Wake up with a stroll along the 9km coastal walking track, starting at the town square foreshore. You’ll see views on dramatic coastlines framing sandy beaches, such as the famous lighthouse beach and, if you’re lucky, spot bottlenose dolphins, humpbacks and southern right whales making their annual migration.

Recharge at Drury Lane Eatery (shop 5, The Garrison, 26 Clarence Street, Port Macquarie). It’s run by Kate McCarran and her chef husband Drury Woolnough, who power their menu with local produce. Enjoy Bellingen smokehouse salmon, baked eggs, honey-roasted dutch carrots with dijon yoghurt (pictured) or house-made preserves with bread baked by Woolnough. There’s nothing like a freshly baked little across to win me over,” says Wilkinson.

What started with an honesty box by Anthony and Richard Sarks 14 years ago is now one of the most popular farmgate experiences in the region. The main attraction at Ricardoes Tomatoes & Strawberries (221 Blackmans Point Rd, Port Macquarie) is their pick-your-own berries offering. Fill up a bucket, then head into Cafe Red for scones with local cream and Ricardoes jam.

Reliable rainfall and coastal breezes lend the Hastings River region good growing conditions for French varieties. Chardonnay, semillon, verdelho and chambourcin are all grown on site at Cassegrain Winery (764 Fernbank Creek Rd, Port Macquarie), the latter of which was the first commercially produced variety in the country. Take a winery tour, taste the best of the vintage at the cellar door (the 2016 semillon features tropical fruit notes and is great enjoyed young or cellared), before lunch at the Seasons Cafe-Restaurant. The rosebush-lined grounds also host regular artists’ markets, horse riding and the annual Oysters in the Vines festival.

“I have a belly for beer, so I always like to hunt down the local brewery,” says Wilkinson. With cellar door tastings, The Little Brewing Company (Unit 1/58 Uralla Rd, Port Macquarie) is the craft beer brewery that put Port Macquarie on the map. Founded by Warwick and Kylie Little a decade ago, they make hoppy beers, lighter ales and a special reserve range.

Head from the sand to Latin Loafer (74 Clarence St, Port Macquarie) for sundowners and snacks; the waterfront tapas bar has the best seat in town for watching the sun drop into the river. Sate your post-swim appetite with sardines and salsa, washed down with a pisco sour. Cocktails remain true to the bar’s geographical leanings and co-owner Nick Diaz’s background, while the wine list showcases lesser-known varietals like the Chilean carmenere, a French-style red. Simon Leigh, the other half of Latin Loafer, brings his music background to a rotating roster of live entertainment.

Find handmade glass jewellery, retro dresses and one-off wares at Arthouse Industries (Unit 1, 1 Murray St, Port Macquarie). Watch owner Skye Petho create new pieces inside, which you can buy on the spot. Petho also teaches lampworking and bead-making workshops.

The Stunned Mullet (24 William St, Port Macquarie) is the regions’s first hatted restaurant. Positioned opposite Town Beach, it was recently refurbished to evoke a breezy Hamptons beach house-vibe. Owners Lou Perri and David Henry’s menu champions Australian and, where possible, Hastings River produce – think Ricardoes Tomatoes and Camden Haven Oyster Supply Sydney rock oysters. Make sure you don’t leave without trying their wild-caught Glacier 51 toothfish, a sweet, buttery, snow-white fleshed Antarctic fish in an Asian-style stock. “There’s no room for arrogance in hospitality,” says Wilkinson. “Lou will gladly guide you through his carefully curated, 350-strong wine list, which is the fruits of his travels and early years spent making wine by his father’s side.”

Stop by Long Point Vineyard & Art Gallery (6 Cooinda Pl, Lake Cathie) where you can enjoy respite between wines by tasting orange liqueurs, made using their own fruits. Works by local artists are on sale at the cellar door alongside local produce, such as a wasabi balsamic vinegar. Then gawp at the garden artworks from Sydney’s Sculptures by the Sea.

A 40-minute drive south lands you in the fishing paradise of Camden Haven.. Cast a line from the riverbank, buy freshly shucked Sydney rock oysters at Armstrong Oysters (1 Short St, Laurieton), or take a dip in one of the clear-as-gin watering holes in the Middle Brother National Park. “Growing up, we’d spend many a school holiday at Scarborough in North Yorkshire, where the trawlers would bring in cockles, mussels and whelks,” Wilkinson recalls. “The one luxury they have on this part of the coast that we don’t really have in Victoria is the beautiful hot and cold current coming through, which gives you a few of the big gamefish, like Spanish mackerel. I’m excited to work with the local rock oysters, too.” If it’s surf you’re after, southerly swells and an offshore breeze make Rainbow Beach at nearby Bonny Hills hard to beat. Work off your hunger across the road at The Fat Fish beachfront bistro in the Bonny Hills Surf Club (Lot 29, Beach St, Bonny Hills). They’re also open for breakfast, if you’re partial to a morning swim.

Wauchope is dotted with great artsy boutiques and gift stores like Jacaranda House (left – 39 Cameron St, Wauchope) and Elements of Design (13 High St, Wauchope). A 15-minute bounce down dirt roads brings you to Bago Vineyards (Milligans Rd, Wauchope), home to the largest hedge maze in NSW at 10,000 square metres. Owner Jim Mobbs’ wines are consistent, climate-savvy and decently priced. Grab a platter of Comboyne cheese and a glass of the chocolatey French-style red tannat and unwind while the kids navigate the labyrinth.

For an authentic farmgate experience, head to Fun Organics (41 Redbank Rd, Wauchope), where fourth-generation dairy farmer Paul Eggert (astoundingly not a pen-name!), together with his wife Jenny, son Chris and Chris’ wife Ann run the certified organic farm. “If you have food that has been treated well and had a happy life and you treat it with respect, it just tastes better,” Wilkinson believes. The Eggerts supply pasture-raised eggs to specialty stores in Sydney and Newcastle under the Oxhill Organic Eggs banner and supply milk to Norco Perfect Organic milk.

Travel snaps cover an entire wall of the warm, family-run Fusion 7 (124 Horton St, Port Macquarie). Having worked at Sydney’s Bather’s Pavillion and Merrony’s, before London’s Providers, chef/owner Lindsey Schwab moved to Port Macquarie and opened in 2006. The menu, inspired by his eight-year global sabbatical, covers solid geographical ground, but does so with restraint and a sound knowledge of flavours (they picked up a chef’s hat this year). Try crispy-skinned Barramundi with cassava chips and water spinach samba or grilled eastern king prawn dashi with truffled prawn dumping and yuzu pearls.

With views of the beach, The Observatory (40 William St, Port Macquarie) is arguably the best address in town. Guests can work out in the indoor pool or be pampered at Endota Spa. The onsite Milkbar Town Beach cafe offers traditional and healthy breakfasts – acai bowl with quinoa granola, anyone? – plus old-school milkshakes.