Marcoola Beach: Swimming, Parking, Dogs and Things to Do

Marcoola Beach is a long, quiet surf beach on the Sunshine Coast, north of Maroochydore, with a surf club, two beachfront parks and parkland behind the dunes. It is free to visit, and it is a quieter, open stretch of beach surrounded by parkland.

The easy place to start is the Marcoola Surf Life Saving Club on Marcoola Esplanade, with playground, barbecues, toilets and showers at Felix Parry Park right beside it. The name is a coined one, a mix of Maroochydore and Coolum, the two towns it sits between.

Can you swim at Marcoola Beach?

Yes, between the flags when the beach is patrolled. Marcoola Beach is patrolled seasonally, and the surf club’s volunteer lifesavers patrol from September until May. Patrol times change, so check BeachSafe before you go.

This is an open surf beach, so waves and rips change from day to day. Swim between the red and yellow flags, follow the lifesavers and lifeguards, and never swim alone. If the beach is not patrolled when you arrive, choose a patrolled beach such as Maroochydore Beach or Coolum Beach.

Marcoola Surf Life Saving Club

The club is at 64 Marcoola Esplanade, at beach access 103, and the bar and bistro look over the beach from an outdoor deck. The bistro serves lunch and dinner every day and has a dedicated kids menu. Opening times are on the club’s Eat, Drink and Play page.

The club’s dining helps fund its volunteer patrols, which makes it an easy choice for a meal after a swim.

Felix Parry Park and Marcoola Reserve

Felix Parry Park is a small park on the Coastal Pathway, just south of the surf club. It has a shade-sail playground with a climbing tower and spinner, a slide, a seesaw and rockers and swings, plus open grass for kicking a ball. There are shelters, barbecues and picnic tables, public toilets and beach showers, and beach access points 104 and 105 lead onto the sand.

Marcoola Reserve, also called Surfair Park, is further south, reached from Sunset Strip, Warana Way and Green Turtle Place. It has a play fort with a climbing net and monkey bars, a sand play area, swings, a basketball half-court, a netball hoop and a handball court. There are picnic tables, natural shade, public toilets and a beach shower, and beach access points 112 to 115.

Walking the beach

Beach access points 98 to 112 run along Marcoola Beach, so there is a long stretch of sand to walk and plenty of quiet corners away from the surf club. The Coastal Pathway runs behind the beach through both parks if you would rather walk or ride on the flat.

Mount Coolum rises just to the north, and part of Mount Coolum National Park lies inside the Marcoola locality. For the climb, see Mount Coolum summit walk.

Is Marcoola Beach dog friendly?

Only partly. On the beach at Marcoola, dogs must be on a leash. Council’s beach page lists an off-leash stretch just to the north, between beach access points 97 and 98, at set times: 5 am to 8 am and 5 pm to 8 pm, or as shown on signs. Council’s off-leash list gives the same stretch (Wave Crescent to Merchants Parade, Mount Coolum) as 5 am to 9 am and 4 pm to 8 pm, so follow the signs on the day.

• If you would like a fenced run, the Marcoola Dog Park at Keith Royal Oval on Keith Royal Drive is off-leash at all times.
• Where an area is not shown as off-leash on council’s map, a dog must be on a leash.
• Dogs are not allowed in children’s playgrounds or picnic and barbecue areas, so keep them out of the play and shelter areas at Felix Parry Park and Marcoola Reserve.
• Carry your own waste bags, because council’s dispensers can run empty. Off-leash dogs must be supervised and wear their council registration tag.
• Fines apply: $863 for an off-leash dog in an on-leash area and $345 for being in a prohibited area or not carrying a waste bag.

Council’s live dog map at pets.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au shows the current areas. For a beach with a longer off-leash stretch, see Coolum Beach, or Mudjimba Beach to the south.

Planning your visit

• How long: a couple of hours for a swim and the playground; a half day with lunch at the surf club.
• Best time: when the beach is patrolled, which is the safe choice for swimming.
• What to bring: sunscreen, a hat, water, swimmers and a towel. The parks have shelters, barbecues and some natural shade.
• Food: the surf club bistro, plus restaurants and takeaway outlets nearby.
• Accessibility: council’s park pages do not list accessible features, so ring council on (07) 5475 7272 if you need details.

Getting there and parking

Marcoola is about 113 km by road north of the Brisbane CBD, which is about 95 minutes by car without traffic. From Maroochydore it is about 16 km, around 20 minutes by car. David Low Way is the main road into the suburb.

There is parking along Felix Parry Park and street parking at Marcoola Reserve. See the council pages for Felix Parry Park and Marcoola Reserve.

By bus, Translink route 620 between Maroochydore and Noosa Heads stops on David Low Way at Sunset Strip, Petrie Avenue and Lorraine Avenue in Marcoola. Check the timetable for the day you are travelling.

Nearby

• Mudjimba Beach – the next patrolled beach south, with a playground and Old Woman Island offshore.
• Coolum Beach – a patrolled surf beach to the north with a boardwalk and a long off-leash dog stretch.
• Mount Coolum – the summit walk with coastal views.
• Maroochydore Beach – the patrolled beach near the river mouth, with cafes close by.
• Peregian Beach – further north along David Low Way.
• More coast: all beaches, the Sunshine Coast pages and things to do on the Sunshine Coast.

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