NSW: dogs outdoors only, if the pub agrees.NSW law
Illustration (AI-generated): Pint, a ginger cavoodle, on a generic beach at sunset. Not a photo of any real Sydney beach.
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Can my dog go on this Sydney beach?

Sydney dog beach rules 2026–27: 29 beach sections across 7 councils.

Updated · every rule checked against the council source on

The 10-second version

  • Most Sydney surf beaches are no dogs, all year: Bondi, Bronte, Coogee, Maroubra, Cronulla, Manly and the rest.
  • Off-leash any time: Rowland Reserve (Bayview), Sandy Bay (Clontarf), Rose Bay foreshore, Lady Robinsons Beach dog area (Kyeemagh), Silver Beach dog area (Kurnell).
  • Timed spots change with daylight saving and weekends: Mona Vale South trial, Greenhills, Sirius Cove, Watsons Bay. Use the checker.

Sydney is tougher on beach dogs than Melbourne. There's no summer/winter switch: most surf beaches, from Bondi and Bronte to Coogee, Maroubra, Cronulla and Manly, are no-dog beaches all year. NSW law lets councils ban dogs from public bathing areas, and the coastal councils have done exactly that, with a short list of exceptions.

Those exceptions are the good bit. Some are off-leash at any hour, like the tidal flats at Rowland Reserve in Bayview, Sandy Bay at Clontarf, the Rose Bay foreshore, and the signposted dog areas at Kyeemagh and Kurnell. Others run on a timetable that changes with daylight saving (Mona Vale South, Greenhills, Clifton Gardens) or with weekends and public holidays (Sirius Cove and The Spit in Mosman). That's where the checker helps: pick a beach and it works out the answer for the current Sydney date and time, NSW public holidays included, with approximate sunrise and sunset where a council uses them.

Every rule comes from the council's own page, linked and dated. Where a council doesn't say what applies outside its off-leash hours, the checker shows Not stated rather than guessing. Councils change these orders, and trials such as Mona Vale South have end dates, so signs on the beach always win.

Heading out for a drink after? Here are Sydney's dog-friendly pubs, checked against each pub's own site. Wondering why dogs can sit in a beer garden but not inside? Read the NSW dogs-in-pubs law explainer.

Dog beaches open all year

“Open all year” means the council lists dogs as allowed off-leash there all year. Check local signs for closures, such as bird-nesting areas.

Northern Beaches Council

Manly to Palm Beach, Pittwater, Clontarf

Rules are all year, not seasonal. The council says dogs are prohibited on most ocean and harbour beaches; it lists about 30 off-leash areas, a few of them on sand. Mona Vale South is a timed trial.

Mona Vale Beach (South) trial area

Mona Vale · Signposted southern section only; on leash on the access paths from the South Mona Vale Headland off-leash area

Daylight saving (Oct–Apr), trial 14 Oct 2025 – 13 Oct 2027
Off-leash 5.30am–10am; off-leash 5pm–9pm; no dogs at other times
Source: Northern Beaches Council: Mona Vale Beach (South) dog off-leash area trial (council)
Rest of year, no daylight saving (Apr–Oct), trial 14 Oct 2025 – 13 Oct 2027
Off-leash 6am–10am; off-leash 4pm–7pm; no dogs at other times
Source: Northern Beaches Council: Mona Vale Beach (South) dog off-leash area trial (council)

Note: Trial area only. Dogs are prohibited on the rest of Mona Vale Beach at all times.

Check now: Mona Vale Beach (South) trial area
  • Mona Vale Beach (South) is a trial off-leash area. The council's trial page gives 14 Oct 2025 to 13 Oct 2027; its Oct 2025 news story said the trial ended 13 Oct 2026, so it appears to have been extended. Check the signs.
  • Mackerel Beach: dogs may walk on a leash by the shortest route between boats and the grassed strip at other times.

Mosman Council

Sirius Cove, The Spit, Clifton Gardens, Balmoral

Times depend on the day (weekday vs weekend/public holiday) and, at Clifton Gardens, on daylight saving. All other public beaches and swimming enclosures in Mosman are no-dog areas.

  • Mosman's page (last updated 8 Aug 2023) doesn't say what applies outside the off-leash hours on these beaches, so the checker shows 'not stated' then. Check the signs.
  • Clifton Gardens: the council gives weekday hours only; weekends aren't stated.

Woollahra Council

Rose Bay, Watsons Bay, Double Bay

Rules are all year. Woollahra updated its dog areas from 12 May 2026.

  • Woollahra's page notes fines can exceed $330 for an unleashed dog where leashes are required, and $275 for not picking up.
  • Robertson Park and Beach: off-leash hours don't apply during organised public events.

Waverley Council

Bondi, Tamarama, Bronte

Dogs are prohibited on beaches and intertidal areas all year. Off-leash parks nearby have timed hours (see below the councils).

Randwick City Council

Clovelly, Coogee, Maroubra, Malabar, La Perouse

Dogs are prohibited on all Randwick beaches and rock pools, all year. The council has 17 off-leash areas, none on the sand.

Bayside Council

Botany Bay: Kyeemagh, Brighton-Le-Sands, Ramsgate, Dolls Point

One 24/7 off-leash beach area. Elsewhere dogs are prohibited in bathing areas, beaches and foreshores.

Sutherland Shire Council

Cronulla, Kurnell, Bundeena

Dogs are prohibited on Shire beaches except signposted off-leash areas, and in ocean and tidal pools. Royal National Park is a no-dog area.

Greenhills Beach (Gate 5)

Cronulla · Signposted area at Gate 5; Wanda Reserve is on leash

Daylight saving (Oct–Apr)
Off-leash 4pm–10am; no dogs at other times
Source: Sutherland Shire Council: Greenhills Beach dog off-leash area, Cronulla (council)
Rest of year, no daylight saving (Apr–Oct)
Off-leash 3pm–10am; no dogs at other times
Source: Sutherland Shire Council: Greenhills Beach dog off-leash area, Cronulla (council)
Check now: Greenhills Beach (Gate 5)
  • Also no dogs: Wanda heritage dunes, Taren Point Shorebird Protection Zone and Deeban Spit.
  • Horderns Beach, Bundeena: the council lists it with 'time restrictions apply' but publishes no detail page we could read, so it's 'not stated' here.

Nearby off-leash spots that aren't beaches

Clontarf Reserve (grass), Clontarf

Off-leash on weekdays outside school holidays. On weekends, school holidays and public holidays: off-leash 6pm–10am outside daylight saving, 8pm–10am in daylight saving. Not in the checker because it depends on school holidays. No dogs on Clontarf Beach or in the tidal pool.

North Harbour Reserve, Balgowlah

Off-leash 24 hours (a reserve by the water, not a beach).

Waverley timed parks: Marks Park, Bronte Park, Barracluff Park

Marks Park (Tamarama): off-leash 4.30pm–8.30am. Bronte Park corridor: 3pm–10am. Barracluff Park: 3pm–10am.

National parks

Dogs are generally not allowed in NSW national parks and reserves, including Sydney Harbour National Park and Royal National Park. They are allowed in some regional parks and all state forests.

Signs on the beach always win. Councils can change orders, close sections for nesting birds or works, and move zone markers. Times here are Sydney local time; “sunrise” and “sunset” are the actual times, which the checker estimates.

All sources

21 of 21 sources are council pages or council documents. Others are labelled.