The Central Coast is an urban region in the Australian state of New South Wales, located on the coastline north of Sydney and south of Lake Macquarie and Newcastle. The Central Coast has an approximate population of 316,000 making it the third largest urban area in New South Wales and the ninth largest urban area in Australia. Geographically, the Central Coast is generally considered to include the region bounded by the Hawkesbury River in the south, the Watagan Mountains in the west and the southern end of Lake Macquarie in the north. Politically, it is administered as two local government areas; City of Gosford and Wyong Shire. In September 2006, the NSW Government released a revised long term plan for the region that sees the Central Coast classified as a regional city, along with Wollongong and The Hunter, with the largest regional city in the area being Gosford. 
The region is a network of towns that have been linked in recent years by expanding suburban development. The main urban cluster of the region surrounds the northern shore of Brisbane Water and includes the Coast's largest population centre, Gosford, stretching east to the retail centre of Erina. Other major commercial centres on the Coast are Wyong, Tuggerah, The Entrance, Terrigal, and Woy Woy. Large numbers of people who live in the southern part of the region commute daily to work in Sydney. The Central Coast is also a popular tourist destination, and a popular area for retirement. As a result, the cultural identity of the region is distinct from that of the large and diverse metropolis of Sydney as well as the Newcastle and Hunter Valley region, with its mining, heavy industry and port.
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