24-hours in Bathurst, NSW: Where to eat, shop, stay and get pampered

If, a few weeks ago, you’d asked me what I knew about Bathurst, my response would have been something along the lines of; ‘isn’t that where they host that motor racing event?’

Growing up in Australia, the only time I heard the word Bathurst was when it was accompanied by the number 1000. The annual racing event was what the city was known for, and that remained the extent of my knowledge. That was until recently, when Bathurst seemed to be coming up in conversation more frequently.

A friend of a friend mentioned a cool brewery that served award-winning beers, and travel publications were singing the praises of new restaurants.

It felt as though Bathurst was quietly reinventing itself, with a wave of up-and-coming distilleries, breweries, wineries, and fine dining venues.

I had to find out for myself. So, I asked a friend to pack her weekend bag, and together we made the easy three-hour drive from Sydney.

At first glance, Bathurst looked much like any other regional Australian town. Its main street was lined with cafes, bakeries, outback retail brands and souvenir shops, giving little away about the transformation taking place beyond it.

But as we ventured further, a different side of the city emerged: a thriving retail scene, a boutique stocked with luxury designers including Balenciaga, a 1950s-inspired fine dining restaurant where truffle is shaved over every dish, and an award-winning brewery that’s hosted some of Australia’s best-known comedians including Akmal and Troy Kinne.

“Bathurst is climbing in the food scene,” said Jo, venue manager at Reckless Brewing Co, an independent craft brewery that’s gradually evolving its menu from American diner classics to a more refined dining offering. “Between restaurants like Norma Joan and Bootleg Dining, as well as the changes we’re making here, there’s a real shift happening.”

After a weekend of eating, drinking and exploring my way around the city, one thing became clear: Jo was right. So if you’re thinking about a trip to Bathurst, don’t hesitate. And here’s how I’d recommend spending your weekend:

Indulge in a Parisian-inspired dinner at Norma Joan

You’ve arrived, checked in and it’s time for dinner. Change into something smart casual and head to main street for a meal at Norma Joan.

Founded in 2024 by local chef Michael Madden, an alumnus of Neil Perry’s kitchen, Norma Joan is a 1950s Parisian-inspired venue that also serves as a tribute to Michael’s grandmothers, Norma and Joan. It’s one of the venues breathing new life into Bathurst’s food scene, with an elevated menu that takes familiar dishes and gives them a refined twist.

“Both my nans were instrumental in me becoming a chef,” Michael explained. “They were both amazing cooks, and Norma especially was one of the best I’ve ever known.”

Michael treats recipes from both grandmothers like heirlooms, and adding his own personal touches to create a cross-generational menu that honours the past while looking towards the future.

Michael’s “dip” isn’t the usual appetiser, it’s now a rich blend of mashed sweet potato, fried chickpeas, pomegranate and miso, served alongside crostini. The result is a deceptively simple dish that’s almost impossible to stop eating. While his croquettes don’t depend on cheese for flavour, they draw their richness from the corned beef, the topping of sauerkraut and the fine layer of thermidor sauce.

Then there’s the ambience: a dimly lit room with red and black furnishings that feel like a jazz lounge.

“It’s the kind of place that I imagined my grandmothers visiting in their 20s,” Michael added.

My recommendations? The sweet potato dip, corned beef croquettes, prawn agnalotti, the shoestring fries with a grating of truffles (!!) and the dumplings for dessert!

Don’t forget to book as the venue has limited seating and can get busy on a Friday and Saturday night.

Spend the morning shopping along the main street

When you think of shopping in Australia, the mind naturally turns to Sydney and Melbourne. I won’t go as far as to say Bathurst rivals the retail offerings of the major cities, but it certainly punches above its weight. For a regional Australian town, its shopping scene is surprisingly diverse.

On the main street itself, there’s an upmarket gift store called Juniper + Stone selling high-end Australian-made goods from herbal teas and linen pillows to sparkling wine and gourmet honey infused with chilli or strawberry. A stroll away is La Mode, selling designer clothing from Balenciaga to Dea the Label, Elka Collective and Alohas. For more affordable options along the main street, there’s Intersport, Kmart, the Red Cross Shop, and Angus and Coote.

Meanwhile, if you venture beyond the main strip and into Bathurst’s shopping centre, the selection becomes even more surprising. You’ll find Pandora, Strandbags, Dotti, Just Jeans, Sassy My Style, etc – you name it, Bathurst likely has it!

You could easily spend a morning shopping in Bathurst and ducking into the many cafes to fuel yourself with coffee and baked goods.

Unwind with a massage and facial at Macquarie Medi Spa Bathurst

A most welcome surprise during my weekend in Bathurst was the Macquarie Medi Spa, owned by Bathurst-born and Sydney-trained beautician Karla McDiarmid. Karla brings the luxury and expertise of a 5-star Sydney spa to Bathurst, with more than 30 treatments on the menu, including one of the most attentive massages I’ve ever received in Australia.

Karla purchased the property with the ambition of creating “a little slice of heaven” in Bathurst. And she’s well and truly achieved it.

Stepping into the spa from the main street, you’re welcomed with an immediate calm. As though the space is sound proofed (and it very well could be), the sounds of cars and people are replaced with soft soothing music playing over the speakers and the warm smiles of therapists.

Once you’re checked in, you’re guided to a quiet seating area where you’re given the choice of grapefruit-infused citrus water or a calming tea. I chose the citrus water, simply because I wasn’t in the mood for tea, and settled in before my treatment.

Karla told me that the spa has undergone a major makeover in the years since Covid, including an expansion that separates the beauty and wellness services from skin treatments such as skin needling, tanning and LED light therapy. She also created a beautiful retail section at the front of the spa, stocked with popular beauty products ranging from Vida Glow marine collagen to Dermalogica moisturisers and more.

“We’re a full-service spa like you’d expect to find in a 5-star hotel in Sydney, but we have such close ties with our clients. They’re such beautiful customers and it’s like a real community,” Karla explained. “We have some of the best therapists out this way, including two of the best masseuses, and our massages are always booked out. We’ve even had to go out and find a third girl to help us keep up with demand.”

Once I’d finished my drink, Frances, my masseuse for the next hour, welcomed me and guided me to the treatment room. Frances has worked with Macquarie Medi Spa since 2001, when she finished beauty school, and says she’s developed genuine friendships with many of her clients over the years.

She talked me through the next 55 minutes, and we covered off my problem areas before she handed me a daily affirmation card, one of the small touches Karla has introduced to her services that makes such a positive impact on the overall experience.

Mine fittingly read: “Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations.”

Then I stripped down to necessities, slipped beneath a heated blanket and Frances begin.

As I mentioned earlier, it was the best massage I’ve had in Australia, thanks to Frances’ expertise, regular check-ins on pressure and an incredibly relaxing start with three deep breathes of lavender oil.

The time flew, and before I knew it, I was getting dressed again, feeling noticeably more relaxed and calmer than when I’d arrived.

It was exactly the kind of reset I’d hoped for after a morning of exploring Bathurst, and a reminder than you don’t need to be in a major city to experience a 5-star treatment.

Unwind with a massage and facial at Macquarie Medi Spa Bathurst

A most welcome surprise during my weekend in Bathurst was the Macquarie Medi Spa, owned by Bathurst-born and Sydney-trained beautician Karla McDiarmid. Karla brings the luxury and expertise of a 5-star Sydney spa to Bathurst, with more than 30 treatments on the menu, including one of the most attentive massages I’ve ever received in Australia.

Karla purchased the property in 2002 with the ambition of creating “a little slice of heaven” in Bathurst. And she’s well and truly achieved it.

Stepping into the spa from the main street, you’re welcomed with an immediate calm. As though the space is sound proofed (and it very well could be), the sounds of cars and people are replaced with soft soothing music playing over the speakers and the warm smiles of therapists.

Once you’re checked in, you’re guided to a quiet seating area where you’re given the choice of citrus infused water or a calming tea. I chose the citrus water, simply because I wasn’t in the mood for tea, and settled in before my treatment.

Karla told me that the spa has undergone a major makeover in 2025 , including an expansion that separates the relaxation facials and wellness services from the advanced skin treatments such as skin needling, LED light therapy & the automated spray tanning booth. She also created a beautiful retail section at the front of the spa with a Brow & Makeup area , stocked with popular beauty products ranging from Vida Glow marine collagen to professional skincare brands O Cosmedics, Sothys Paris & Dermalogica & hundreds of gifts & candles to browse.

“We’re a full-service spa like you’d expect to find in a 5-star hotel in Sydney, but we have such close ties with our clients. They’re such beautiful customers and it’s like a real community,” Karla explained. “We have some of the best therapists out this way, including two of the best masseuses in Central West NSW, and our massages are always booked out.

Once I’d finished my drink, Frances, my masseuse for the next hour, welcomed me and guided me to the treatment room. Frances has worked with Macquarie Medi Spa since 2023 and says she’s developed genuine friendships with many of her clients over the years.

She talked me through the next 55 minutes, and we covered off my problem areas before she handed me a daily affirmation card, one of the small touches Karla has introduced to her services that makes such a positive impact on the overall experience.

Mine fittingly read: “Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations.”

Then I stripped down to necessities, slipped beneath a heated blanket and Frances begin.

As I mentioned earlier, it was the best massage I’ve had in Australia, thanks to Frances’ expertise, regular check-ins on pressure and an incredibly relaxing start with three deep breathes of Dermalogica’s Soothing Additive with lavender , Eucalyptus & Sandalwood.

The time flew, and before I knew it, I was getting dressed again, feeling noticeably more relaxed and calmer than when I’d arrived.

It was exactly the kind of reset I’d hoped for after a morning of exploring Bathurst, and a reminder than you don’t need to be in a major city to experience a 5-star treatment.

Not just burgers and beers at Reckless Brewing Co.

“It’s one of the best places I’ve ever worked,” said Jo, an employee at Reckless Brewing Co. And it’s easy to see why.

Reckless has a really relaxed, community feel to it and serves as a central point for local entertainment with comedy shows, trivia and events like Beatle Fest bringing people through the doors.

The staff are genuinely lovely and really knew their beer. They happily talked us through the different flavours, particularly their award-winning choices. They took the time to make us personalised recommendations, even helping a non-beer drinker like me enjoy the XPA, a subtle and fruity option.

As a brewery, the food menu served a lot of expected pub classics from pizzas to wings and burgers. However, mixed in were a few surprises courtesy of Jo’s background in Sydney-based hospitality.

“We really wanted to offer more in the menu and even bring about options that you’d expect to find on a Sydney menu but not necessary in a small town,” she explained.

That’s how locally unique dishes such as Sydney Rock Oysters, Ploughman’s Boards made up of curated meats, cheeses and dips, as well as the Falafel burger made the range of options.

I opted for the Falafelicious Burger and made it Vegan by swapping out the tzatziki for hummus, while my friend went for the Dirty Bird chicken burger packed with buttermilk fried chicken, slaw and peri peri mayonnaise. We were both satisfied by our choices and especially the fries that came with a delicious herbal seasoning.

Beyond the food, community and entertainment, Reckless Brewery Co.’s decor was fun. The venue has a slightly old-school Western feel, with timber, records and old cowboy movie posters hanging across the main seating area. There’s a whole section dedicated to car memorabilia, paying homage to the nearby racing track of Mt Panorama.

Reckless Brewery Co. is a fun space, and great place to spend an afternoon where it’s with the family, family or just to enjoy a local drink.

Spend the afternoon gin, whisky and wine tasting along the Oberon Trail

About 15 minutes down the road from Reckless Brewery Co. is Bathurst Grange Distillery, a working sheep farm that also produces its own gin and whisky. The owner went to great lengths and research to determine the best methods to create his own alcohol and the results are well worth the effort.

Everything here is done by hand, from growing their own juniper to producing their gin and whisky. The tasting was a highlight, particularly the Blue Mountain Gin, which gets its striking blue colour from butterfly pea flower — although, amusingly, it turns a different colour once you add tonic. They also make some more unusual spirits, including a chocolate whisky where the alcohol sits with chocolate for three months to absorb the flavour.

With wood-fired pizzas, gelato and a growing reputation, the distillery made Tourism Australia’s 2026 Hot List, it’s a lovely place to slow down and enjoy the farm setting. It laso has a little petting farm with miniature horses for the kids, making it an easy stop for families.

Further along the trail is Renzaglia Wines which keeps things much smaller. It’s a husband-and-wife operation, with their cellar door opening to visitors just once a week, so bookings are essential. We didn’t have time for a tasting, but the group beside us seemed to be thoroughly enjoying theirs and that’s always a good sign.

Wrap up your trip with dinner at O’Connell Hotel

By night, this classic Aussie pub is all fairy lights, a crackling bonfire and locals gathered around with their families. Kids played outside while their parents ate, giving the place that unmistakable community-pub feel.

The venue has been running on and off since 1865, with the original bar once sitting behind the building before the pub was extended. These days, the rustic venue serves a traditional pub menu, and they certainly know how to nail the classics.

My friend ordered the chargrilled scotch fillet with mash, vegetables and pepper sauce, cooked medium. The steak was cooked perfectly, and the pepper sauce was a banger. I opted for the roast pumpkin and beetroot salad, with the halloumi served on the side.

Chef Adam Cowan has been at the pub since 2023 and took over as licensee, manager and head chef late last year. Having trained and worked in Sydney before making a name for himself in the RSL scene, he knows his way around a classic pub feed. He changes the menu with the seasons, with plans for a summer-ier offering of sliders, tacos and pasta from September.

From heritage streetscapes to the world-famous circuit at Mount Panorama, Bathurst proves that regional NSW rewards those who linger. Pair your visit with a stay at The Isla on the South Coast, or venture west to heritage gems like Yallungah in Orange and the Kyah Boutique Hotel. Prefer the Southern Highlands? Explore Ardour Milton Park Bowral, Lawson’s Estate, or REST Private Escape. Coastal lovers can book Bangalay Luxury Villas, Marramarra Lodge, or Valentine’s romantic escapes, while Logan Brae Retreats, The Oaks Ranch, and our culinary destinations guide complete the picture of unforgettable regional travel.