Features

Frenchmans Bay is a calm bay with a beautiful sandy beach located in Botany Bay in the suburb of La Perouse. It is a small bay that opens into Botany Bay at its eastern end. To the east of the bay are the suburbs of Phillip Bay and Little Bay. Shops  and restaurants are located nearby and there's a childrens playground and public toilets in the adjacent reserve.

A reserve directly adjoins the beach and is surrounded by other open space areas, with Yarra Bay to the north and the Botany Bay National Park to the south.

The beach

From the beach there are views over Botany Bay to the west and Botany Bay National Park to the south. This westerly outlook gives Frenchmans Bay a unique orientation amongst Sydney beaches.

The beach is a popular summer beach owing to its easy access and family-friendly nature. Dogs, alcohol and glass bottles are not permitted on the beach area.

Randwick City lifeguards do jet ski patrols of the beach between 1 December to 28 February.

The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage Beachwatch program advises as a general precaution to avoid swimming during and for 24-hours after heavy rain. Stormwater runoff from surrounding streets drain to the beach which may pollute the water.

Culture and history

Frenchmans Bay is culturally significant as a result of Indigenous use and occupation and its links to European settlement. Some of the earliest recorded observations of the continent by Europeans were made in this location and the area is also associated with the 1788 visit by the Comte de La Perouse and his expedition. The area was also the site of some of the earliest contacts between Europeans and Indigenous people on the east coast of Australia. It remains a significant site due to the survival of the archaeological remains of a nineteenth century Indigenous encampment and mission, the continuing presence of the La Perouse Aboriginal Community and the oral tradition and social identity associated with this history of occupation around the site.

Ecology

The reserve around Frenchmans Bay is also significant ecologically, providing habitat and a corridor for a range of flora and fauna species, both marine and terrestrial. The beach and associated dunes also form a part of the overall Botany Bay coastal system.

Plan of Management

The Frenchmans Bay Plan of Management details the existing environment, the history, heritage and recreational uses of the area, and outlines the management strategies and priorities for the bay.