9 of the Friendliest Towns To Retire In Australia

In Australia, some towns make retirement feel less isolated and more connected from the outset. In New South Wales, that might look like coastal festivals in Ballina or literary events in Bowral. And in Victoria, that might look like cycling the Great Southern Rail Trail in Leongatha or spending Saturday mornings at Shepparton Parkrun. Together with places like Alice Springs in the Northern Territory, these towns show how retirement in Australia can feel active, social, and full of reasons to get out and enjoy the day.

Forster, New South Wales

From regularly going for walks across the bridge connecting Forster to Tuncurry to strolling along the headland path to Bennett’s Head to packing snacks and eating while watching the ocean or the shimmering waters of Wallis Lake, Forster is an incredible place to spend one’s sunset years. Forster Spring Festival, typically held in September along Wharf Street, features crafts, delicious food, and live entertainment. Keen to catch the latest releases on the big screen? Great Lakes Cinema 3, just across the bridge in Tuncurry, is loved for its comfy seats, pocket-friendly tickets, and candy bar. Take note that you can mingle with your playing buddies at the Forster Tuncurry Golf Club, and then sit down to delicious after-match meals at the on-site restaurant.

Ballina, New South Wales

Ballina is an easy choice for retirees. From the Seniors Music Muster, which typically takes place at Ballina RSL Club and celebrates the power of music to connect, uplift, and bring people together, to the Ballina Seniors Week Lunch, which features entertainment, raffles, door prizes and often a relaxed two-course lunch in the Ballina RSL Auditorium, Ballina offers several opportunities for coming together and enjoying well-planned community events.

A pleasant coastal town in the Northern Rivers region of NSW, this tight community offers nautical charm and epic water-themed adventures. Residents can walk, jog, or cycle the Ballina Coastal Pathway, enjoy an afternoon game at the well-maintained Ballina Golf and Sports Club, or volunteer at the Ballina Naval and Maritime Museum. The best part is that Lismore, which functions as an inland administrative and education hub, is just 30 minutes away.

Leongatha, Victoria

Think of early-morning strolls along the tree-lined McCartin Street, occasionally sitting down to some veggie quinoa bowl at the adorable Number 9 Dream Cafe on Bair Street, or regularly cycling the Great Southern Rail Trail Leongatha Trail Head, which meanders through lush forests, rolling farmland, and charming small towns with interesting sites and attractions. Take note that the South Gippsland Shire Council Seniors Festival, which takes place in October, features mood-lifting music, a friendly paddle sport suitable for all skill levels, and movement classes tailored for older adults.

Mountain View Leongatha, situated on a hilltop 2 minutes from town, is an exciting boutique lifestyle community offering a range of well-designed accommodation options, including modern villas and apartments. As if that’s not enough, Leongatha Golf Club is a classic Vern Morcom design that has long been a hidden treasure in Victoria’s South Gippsland region. Finally, although Leongatha has decent amenities to keep an empty nester comfortable, Melbourne is just two hours away.

Shepparton, Victoria

From free Culture Cooking Workshops, where residents learn new dishes, explore flavours, and share stories, to the Shepparton Albanian Harvest Festival, which entertains participants with traditional Albanian music and dancing, along with a fruit and vegetable market offering fresh produce grown and packed by local farmers, even an avid homebody in Shepparton will have every reason to get out and mingle. Every Saturday, residents walk, jog, run, or wheel 5 kilometres at Shepparton Parkrun, a free, fun-filled event held at Victoria Park Lake.

Meanwhile, Shepparton Art Museum is a cool place to mill around, especially to admire some nice art pieces by local and regional artists. The same holds for the Australian Botanic Gardens, a relaxing and fabulous place for exploring nature, whether by walking, biking, or skateboarding. The best part is that both Albury-Wodonga and Melbourne, with commercial airports, are two hours away.

Port Macquarie, New South Wales

Apart from having the world’s first hospital dedicated solely to the care and preservation of koalas, Port Macquarie is a vibrant town with beautiful beaches and several recurring festivals that bring residents together to dance, eat, shop, and have all kinds of fun. Festival of the Sun, which often draws some of the biggest names in the Aussie music scene, is the longest-running BYO festival in NSW. Meanwhile, Glasshouse Arts, Conference and Entertainment Centre, a compact space with multiple seating and no blind spots, comprises a 588-seat performing arts theatre, a large regional art gallery, a studio theatre, conference facilities, and a community workshop.

Also, the Port Macquarie Golf Club, an 18-hole beauty offering a seamless blend of challenging play, is a cool spot to practice your swings regularly. On healthcare access, Port Macquarie Base Hospital (PMBH) recently became only the fifth in Australia to receive a World Stroke Organisation (WSO) Angels Platinum Award for meeting the highest benchmarks in treatment and care. The best part? Port Macquarie residents have a median age of 48, with those aged 60 and above comprising 36% of the population.

Warrnambool, Victoria

With a population of about 35,000, Warrnambool offers a coastal city feel without metro congestion. A retiree will be right on the ocean with decent sandy beaches to explore, including Lady Bay, which offers protected swimming, surfing, yachting, and more. The Warrnambool May Racing Carnival, often called “The Bool,” is a three-day jamboree that draws thousands of racing enthusiasts every year, who come to view Australasia’s premier jumps horses and enjoy Australian grass-roots racing at its finest.

Located on Victoria’s iconic Great Ocean Road region, Warrnambool scores big on accessibility and convenience, especially with Melbourne being a 3-hour drive, and a V-Line Train that plies the Melbourne-to-Warrnambool route up to 6 times per day. You may already know that Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum is Victoria’s most active maritime museum and displays Australia’s richest collection of shipwreck artefacts. At the same time, Deakin University’s Warrnambool campus, famous for its stunning natural setting on the Hopkins River, is a nice place to study or get a part-time teaching job.

Bowral, New South Wales

Think of a compact town centre that is easy to navigate on foot, beautiful heritage houses, an art and culture scene that is livelier and more vibrant than a community of the same size, and a strong literary community with many bookstores per capita. Bowral is the cultural hub of the Southern Highlands region, an area with a strong reputation for books, writing, and literary culture. The Southern Highlands Writers’ Festival is held annually in Bowral. It attracts well-known Australian authors, publishers, and readers, while the neighboring town of Berrima, just 10 minutes down the road, is one of the key towns in the Southern Highlands, widely described as Australia’s first ‘Booktown.’

Still on culture, the Tulip Time Festival in Bowral is famous as one of Australia’s oldest flower festivals. It is a cinematic display of over 80,000 mass-planted tulips and annuals in Corbett Gardens and has been a staple since 1961. The Bookshop Bowral is an adorable place with a carefully curated range of books and regular author events, while New Empire Cinema (often just called Empire Theatre) is one of Australia’s oldest cinemas. Remember, there’s always the chance to play with friends at Bowral Golf Club, a scenic and well-established 18-hole golf course in a beautiful parkland setting.

Alice Springs, Northern Territory

Alice Springs has long been known for its strong sense of community and continues to preserve that reputation in several ways. August is Seniors Month, when the town council celebrates its silver citizens and their contributions to the local community with a series of special events. Alice Springs Public Library, located on the corner of Leichhardt Terrace and Gregory Terrace, offers a variety of senior-friendly activities and workshops, including family history, author talks, crafts, and reading groups. In the same breadth, Alice Springs 50 plus Community Centre, managed by the Alice Springs Senior Citizens Association, National Seniors Central Australia, and the University of the Third Age (U3A), is known for a jam-packed weekly program of activities and classes from woodwork and tai-chi to bridge and computer classes.

It also offers bush-based activities, including gliding, clay shooting, and archery. The Bangtail Muster, a staple May Day event that brings together schools, local businesses, and community groups to parade through the Todd Mall, has been a cultural staple for more than 65 years. Moreover, you can occasionally mingle with lizards and pythons at the Alice Springs Reptile Centre, or float down the Todd River, typically the venue for the Henley on Todd Regatta, which bills itself as the world’s only dry river boating event.

Drouin, Victoria

Drouin has beautiful local parks where one can mill around in the middle of the week and an estate layout that makes it quite family-friendly. You will interact with easy-going residents, who are happy to chat and look out for one another. Moreover, it is quieter than places like Clyde, and you can still get to Melbourne CBD in slightly more than an hour. During the Ficifolia Festival, Drouin comes alive to celebrate the flowering Ficifolia Gums with a week of free community activities culminating in a lively street parade and party.

Also, the Drouin Golf & Country Club, boasting a quality course and a brand-new clubhouse, is fast becoming one of the region's golfing jewels. Its gently undulating landscape makes for easy walking and therefore suits all ages. There’s the Drouin Craft and Produce Market, a popular monthly market in the heart of Drouin that offers a range of fresh local produce and beautiful handmade crafts. If you feel like showing some love, Little Sherwood Drouin Petting Zoo & Cottages has several adorable animals you can pat and feed.

So, while you certainly need amenities like high-quality hospitals and reliable public transport, no words can describe the importance of being part of a friendly, supportive community that makes you feel cherished, connected, and genuinely at home. Fortunately, Australia is dotted with several such communities, from Alice Springs to the twin towns of Forster and Tuncurry, known for some of the best Sydney rock oysters in Australia.