'I'm calling it, this is the best family-friendly holiday spot in NSW.'

I just found a bloody excellent family holiday spot and I am not gatekeeping it!

My cousin and I had been trying to work out a good place to meet up for the school holidays which would be good for us, our husbands and the kiddos. 

She lives in Brisbane and I'm in the Hunter Valley in NSW so I googled the halfway drive point and was a bit excited to find it was Coffs Harbour.

Watch: If you're planning a trip with other families, this might sound familiar...Post continues below.

I've driven through Coffs a few times but never actually stopped there so I started to check out what accommodation was around. I found there was a Discovery Parks location at Emerald Beach — just a 20-minute drive up the road. So I booked side-by-side cabins and told the fam to pack the car.

As we drove up, I googled things to do while we were there and frankly, I did not have enough days to pack in all the things on the potential list. Of course, it would be unAustralian to not drop in and see the Big Banana. It also has a full theme park with escape rooms and a toboggan out the back.

In July, whale watching is THE thing to do, with the gorgeous giants making their way up the coast to have babies in warmer waters. There was zip lining, fishing charters, markets, beach walks, surf school, horse riding, a butterfly house, art galleries (including a cartoon bunker which my kid loved) , a wildlife park and so many other things to do.

Image: supplied.

When we pulled into the Discovery Parks location, I knew I'd made the right choice. I'd been to one of their parks before — the one in South Australia's Barossa Valley — but I'd stayed in the glamping site, which is adults-only and features a private pool and spa (yes, it was as incredible as it sounds). But I'd seen as we drove in and out, the area where families stayed and it looked amazing with a giant playground.

The Emerald Beach site is lush, green, has a playground, water park, one of those big blow-up bouncing pillows and a heated swimming pool.

During the school holidays, they have movie nights and activities like a scavenger hunt and lolly jar guessing competitions. You can hire out peddle-powered go-carts and fang around the internal roads too. The kids were kept occupied and very happy!

Image: supplied.

The cabins were next-level comfortable. I wanted to take the bed home with me and it's already decked out with shampoo, conditioner, lotion and body and hand wash so you really didn't need to pack too much in the way of toiletries either.

The high ceilings in the family cabins we stayed in make it feel super spacious, and with reverse cycle heating and aircon in the main room and bedrooms and TV's in all too, it was easy to either spend time together or get a little bit of 'me time' away from everyone as well. 

We spent every night out on the balcony eating dinner together and laughing at the antics of the bush turkeys and possums who hang out on the site.

Image: supplied.

You can grab a bite to eat in a local cafe or head 10 minutes down the road to Moonee Beach to find a supermarket to get stuff to cook back at the cabin.

Coffs Harbour is also full of great spots for breakfast, lunch and dinner too.

The best part though, is the park butts right up against Emerald Beach itself, which is absolutely stunning. It's so beautiful and even in the depths of winter, it was still warm enough to throw off the jumper when we went for a walk along the trail that runs between it and the next beach down. 

A mob of kangaroos also call this area home and are pretty used to seeing us humans toddling through their patch. We even spotted some joeys hanging out of a Mum's pouch as she grazed the grassy hilltops.

Can I suggest downloading a rock identification app!? We spent ages searching what all the different rocks on the beach were and found so many amazing little beauties.

My last bit of advice from this glorious family adventure, is get the whipped cheesecake cone from the Harbourside Market Get Whipped food van. No, it's not ice cream, it is actual whipped cheesecake in a cone! I got the lemon meringue one with white chocolate and holy heck, me and my taste buds nearly died and went to heaven.

Happy Holidays!

Want more family holiday inspo? These ones also nailed the kid-chaos-to-parent-peace ratio:

• 'I swore I'd never do all-inclusive holidays until I had a child. These are the best ones.'

• 'I wanted my kids to see snow but am NOT a skiier. This was the perfect holiday option.'

• 'I've cracked the code for a relaxing yet kid-friendly holiday on a budget.'

Feature: Supplied.