Cowra, NSW 2794

We moved here 8 months ago and love living here.
Cowra sits central to other well known regional towns and cities, like Bathurst, Orange, Parks and Forbes, and is located 2 hrs from Canberra.
Plenty of places to eat out on the main street. Lots of recreational and nature parks around the area, including Wyangala Dam camping and water sport’s recreational parks. Great place to live, and the locals are very friendly and welcoming. Enjoy your stay.

You can believe all the reviews.this town is wrong on so many levels. Your neighbours want to know all your business and cossip about each other all the time. The council is corrupt and the mayor has had his way the town is what he wanted a nursing home. Before moving here do your research.drive to young that town is going somewhere.

Filled with mask Karens and angry old women. Easily led and willfully ignorant. Nasty, belligerent, rude, opinionated without a clue.

Great place

I currently live in Cowra after moving here from a similar town on the outskirts of Sydney. What people are saying in their reviews is 100% accurate. Looks like a nice place, but it isn't. The council treats most residents like shit and favours business operators over residents, which means if you happen to live near any of the industrial areas in town that are situated near residential (which is most of the town) you will never get peace and quiet. Most of the businesses preach that you should support local but then charge triple the price for 90% of the products they sell. The town water is disgusting and costs double the price of every other council area and damages anything in your house it touches. "Locals" are always sizing you up and making judgements about you before you even open your mouth. The council recently opened up the Civic Centre as a movie theatre and charges $5.00 less then proper cinemas, yet you are sitting on hard plastic chairs and can't see over the persons head in front of you and that is the most exciting thing in town to do. Coming from a Cowra "outsider" who just happens to be an insider, keep driving, don't stop, not even for a holiday! Visit Bathurst, Orange, Parkes, Grenfell, Canowindra or any other towns around Cowra, but definitely not Cowra!

Came across Cowra after holidays. First thing you notice is how unfriendly the town is. If you go to Bowral or mossvale people are nice and talk and are glad to have your business. Compare that to Cowra you are lucky to get coffee that's if anything is open. The main Street looks like a ghost town. Dining out good luck with that.

Terrible town has not changed in 30 years. The mall is coming apart.if it rain well it leeks. The car park is dirty. Shops open and close very quickly. The council sits by while other towns around Cowra go ahead but nothing happens here. Cowra has a friend ship festival every year which is a bit hypocritical most people here a rude to outsiders and if you are not related then you don't fit in. There is so much potential for a town like Cowra. But it will never go ahead.

Lived in Cowra many years ago; sound's like it hasn't changed.

The small town of Cowra has such a lot to offer all ages and families.
There is much to do and see and everyone is very friendly. You can buy a lovely house in Cowra for under $300,000 or rent for under $300 a week.
At the moment there are a number of jobs for skilled and unskilled people in a variety of occupations.
If you want to work, there are plenty of opportunities. In particular there are openings for handymen, cleaners and gardeners if you don't have qualifications. Track down the Cowra Visitor Information Centre facebook as well as Things To Do in Cowra, Cowra Community Noticeboard, Caring for Cowra and that will give you the insight into what a really lovely community it is.
Just take notice of the lovely parks and gardens, the clean streets, no graffiti and happy smiling people!
Don't listen to disgruntled keyboard warriors.

Cowra is a great place. I'm in my 40's with a young family. I was not born in Cowra.

Lots of nice amenities - there are heaps more, but these are off the top of my head - a golf course, gym, pubs, more than five cafes to eat out, 30 wineries, cycling tracks, Coles/Woollies, many general shops on the main street, martial arts for kids or adults, heaps of community events, an adventure park with some excellent play equipment, picnic areas/bbq areas with really stunning views, a skate park for youth, PCYC club for youth, library, swimming pool and close to the huge Wyangala Dam for boating, camping, hiking and fishing. Multiple churches all offering their community events and services. A bunch of other activities and tourist spots are in town too. You only have to be on Facebook or read the local Cowra papers to hear all about it. I did notice a couple of empty shops in the main street, but only a couple. This might be due to COVID, not sure.

There are excellent public and private options for schools. And private school fees are meagre compared to Sydney.

I like it in Cowra as you can buy a 3 BR house under $300,000, or go for a brand new 4 BR house on 2 acres for $550,000. And in Cowra there is that opportunity if you have a bit of land to grow some fruit trees and have a veggie patch - this size land is impossible in many other places.

Traffic doesn't really exist, and on the long weekends or holidays when there are tourists or trucks around - who are made to feel welcome - there is a back road and old bridge to drive on that can get you into the main street pronto, with no fuss.

I love seeing how country folk and farmers live and the differences compared to city life. I don't find people nosy. I can see though how other people mistake country folk as nosy. Country folk only have each other, and love to chat and support one another. You can have privacy, though if that's your thing.

In terms of employment - if you have a solid skillset to offer - there are 281 jobs available on Seek for the Cowra area as at today. And we all know that those 281 are only the tip of the iceberg, and there are the other jobs that are word of mouth - so ask around!

I loved seeing Canowindra on Back Roads recently (ABC), and the lovely preservation of historic buildings and community values only 30 minutes from Cowra. The show highlighted some of the wineries and young farmers doing things organically, and growing tourism in the area, this is very cool.

Ok, there is no cinema, I couldn't care less and only used to go once a year anyway - but instead of moaning about there being no cinema, try being proactive and ask the council for 'movies under the stars' in one of the open spaces, with food trucks and the like, like many other rural towns do.

You have also got Canberra 2.5 hours away, Orange and Bathurst 1.5 hrs away to enjoy and pick up anything that you can't buy in Cowra or on the internet and prefer to buy in-store. Internet shopping is awsome - give it a go!

No jobs, lazy police, inactive council and loudmouth yobbo locals. What’s to like? If your dream lifestyle is to become a drunk or a meth head this is the place for you!

Of course you can't say every person in Cowra fits the review title but unfortunately there are far too many who do. The main industry is the abattoir on the edge of town. There is very little new investment and even the ABS figures indicate the town will go backwards over 10 years. There are very limited opportunities for work unless you are in a health care profession, in which case you can find work locally but why would you?

Don't expect to come here and be accepted. The people are very insular but also nosy and VERY gossipy. Rather than make up their own mind about an issue or a person based upon direct enquiry, they will mindlessly parrot as fact what another moron has repeated to them. Also don't expect to be able to live anonymously, even outside of town unless you have neighbours you actually cannot see. They want to know everything: as soon as a car drives in the driveway or if you are out talking to someone they will be out staring at you.

As far as education goes the local schools are mediocre at best. Whilst bullying is endemic throughout NSW schools I know of multiple people whose outsider children (i.e. not long moved to Cowra) have had very bad experiences at the local public and high schools.

If you go into Woolworths in particular you may come across a local moron whose career pinnacle is stacking shelves in Cowra. They will make snide comments as you pass and be decidedly unfriendly. Of course not all staff are like this but again, it is enough of an issue to comment upon.

There is nothing really to do in Cowra unless you like going to the pub or using drugs. These are very popular pass times for many of the people who move here to avoid having to actually work. For a small town the Local Court is always very busy and you will see the same court monkeys outside of court each week. There are of course the usual array of sporting clubs but unfortunately the small minded pervade those events as well.

If you do come to Cowra just for a look then make sure you really look. Don't just look and not 'see'. The standard of dress. The manner in which cars are driven around town. The language that is used often very loudly in the main street and elsewhere. Remember a nice house in a town surrounded by trash is not much of a benefit.

There is no rail service or airport here. You can catch a coach to Cootamundra or Bathurst. To fly anywhere the nearest airport is Orange about 1 hour and 15 mins away. You will need to go to Orange or Bathurst for any major shopping expeditions. While you are on the way you will no doubt be tailgated by a moron coming out of Cowra. Their trick is to wait until you are out of sight and then accelerate to way above the speed limit and then come up behind you at speed. Rather than going past they will sit there and tailgate.

Don't be fooled by the positive comments listed by local real estate agents with a vested interest in selling property. There are plenty of other places where you can settle and be much happier and fulfilled.

I've grown up around the Cowra area. Please, don't move here. It's not as great as it seems. It would be OK to visit, but not to live. Yes, you've got your wonderful people whom I've had the pleasure of befriending, but a good 75% of the whole town are dropkicks. Profanities are yelled out at least once whenever you're walking down the street, hoons are everywhere, basically, good luck finding some peace and quiet, and seriously good luck finding a job. The council has no idea how to spend their money, roads have potholes everywhere.

If you want somewhere to raise your children, Cowra is NOT the place.

Cowra is a lovely place, everyone knows everyone and there is a great family atmosphere. It's a great place to bring up a family and offers many great things to do. Check out the POW and hologram at the information centre as it has a great display about the prisoner of war camp that was in Cowra during WWII. Overall a lovely country town with great history.

But to be honest its a smaller country town, with a very high unemployment rate. I still can not get over the fact you can not go down the street with out hearing someone using obscenities in there general conversation. The rentals and house prices for sale are well over priced compared to other towns nearby like Orange, Blayney and Young. Cowra also has an unusually high suicide rate. It's been stated by council that they are aiming for a retirement village so if you are career oriented or you want your kids to have a future then look else where. Having lived over most of Australia at different times in my life I can honestly say Cowra would be the most negative town I've ever had the misfortune to live in. Unemployment rate is double nearby towns. In all honesty living in Cowra is like serving jail time. I can understand why the kids here commit suicide. Also you can't submit a resume without someone wanting to know your family history. If you're not related to someone their great-grandparents inbred with a 100 years ago with then forget it. Nepotism and cronyism is alive and well in Cowra. Only rated one star because I couldn't go any lower.

I have lived here all my life on an off and i love lots of things about it i recently made a whole new group of friends just like all small towns there r nosey people but that works in my favor when it comes to my kids because they get in to less mischief ok so we dont have a westfields but the little shops we have will move heaven and earth to help you. We have a huge array of yummy coffee shops and cafes with awesome service and we have quiet a few tourist destinations and most of the population is friendly helpful and happy The schools are awesome as is the tafe and it is an hour and a half to bathurst Uni and an hour to Cadia mines orange so employment and uni is at the drop of a hat

Having lived in Cowra for over 21 years, (recently moved to Brisbane) I have experienced both the best and worst aspects of Cowra. Growing up in Cowra, you cant ask for to much more. A vast array of local sporting clubs, friendly schooling environments, an abundant of childcare facilities and all in all, a great safe place to bring up a young family.

Whilst limited in terms of activities such as cinemas, large retail shopping centres etc, Cowra offers many more opportunites that far outway the negatives. Located in close proximity to the larger centres of Orange and Bathurst, and only a two hour drive from the Australian capital city, it is not as if such services are inaccessible (It took myself over 30 minutes to get to a cinema in Brisbane recently, then had the trouble of finding a car park, then was required to pay $20 to park the car!!!).

You are always going to find the negatives of any place. Cowra is an extremely friendly place to live or vistit and my experience of Cowra remains pleasant. I hope to one day move back there (having only moved away to undertake further tertiary studies).

The biggest problem I have found is the high levels of unemployment. This gives the town a bit of a depressing feel.

We went to a lovely B & B outside Cowra for a long weekend a while back. That was terrific. But the attitude in Cowra when you went into a shop or hotel was horrible. Very cold and unwelcoming. Being used to visiting many areas of NSW and other states, it seemed Cowra was going out of its way to be unpleasant. Could not find a decent restaurant The town definitely did not want tourists around, so I don't see a lot of future in that area, There's lots of fantastic spots in NSW with great service and welcoming attitudes - suggest your tourist operators visit places such as the Southern Highlands in general, Binalong, Young, Bungendore, Braidwood, Robertson etc to see how it's done. My tourist dollar will not be going back, as for moving there - ugh.

cowra has a lot of very mean people in it

To be fair to the writer of a particular review, hubby and I are retired and no longer need to seek work or ferry children around. Having said that, we still live in Sydney and have been travelling to various country towns to find our escape. Cowra wins hands down! Friendly, helpful people; beautiful countryside surrounds and of course the Japanese Gardens. Houses are a third of the cost of our current home and whilst some grocery items may seem pricier than Sydney, some are actually cheaper; viz smallgoods purchased in Cowra last Friday cost 15% more in our current Woolworths this morning.
We found eating out at both the RSL and the Bowling Club inexpensive and pleasant.
The shopping areas are more than adequate; and whilst there are no giant retailers such as DJ's and Myer - I believe I can live without them!
Craft is an important part of my life and there is a thriving arts and craft community here. I was made most welcome when I made enquiries about integrating.
So, as far as we are both concerned, the sooner we find a suitable residence to buy here the better!

Very Nice town, good variety of shops. Schools have friendly teachers. The climate is comfortable. Only 1 hour from Orange or Bathurst. Has its own hospital and a great medical centre. The Local Council is very proactive and provides lots of quality facilities to the town.

Sorry to say this but when it comes to customer service in Cowra, in some places it is non existent, do a run to mcdonalds or woolworths and youll see what I mean, we once complained about the low standard of takeaway food at the Chinese restaurant opposite KFC, she abused us for politely saying we wernt happy with the meal, the special fried rice was NOT special and half the ingredients were missing, the takeaway seems frozen and microwaved,
Take a leaf out of The Cowra Hotels book and see what good old fashioned service is about, you can even have a five dollar lunch thats absolutely great and you get a warm welcome from Tania the hotelier. Come on Cowra pick up ypur act, its a great town and a few are letting you down

I notice that every time a HONEST review about Cowra is written that is some what negative,somebody writes a few PRO Cowra reviews that seem to sound like someone who is trying to desperatly sell a house (real estate agents,investor etc).The work IS very limited here,it DOES take ages to drive anywhere,there are limited activities to take the children to,you may have to wait weeks to see a doctor,food prices are sky high,there is no cinema or kmart,you have to drive 1 and 30 minutes to Orange just to see a movie or go to Kmart.Its painful having to live in such a boring town with very limited work and leisure activites.Its sad to watch so many business set up and fail(I seen a takeaway shop that lasted 4 weeks).The point is please only right honest reviews,some people may love it,some may hate it,but please dont lie and say there is heaps of work,when there simply is not.Dont let families move there children up here on lies and fabrications based on your biased lies simply because you wish to sell a house.Why not state some of the things that are true about Cowra and positive,like the fact that people are very friendly here and that ther are much better values in life rather than material things and money.

I moved my family here about 15 years ago. We came from Sydney for the specific reason of finding somewhere better to bring the kids up. My wife and I both found career jobs here and love the place. It takes me 3 minutes to get to work, as opposed to the hour or so in Sydney.
If someone is struggling to fit in here, then I dont see that they would have much success anywhere else.
Sporting facilities and activities for the kids are terrific. There are only 2 empty shops on the Main Street out of 110 so things are going very well.

I would recommend the place to anyone. Give it a try.

we moved here from brisbane to have a nice place for children to grow up. The rent is cheap for good size houses with good kid friendly yards. The little TAFE is good & the public schools seem well taken care of and has good teachers.Good swimming pool & parks.
Yes it is a small town with no movies or big shopping center but its a short days drive to bathurst, orange or yass if you want. Lots of sports for the kids to get into and once they are older bathursts has a great uni.And there is work if you look for it!
Over all im happy with this little town

Looks like a town in its decline. Old shops, empty shops, fading paint and generally run down look to the main shopping district. Wandering out into the surrounding streets, plenty of older houses, many in a state of disrepair, with very few looking like they were built in the last 30 years. It would take a lot to reinvigorate this town, I would suggest avoiding it.

Honestly,i moved to Cowra 18mnths ago for a better life for my kids.The people are very friendly.I love the people here.But some people are just terrible sticky beaks.You cant apply for a job without them wanting your full family history.And if they dont know your parents and there parents and so on,you have little chance for a job,or even friends for that matter.In saying this,some of the people are the nicest people you will ever meet,but they are set in there ways.Its a small country town.Everyone knows your business,if you have something for sale EG a motorbike, people will call and want to know your last name,your parents name,where they where born and all the other stuff you probably wish they wouldnt ask.The school is lovely,teachers very friendly.Traffic can get terrible on the main street when people drive like they are confused constantly.Very little in the way of fine dinning if you would like a extra special night out.If you want to go to the movies the closest decent movies is at Orange,over 1 hour away.The only major shop is Target.If you want Kmart etc you need to go to Orange.I live 28 min out of town so for me,i am so over living here.All i do is pay for fuel,as i need to drive my daughter into school everyday.Moving into town was not an option either as the crime rate is high....Its been all too much for me.I loved the quiet lifestyle,and the local Tafe is fantastic,but the high electricity bills(cant get integral up here),high petrol due to so much travel,stickybeaks,and low employment has given me no choice but to move.
Oh and did i mention the DUST.The horrid DUST.You will have to dust at least once per day,and dont own a dark car as they always look so dirty.DONT MOVE HERE

Cowra is a great town with an excellent community spirit. For a town of its size cowra has held many large events and has a great history. A great place to raise your children in a safe environment and also a great place to spend your later years. Highly recommend!!!

I have lived in a lot of towns over the years, and Cowra is the best town of them all. Friendly people, great sporting facilities, clubs & pubs are fantastic, and you are still only 4 hours from Sydney and 2 hours from Canberra. Very convenient.

Excellent town to retire to. Sell your home in the big city for $500,000 and buy a better one in Cowra for $300,000 (put $200,000 in your pocket)

Great Climate, Friendly People, Easy Living, Great Value Housing. (average 3 b/r home $175,000 or average $150 rent per week) Cost of living cheaper than the city. Work available for those who genuinly want to work. Schools are fantastic. Overall, a town that will suit all types of people.

An excellent place to raise a family, good education facilities, heaps of sporting for young and old including golf, bowls, tennis, 4 football codes, olympic size swimming pool and a very competitve swimming club with entry fees half the price of Sydney, basketball, netball. crochet just to name a few. Shopping is adequate and also we look forward to visits to neighbouring towns such as Young, Orange and Bathurst and occasionally Sydney which is only 4 hours away by car. You can drive to and from work with no traffic delays, fuel costs are low as the trip is not overly long, no matter what side of town you live. It is a medium sized country town with all the amenities of most larger centres but with a personal touch.

Cowra is a great family town with opportunities for all with great parks, garden and excellent sporting facilities.

YOUR NEIGHBOURS - Some neighbours a just sticky beaks that always want to know what other people are doing all the time - you will see him or she at the fence line or butting in your visitors conversations.
EATING OUT - eating out at the service club or bowling club for dinner at the aussie hotel for lunch is great.
NIGHTLIFE - nightlife is not to bad but there is always someone to drunk and wanting to fight in the imperial - the townhouse or the lachlan which is shame but true.
MOBILE RECEPTION is alright as ling as ur with telstra even optus in most place dont work around here its a bit poor and sloww
INTERNET ACCESS as long as ir got broadband from telstra ur alright
PAY TV is great
TRAFFIC is not to bad might have a few idiots chucking laps on kendal street on friday and saturday night
SAFE AND SOUND as long as u lock everything when u go and never leave anything valible in fround of ur house ur alright. it used to be a very safe town but not anymore
RETAIL everything is kind of like sydney prices which is a shame but some shop owners dont relise that its surposed to be a small town.
FITNESS - there is one gym here and it does have good service and equipment to thats great .
PEACE AND QUITE only some people get this cause in most streets of cowra drunk people are walking and screaming in the middle of the night . not only that the people in house are usually fighting and carrying on all hours of the night with now concideration of other neighbours .
PUBLICE TRANSPORT there is 1 town bus that travels 3 times a day most places in cowra and a few taxis . it still cost to much money i think
MEDICAL FACILTY there is a hospital - of which u will be waiting a long time to be looked at or medical centra that u can never get an appointment
SCHOOL the bus company cant do much when children are behaving badly on the bus and unfortantly sorry to say but they should not be allow to travel on the bus. the priciple cant to much either . some children are just bullies and get away with it .
LOCAL COUNCIL charges are always to high and can never be done on time

The ideal Australian town ... large enough to have all facilities, but small enough to have peace and quiet if you desire this. Excellent sporting and cultural clubs and facilities. Hills and river make a pretty town. Two hours to Canberra, and four hours easy drive to Sydney for the weekend. Good fishing and bushwalking.

The local council is not easy to deal with.Need to look at the council policies for the area.Like every country town there are better areas then others so be careful if it seems too cheap look well about it.Limited job opportunities.
A nicer town in the area is Canowindra not as big, friendlier people ,wonderful high school with dedicated teachers.Can find some real bargains in real estate.Dealings with Cabone Council has been much easier and friendlier than Cowra council.Reasonable travelling distance to Parkes,Orange or Bathurst

Situated on the banks of the Lachlan River, Cowra is west of Sydney and has a colourful history. Cowra was a POW camp during WWII and in August 1944 the Japanese prisoners staged one of the biggest breakouts of all time. Many Japanese were killed and a Japanese War Cemetery was made there. Also visit the Japanese Gardens which spans over 5 hectares. Cowra is also known for its gourmet food and fine wines and there are many wineries to visit and sample the local produce. There are museums, galleries and craft shops, plenty of accommodation, Darby’s Fall Observatory, Bellevue Hill Lookout and State and national parks to explore. A visit to Cowra will keep you occupied for some time.