Newcastle is home to the working class Australian, the Newy Knights and one of the world’s most iconic surf events – Surfest. The contest, which could now be considered a full blown festival, started in 1985 and began as the richest surfing competition on the planet. Over the past three decades it’s played host to surfing’s biggest names, acting as a stop on the World Tour for a number of years.

However, Surfest is more than just a contest to the people of Newcastle. It’s the amalgamation of their core surfing community and rich history being represented on a big stage for the world to see. Novocastrians wear their surfing badge with pride and we wanted to find out what makes the city so special to its people.

We visited the steel city and caught up with the likes of Matt Hoy, Julian Wilson, Jacko Baker, Philippa Anderson, Bosko, Glenn Hall, Warren and Rhys Smith who all have an affiliation to the area and Surfest in one way or another.

Surfest runs nine different events from March to June with the crescendo being the Burton Automotive Newcastle Surfest presented by Bonsoy Challenger Series event which runs from 2 – 8 June. The likes of Jacko and Julian will be hoping they can kick off their CS campaigns with a victory in front of a home crowd as they begin their quest to requalify for the Championship Tour.

The event has seen some iconic moments throughout the years including the Occy vs Curren final in 1986, Parko’s victory in 2013 when the comp moved to the famous Newcastle harbour slab as well as heroic hometown victories in recent times from the likes of Philippa and Jacko.

As thousands get ready to descend on Merewether Beach and some of the world’s best surfers prepare to get their season’s underway, now is the time to plan your trip to Newcastle.

If you’re unsure of what makes this coastal city so charming, click the link above to watch.