What Australian town is the main festival site in Forza Horizon 3?

Byron Bay is the Australian town that hosts the main festival site in Forza Horizon 3.

Forza Horizon 3 is set in a fictionalised version of Australia, and Byron Bay provides the game’s starting festival location. Its in-game landscape combines coastal roads, beaches, vegetation, and nearby countryside inspired by the real town in New South Wales. From this base, players expand the Horizon Festival by earning fans through races, public-relations stunts, challenges, and showcase events.

The festival structure is a major change in the game. In earlier Horizon titles, the player primarily participated in an existing festival; in Forza Horizon 3, the player becomes the festival’s director and chooses how it grows. Additional sites can be established and expanded as the player attracts more fans.

Gold Coast is an understandable distractor because Forza Horizon 3 includes Surfers Paradise, a city area inspired by the Gold Coast. Melbourne and Sydney are famous Australian cities, but neither is the game’s main festival location. Byron Bay itself is a real coastal town known for beaches, surfing, and its nearby lighthouse.