Jervis Bay Territory: Booderee National Park, Pristine Beaches and the ACT's Coast

Jervis Bay Territory is Australia's smallest territory and the only piece of ACT land not geographically connected to the main ACT region, located on the NSW South Coast approximately 200 km southeast of Canberra. The territory was retained by the Commonwealth when NSW surrendered the ACT to the federal government and functions primarily as a conservation estate and naval facility. Booderee National Park occupies most of the territory and is jointly managed by the Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community and Parks Australia, protecting one of the NSW south coast's most pristine coastal environments, with beaches including Hyams Beach, which is regularly cited as having some of the whitest sand in the world. Jervis Bay is a significant marine environment with resident populations of bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins and seasonal humpback whale migrations, making it one of Australia's best locations for whale-watching and dolphin-spotting boat tours operating from Huskisson on the NSW shore. Booderee Botanic Gardens within the territory are a nationally significant Australian native plant garden. The territory is accessible from Canberra as a day trip of around 2-2.5 hours by road, making it the closest ocean beach destination for most ACT residents. Camping within Booderee National Park requires a booking and park fee payment in advance.