Shaundawn

Hi all.
We think we have narrowed our search down to Port or Terrigal to live.
We have visited Port and really loved it, but worried it may not keep us occupied at the weekend. OH likes a quick pint after work but remember only the odd bar in the town. Dont get me wrong...we are not p*** heads but like a drink at the weekend too.
Have never been to Terrigal area. It seems more pricey house wise, but a lot more going on and being closer to Sydney seems handy. But maybe we would not go as often as we think anyway.
I know we would make a good life where ever we settled as we would be working monday to Friday anyway.
So does any one have any opinions etc.
Have also heard a rumour of a possible jet cat service going from Terrigal/Sydney.
Thanks to anyone who replies.
Dawn & Shaun

jellibaby

Hi there - we live in Port and have friends who live in Terrigal - I'll ask them to put in their point of view so you should get an all round view of BOTH places.

Port has loads of restaurants - in the winter they seem to close early (now is Winter of course) - weekends things stay open a bit more. Their is East Port Bowling club and Westport Club - they're Aussie style sports clubs where you get reduced price good food and booze - they are typically RSL styles clubs and they are everywhere in Aussie. There is also Panthers which is similar but more sports based. Pubs - there is the Beach House, Town Green Inn, Macquarie Hotel (not recommended), Finnigans Irish Tavern, Settlers Inn, Tacking Point Tavern, Fernhill Tavern - they are the ones I know of but I'm sure there are more. Then there are the food joints and to be honest there are TOO many to list. There is a cinema - the screen is big enough but the place is dated and could do with a revamp. But, the movies show fine on the screen and the sound system is OK. There are TWO shopping zones Settlement City and Port Central - for shopping areas they are small. (If you're a shop a holic you need a Westfield and Tuggerah is close to Terrigal.) There is new town being built just off the Pacific Highway which will also have lots of facilities as they need to attract people to move out of Port (3miles from CBD). South of Port is Lake Cathie and Bonny Hills - apart from a Woollies and a few small shops there is nothing to do there at night. Lighthouse Beach area does have food outlets but I've not spotted a pub as such. My personal experience of the Mid Coast is that it is closer to Sydney - commuter distance (about an hour) and as a result its busier and has a much larger population! Port has an airport with flights to Newcastle, Sydney and Brisbane so its got people who commute by flying to both major cities and come home at weekends. The nearest regular train service starts at Newcastle to Sydney. Port is 4.5 hours from North Sydney and 5.5 hours from Brisbane.

Personally - we researched and researched where to live and would not even THINK of going anywhere else now we've moved to Port. The beaches are awesome - there is loads to do during the day as its principally a tourist area (this is where Aussies come on holiday) - easy access to Brissie and Sydney - temperature is stable all year round - its cooler in Terrigal at the moment - daytime temps in Port are still 21-22 degrees but it was down to 6 last night!!!! We are not shopping nuts so are not bothered that we don't have a Dan Murphys or several dozen clothes shops - but we don't have a GOOD book shop either which is a pain - you won't find a Borders or Waterstones here but we do have two smaller ones including an Angus and Robertson. There is a huge Bunnings, we've got Art shops, RTA, 3 post offices, Harvery Normal, Oz Design, Plus in fact everything for the house inside and out. All of the car dealerships are here. We have Honda / BMW / Yamaha and Triumph motorcycle dealers - we have boat dealers too. On the other side of the Pacific highway is the Oxley highway and one of the best biking (motorbike) roads in NSW. Every year there is the Ironman Triathlon (if you're into fitness). There are pedal bike shops, health centres, a BASE and Private hospital plus all of the clinics that go with them. NBN TV are here. We have a huge public library and lots of gym and fitness centres. There is Panthers stadium which is where the local team play rugby league and its where the other events take place such as concerts. There are also soccer fields and hockey fields. Bowling is a big thing but then it is anywhere in NSW. There is a swimming club and a 50m olympic size outdoor heated pool. Port is still developing and there are lots of plans for growth and upgrading existing facilities. The Glass House cultural centre and theatre will open early next year too - thats in the CBD. There are dozens of real estate agents, all of the banks have a presence here too. Sitting on the Hastings River there are frequent boat trips and whale watching trips. Dolphins are seen daily on the river and at the moment its migrating humpback whale season too! For scuba the nearest is South West Rocks or Coffs Harbour - both of which boast huge populations of resident grey nurse sharks - not uncommon for 20-30 to be seen on a single dive.

Hope fully that has given you an overview of Port.

BadgeIsBack

Cracking review of Port!

My cousin has lived in Terrigal for over 15 years and has seen it gone from a quiet backwater in what the locals call 'God's playground' to quite a busy place where people have been escaping Sydney. It is now very expensive.

It is a tad too far to commute to the CBD but people do it and get some nice views too. For shopping trips it would be cool.

I loved Terrigal when I lived there for 2 months but when I returned after a 4 year break it seemed very crowded and the shopping centres seemed quite busy. The Tuggerah development was needed. The vibe was a higher pace of life. My cousin reckons it's a bit fake at times, lots of people with lots of money - but not much else going on. I think he would like to move further south to the N Shore suburbs and a more cosmopolitan lifestyle.

Gosford town centre the Central Coast gateway is a bit of a dive.

The nearby beaches of Avoca, Cincumber are great for families. they call them Avocado and Cucumber.

redissue

Can't offer any info on Port, but that has been well covered above. Terrigal is a fairly busy holiday place, expensive to live. There appears to be some trouble with kids and alcohol, esp. weekends and holidays. It is a bit like a tiny Blackpool, though with a nicer beach.

BadgeIsBack

This has increased this last 5 years. It's like any other place where there are plenty of places to hang out and drink/eat, a bit of cash to spend, and a little boredom on the fringes too. My cousin has the demands of a family but is a little bored.