Byron Bay is a beachside town located in the far-northeastern corner of the state of New South Wales, Australia It is located 772 kilometres (480 mi) north of Sydney and 165 kilometres (103 mi) south of Brisbane. Cape Byron, a headland adjacent to the town, is the easternmost point of mainland Australia. At the 2016 census, the town had a permanent population of 9,246. It is the largest town of Byron Shire, though not the shire's administrative centre (which is Mullumbimby).

The local Arakwal Aboriginal people's name for the area is Cavvanbah, meaning "meeting place". Lieutenant James Cook named Cape Byron after Royal Navy officer John Byron, circumnavigator of the world and grandfather of the poet Lord Byron.