Location and measurement criteria

Valid beach or coastline areas

  • Coastline or beaches that front the ocean waterways of Bass Strait, Southern Ocean or Tasman Sea
  • Coastal bays with direct water access to the ocean waterways of Bass Strait, Southern Ocean or Tasman Sea, including as Port Phillip and Western Port
  • Sandy shores of coastal lakes which have permanent water access to the oceans or coastal bays defined above, such as sandy areas of the Gippsland Lakes system
  • The sandy mouths of rivers or sandy shorelines of inlets which open into the oceans or coastal bays defined above, such as Barwon River at Barwon Heads, the entrance to Anderson Inlet at Inverloch, Snowy River at Marlo, Develings Inlet at Mallacoota and Glenelg River at Nelson

Invalid beach or coastline areas

  • Inland river beaches, such as those along the Murray River
  • Beaches along the shoreline of land-locked lakes such as the Kerang Lakes, Lake Eildon and Lake Eppalock

Measurements

All measurements are conducted via the shortest walking distance to the coast across public land, along roads and walkways open to the public, through public parks, or walking within the boundaries of the accommodation property in question. In some cases, this shortest walking distance may be unsuitable for certain people, depending on factors including personal fitness, weather conditions and the state of access walkways, thus a longer route which exceeds 500 metres may need to be taken.

At the beach end, the measurements are taken from either the nearest presence of beach sand in the open, the high tide water mark or rocks or walls along the water's edge. These areas must all be accessible by walking along pathways, steps or through open space, but not by climbing or abseiling down cliff faces or steep embankments.

At the accommodation property end, the measurements are taken from either the entrance to the allotment of land the property is situated on or the part of the property which is closest to the beach. This may mean that in some cases, the actual place you stay in may be more that 500 metres from the beach if it is located at the distant end of a large allotment, such as in caravan parks that occupy large expanses of land.