The Figure Eight Pools (often written Figure 8 Pools) are natural rock pools shaped like the number eight on a rock shelf in the Royal National Park. They are only safe to visit at low tide in calm, flat seas, and reaching them takes a 3 km walk each way.
Key facts
- Type
- Natural pool
- Facilities and access
- Reached by a walk from Garie or Bundeena side; no facilities
- Cost
- Free to the pools; national park vehicle fee to park
- Lifeguards
- No
- Parking
- Garawarra Farm car park, 3 km walk
- Dogs
- Not allowed (national park)
- Best time to go
- Low tide, calm flat sea, before midday
- Town
- Royal National Park, NSW
What it's like
The pools are holes worn into a flat sandstone shelf below the cliffs south of Burning Palms Beach. The best known is a near-perfect figure eight, and there are other round pools around it. They are a place to look and take a dip, not to swim laps.
The shelf sits right at sea level. At high tide the pools are under water and cannot be reached at all, and even at low tide a set of large waves can sweep across the shelf with little warning. People have been seriously injured and killed here.
When to go
Only at low tide, on a day with a calm, flat sea. NSW National Parks publishes a wave-risk forecast and daily safety alerts for the pools: check both on the morning you go, and do not go if either warns against it. Plan to reach the pools before midday, so you are back at the car well before the park gates close in the evening.
Getting there and facilities
Park at Garawarra Farm car park in the Royal National Park; a national park vehicle entry fee applies. From there it is about 3 km each way on a steep, uneven track down through rainforest to Burning Palms, then a rock-hop south along the shore. Allow three to four hours return. There are no toilets, water or shops at the pools; carry water, food and a small first aid kit.
Good to know
The walk is not suitable for young children or prams. Wear shoes with grip, because the shelf is slippery. Watch the sea at all times and never turn your back on the waves.