Cooks Hill, New South Wales

With a buzzy bohemian vibe, the inner-city suburb of Cooks Hill is one of the most exciting precincts in Newcastle. Its main street, Darby Street, is home to numerous restaurants, funky sidewalk cafes, cosy pubs, quirky home-wares stores, second-hand book shops, local art galleries, jewellery shops and trendy designer street-wear stores.

A myriad of leafy streets, terrace houses and winding back alleys, Cooks Hill was home to the city’s first settlers. Now it’s the city’s artistic centre, hosting a diverse array of local photography and art galleries such as John Miller Galleries in Darby Street, and the and Wide Horizons gallery which specialises in panoramic scenic photography and houses some stunning local landscape and aerial photographs.

Another artistic find is Cooks Hill Galleries, tucked away in Bull Street; it exhibits many young and developing artists.

On Darby Street, award winning restaurants offer a delicious choice of eating experiences and delectable gourmet coffees.

Diverse, friendly, relaxed, off beat, cosmopolitan and bohemian - people come to Darby Street to “feel”, to “experience” and to “enjoy”.