Enjoy a peaceful cruise on a self-drive GoBoat at Akuna Bay, surrounded by the stunning natural beauty of Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park.
A Day in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, Seen From the Water
Most people meet Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park from a car park. They drive up, walk a track, look out over the water from a lookout, and drive home.
There is a better way to do it, and almost nobody does.
The NSW Governement announced that Ku-ring-gai Chase is the third most visited national park in New South Wales. Sandstone country, deep quiet waterways, bushland running right down to the shoreline. From a lookout you see it. From the water you are actually in it.
Akuna Bay sits inside the park, and it is where you can hire a self drive electric picnic boat and spend a couple of hours somewhere most visitors never reach.
Prepare for a relaxing day on the water with an easy-to-drive, eco-friendly GoBoat at Akuna Bay marina.
You do not need a boat licence
This is the part people do not expect. Be your own Caption and pick up a captains hat when booking in for a the perfect photo opportunity.
GoBoat boats are electric, simple to drive, and there is no licence required. Staff run you through everything before you leave the dock. If you can drive a shopping trolley you can drive one of these.
Up to eight people fit around a timber table in the middle of the boat. That is the whole design. It is a picnic table that happens to float. There are 2 options to choose from Classic boats or Plus boats with centre console steering, comfort seating, built in bluetooth speakers and extra power.
It is genuinely quiet
Electric means no engine noise and no fumes. On the water in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park that changes the day completely.
You hear birds. You hear the water. You can have a conversation without raising your voice. People are usually surprised by how still it is once they get around the first headland and away from the marina.
This is not a thrill ride. It is the opposite of one. That is the point.
Bring your own picnic
There is a table in the middle of the boat, so bring food or you can preorder a picnic box online.
Some people go simple with cheese, bread and fruit. Others treat it properly and pack the whole spread. Either works. Pack a bit more than you think you need, because two hours on the water makes everyone hungry.
Worth knowing before you pack: keep it easy to serve, bring something to keep it cold or hire an esky with ice when you check in, and take your rubbish home with you at the end. You are in a national park.
What you will actually see
Sandstone cliffs coming straight down to the water. Bushland with no buildings in it. Sea eagles and cockatoos. Occasionally a stingray in the shallows.
The route from Akuna Bay opens into a network of quiet arms and inlets, and the further you go the fewer people there are. Two hours gets you a proper look around. Three hours means you can stop, drift, eat and not watch the clock.
Enjoy a scenic family outing on a self-drive GoBoat at Akuna Bay, cruising peacefully past pristine forested shores.
The school holidays version
This is a good one for the September holidays, and here is the honest reason why.
Kids get to drive the boat. Supervised, obviously, but the steering is simple enough that a ten year old can take a turn and feel like they are running the whole operation. It occupies them for the entire two hours in a way a bush walk does not. All children under 16 are required by law to wear a life jacket which will be supplied.
There is no swimming, no queue and no ticketing gate. You show up, you get shown how it works, you go.
School holidays in NSW and ACT run from 26 September. Weekends and the first few days book out first, so weekdays mid holiday are the easy win if you have flexibility.
Getting there
Akuna Bay is roughly an hour and a half from the Sydney CBD, and considerably less from the North Shore and Northern Beaches. There is free parking at the marina but you will have to pay $12/car Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park by BoatNational Park Entry free at the gate on the way in.
One thing worth knowing so it does not catch you out: it is a solid walk from the car park down to the boats. Give yourself ten minutes, and if you are carrying an esky and a picnic, factor that in. Arrive fifteen minutes before your booking.
Note for dog owners: dogs are not permitted at Akuna Bay because it is a national park. If you want to bring the dog, Cabarita on the Parramatta River is the one.
