly.
Fort Scratchley fired back before the sub made its escape, with Captain Wally Watson later admitting he ran the show whilst clad only in his pyjamas.
Getting to Newcastle, NSW
The drive from Sydney to Newcastle takes just over two hours. The city’s main selling point is its fabulous Ocean Baths, rather than its museums, although the Newcastle whale-watching cruises are worth a look too. Continuing up the east coast, the Newcastle to Port Macquarie drive takes around 2h39m.
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