Where Is Home and Away Filmed?
Since Home and Away first aired on 17 January 1988, the fictional coastal community of Summer Bay has had one constant, unchanging home: Palm Beach, New South Wales. This stunning peninsula on Sydney's Northern Beaches — jutting north between the Pacific Ocean and the sheltered waterway of Pittwater — has served as the backdrop for the show's outdoor scenes for nearly four decades without interruption.
Palm Beach sits approximately 40 kilometres north of Sydney's CBD, reachable by road in about 75 minutes from the city centre depending on traffic. Its geography is what makes it so visually distinctive on screen: a narrow strip of land barely 500 metres wide at its broadest point, with the open surf of the Tasman Sea crashing in from the east and the glass-calm, bushland-fringed Pittwater stretching to the west. From the dramatic sandstone headland at the northern tip — where the historic Barrenjoey Lighthouse stands — the views encompass Broken Bay, the Hawkesbury River entrance, and hundreds of kilometres of coastline in each direction.
The production splits its filming between two locations. All outdoor scenes — the beach, the Surf Club exterior, the boat ramp, house exteriors, the headland — are filmed at Palm Beach. All interior scenes — inside the Surf Club, character homes, the Diner, and other Summer Bay interiors — are filmed at permanent studio sets at Redfern Studios in inner Sydney. Our tours cover the Palm Beach outdoor locations, which represent all the most recognisable and iconic imagery from the show.
"Palm Beach has been Summer Bay since the first episode in 1988 — and it looks every bit as beautiful in real life as it does on screen."— Cooee Tours Guide Team
The 6 Key Summer Bay Filming Locations
Every outdoor filming location used in Home and Away is publicly accessible at Palm Beach. Here is a complete guide to each one — where to find it, what you'll recognise from the show, and what to expect on your visit.
Summer Bay Beach
The heart of the show — nearly 2km of golden sand where most beach scenes are filmed.
Summer Bay Surf Club
The Palm Beach Surf Life Saving Club — known worldwide as the Summer Bay Surf Club.
Alf's Bait Shop
Stone the flaming crows — the real exterior of Alf Stewart's iconic bait shop, unchanged since 1988.
Barrenjoey Lighthouse
The 1881 sandstone lighthouse atop the headland — breathtaking 360° views across Broken Bay.
Character Houses
Real residential properties whose exteriors serve as Summer Bay's character homes throughout the series.
Pittwater & Boat Ramp
The tranquil western side of the peninsula — where boating storylines and water scenes are filmed.
1. Summer Bay Beach (Palm Beach)
The beach is the absolute heart of the show and the first place every visitor wants to see. Palm Beach stretches nearly two kilometres from the boat ramp at the southern end to the base of Barrenjoey Headland in the north, and virtually the entire length has featured in scenes over the show's run. The ocean here faces east and receives a consistent swell that makes it popular with surfers — the same surf that rolls through in the background of Summer Bay's beach scenes year-round.
Stand at the midpoint of the beach and look north toward the headland and lighthouse: that is the exact angle used for many of the show's establishing shots of Summer Bay. The beach is real, public, patrolled by volunteer surf lifesavers in summer, and open year-round. There is no admission charge, no gift shop, no artificial staging — just a beautiful working Australian beach that happens to be one of the most filmed locations in television history.
2. Summer Bay Surf Club (Palm Beach SLSC)
The exterior of the Palm Beach Surf Life Saving Club is the single most recognised building in Australian television. Appearing in virtually every episode as the exterior of the Summer Bay Surf Club, this modest, well-maintained building at the northern end of the beachfront has been a constant visual anchor for the show since its first season. The white-rendered facade, the car park, the approach path from the beach — all instantly recognisable to viewers worldwide.
It's worth noting that the building is an active, functioning surf life saving club — not a preserved film set. Volunteer lifesavers are based here, and during summer months the club operates its patrols from this location. The juxtaposition of real community life with global television fame is precisely what makes visiting in person such a distinctive experience.
3. Alf's Bait Shop
For long-time viewers, few moments on the tour are as emotionally resonant as standing in front of the exterior of Alf Stewart's bait and tackle shop. This modest shopfront — whose exterior has served as Alf's bait shop in every season of the show since 1988 — sits just a short walk from the beach and looks exactly as it appears on screen: unpretentious, entirely authentic, and unmistakably Australian. The lack of any film-set glamour is the point. It's a real shop in a real community, and its appearance on screen has never required any dressing or staging beyond what naturally exists.
4. Barrenjoey Headland & Lighthouse
The sandstone headland rising from the northern tip of Palm Beach is one of the area's most dramatic natural features, and one that has featured in Home and Away repeatedly as a backdrop for significant storyline moments — particularly those involving characters who need a view to match the gravity of what they're facing.
The walk to the lighthouse summit takes approximately 25 minutes each way along a well-maintained gravel path, ascending around 100 metres in elevation. The reward is extraordinary: 360-degree panoramic views across Broken Bay, Pittwater, the Hawkesbury River entrance, and the endless Pacific Ocean. The lighthouse itself, built in 1881 from locally quarried sandstone, is heritage-listed and one of the finest examples of colonial maritime architecture on the NSW coast.
5. Character Houses
Throughout the show's run, the exteriors of various residential properties around Palm Beach have served as the homes of Summer Bay's characters — the Fletcher house, the Morgan residence, the Parata home, and many others. While all interior scenes are filmed at studio sets in Redfern, these real houses provide the authentic suburban context that grounds Summer Bay's fictional geography in an entirely believable physical world. Our guides know which houses have been used for which characters, and pointing them out to guests — especially long-time viewers who recognise them immediately — is one of the more joyful moments of the tour.
6. Pittwater & The Boat Ramp
The western, Pittwater side of Palm Beach offers a completely different visual character from the ocean side — calm, reflective water, dense surrounding bushland, and the quiet atmosphere of a working waterway. The boat ramp and jetty at the southern end of Palm Beach have featured in countless boating scenes throughout the series, and the Pittwater foreshore appears regularly in scenes requiring a backdrop of still water rather than open surf.
When Does Home and Away Film at Palm Beach?
Understanding the filming schedule is the key to maximising your chances of seeing production in action during your visit. The information below is based on Cooee Tours' own observational records over many years of running tours to Palm Beach.
| Day | Filming Probability | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | ~50% chance | Most productive filming day — early morning setups common |
| Tuesday | ~50% chance | Full day outdoor shoots most likely on this day |
| Wednesday | ~33% chance | Shorter outdoor sessions; crew often transitions to studio by afternoon |
| Thursday / Friday | Unlikely | Studio-based filming days; outdoor Palm Beach sessions very rare |
| Late June / Early July | No filming | Annual 2-week production hiatus — outdoor sets remain in place |
The filming schedule is never publicly released by Channel 7 or the production company, and it changes week to week based on weather conditions, storyline requirements, and actor availability. Even on days when no filming is occurring, all outdoor sets remain permanently in place — the Surf Club exterior, Alf's Bait Shop, and character house exteriors are always there to be visited and photographed.
"Even without cameras rolling, Palm Beach delivers. The sets are always there — and the beach is genuinely one of the most beautiful in Australia."— Cooee Tours Guest Review, 2025
Tips for Visiting Summer Bay in 2026
📋 Essential Visitor Checklist
- Book a Mon–Wed tour for maximum filming chance
- Arrive at Palm Beach before 10am to catch early setups
- Pack sunscreen SPF 50+, hat, sunglasses — always
- Wear comfortable shoes for the lighthouse walk
- Bring a fully charged camera or phone
- Carry a reusable water bottle — refill points available
- Stay quiet and still when cameras are rolling
- Keep your distance from crew equipment and cables
- Never use flash during takes or rehearsals
- Respect actors — they are at work, not on show
- Budget for lunch — excellent cafes line the beachfront
- Avoid late June / early July — annual filming break
Getting to Palm Beach from Melbourne
Palm Beach is a day trip from Sydney — which means Melbourne visitors need to factor in the Sydney leg of their journey. The most practical approach for Melbourne travellers is to fly into Sydney (Qantas, Jetstar, and Virgin Australia all offer frequent direct services, typically 1 hour 15 minutes) and then either join one of our guided tours departing from Sydney CBD, or self-drive the approximately 75-minute journey north along the B31.
For those doing a broader east coast road trip from Melbourne to Sydney, Palm Beach makes an excellent final destination on the northward journey — sitting at the very tip of Sydney's Northern Beaches and offering a spectacular way to conclude a coastal drive.
Self-Drive vs Guided Tour
Palm Beach is freely accessible to the public, and self-driving visitors can absolutely explore the filming locations independently. However, there are compelling reasons why the guided tour experience delivers significantly more value. Our guides know the exact spots used for specific scenes, can identify which houses belong to which characters, have historical knowledge spanning the entire run of the show, and can advise in real time on filming etiquette if production is active. The difference between arriving at Palm Beach with a map and arriving with someone who has visited hundreds of times is the difference between seeing a location and truly understanding it.
Ready to Visit Summer Bay in Person?
Join thousands of fans who've experienced the real Palm Beach with Cooee Tours. Expert guides, luxury coaches, 3–4 hours at all filming locations. Rated 4.9★ from 412+ reviews.
The History of Palm Beach & Summer Bay
The name "Summer Bay" predates the television series by more than 130 years. Scottish settlers arriving at Palm Beach in 1852 are said to have named the bay "Summer Bay" because it was summertime in Scotland when they departed — despite the fact that they arrived during Australian winter. The show's creators adopted this historical name for their fictional community when the series was developed in the late 1980s.
Palm Beach itself was chosen as the filming location through a combination of its remarkable natural beauty and its practical accessibility from Sydney's studio facilities. The peninsula's narrow geography — ocean on one side, calm water on the other — creates a visually distinctive environment that reads immediately as a self-contained coastal community, exactly the setting the show required. The decision to anchor the outdoor filming to a single real location (rather than constructing a purpose-built set) proved extraordinarily successful, giving the show a genuine sense of place that has anchored it for 37 years.
The show has launched the careers of many major Australian actors who began their careers at Summer Bay. Chris Hemsworth played Kim Hyde from 2004 to 2007 before going on to become the MCU's Thor. Isla Fisher played Shannon Reed in the early 1990s before her Hollywood career. Heath Ledger, Guy Pearce, Naomi Watts, and Simon Baker all appeared in the show's early seasons. The list of alumni who passed through Palm Beach on their way to international careers is one of the most remarkable in Australian television history.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is filming guaranteed on my visit?
No — the filming schedule is confidential and variable. Monday and Tuesday offer the best odds (approximately 50%), Wednesday around 33%. Even without filming, all outdoor sets remain in place and Palm Beach is spectacular year-round.
Can I walk up to cast members?
Please don't approach actors during working hours. They are on location to film, not to meet fans. Our guides will advise on respectful viewing practices if filming is active — maintaining distance and staying quiet is appreciated by the production team and ensures continued access for future visitors.
How long does the lighthouse walk take?
Approximately 45–50 minutes return at a comfortable pace. The path gains about 100 metres in elevation on a gravel track. Good walking shoes are recommended. The views from the summit are extraordinary and well worth the effort.
Is Palm Beach suitable for families with young children?
Absolutely. The beach is patrolled in summer, the terrain is flat and accessible (except for the optional lighthouse walk), and younger fans of the show are always particularly excited to see the real Summer Bay. Most families find the guided tour an excellent way to experience Palm Beach with children.
What is the best month to visit Palm Beach?
For a combination of warm weather, calm seas, and strong likelihood of filming, March and April (early autumn) offer an excellent balance — temperatures around 22–26°C, thinner crowds than peak summer, beautiful light for photography, and consistent production schedules before the June/July break.
