Sunnyside North Beach
Sunnyside North Beach is a clothes-optional beach located at Mount Eliza, Port Philip Bay, in the State of Victoria, Australia. It is designated as a legal nudist beach[1] under the Nudity (Prescribed Areas) Act 1983.[2] It is the only clothes-optional beach on the east side of Port Philip Bay.
About the beach
Sunnyside North is a sheltered, secluded beach on the eastern side of Port Phillip, near Mount Eliza. It attracts many families and is a safe beach for swimming. There is a large grassed area to sunbathe and shady areas to sit south of the carpark, not in the clothes optional area. The clothing optional area is NOT where the carpark is. To get to the clothing optional area look for a narrow path . Ie Start walking back up the carpark with the water to your left and you will see the path. Continue along the narrow 1 foot wide winding path for about 400 metres and you will see the nude area. S 38 11.872, E 145 03.893
How to get there
The beach is near the end of Sunnyside Road, off Nepean Highway about 2.5 km south of Mount Eliza. The car park is in front of Sunnyside beach, which is not a nudist beach. Sunnyside North, the clothes optional beach is in the next cove which is a 10-minute bush walk from the carpark.
A path leads from the Sunnyside Beach carpark to Sunnyside North Beach around the point to the right (north). At high tide the beach is accessible via a path over the cliffs (although over recent years, erosion has taken its toll on this path and as of 2012, it is no longer continuous and pretty much unusable) at low tide you can also walk along the beach and over the rocks that divide the 2 beaches. Reasonably sturdy shoes are recommended.
Parking
The car park at Sunnyside Beach is too small as it has to cater for the non-nude beach next to it as well as the nude beach. In recent years the council has added parking restrictions from 10pm to 5am. Additional parking is available along Sunnyside Road, subject to local parking restrictions and vigilant parking inspectors. However the council has increased parking restrictions along this road forcing people to walk several hundred meters to reach the beach.
On nice, hot days parking can be a problem.
Facilities
There are unisex toilets at the Sunnyside Beach car park. The original public toilet facility was demolished and replaced in 2016.
The closest shops are at Mount Eliza. It is advisable to take all provisions for the day, including sunscreen.
References
External links
Coordinates: 38°11′48″S 145°03′57″E / 38.19667°S 145.06583°E