Australia’s Top 25
Native Wildlife
Furry, cuddly, or ferocious − you can find all this and more on a wildlife-spotting journey around Australia (Click here). Head to Hervey Bay for whale-watching; see nesting sea turtles (and later, hatchlings) on Queensland beaches; and adorable little penguins and fur seals on Victoria's Phillip Island. Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory shelter dinosaur-like crocodiles, and everywhere Australia's birds make themselves known (you can't miss the cackle of the kookaburra). In between, you'll discover a panoply of extraordinary animals found nowhere else on earth: koalas, kangaroos, quokkas, wombats and platypuses.
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Great Barrier Reef
Unesco World Heritage–listed? Check. Oprah Winfrey–endorsed? Check. The Great Barrier Reef (Click here) is as fragile as it is beautiful. Stretching more than 2000km along the Queensland coastline, it's a complex ecosystem populated with dazzling coral, languid sea turtles, gliding rays, timid reef sharks and tropical fish of every colour and size. Whether you dive on it, snorkel over it or explore it via scenic flight or glass-bottomed boat, this vivid undersea kingdom and its coral-fringed islands is unforgettable.
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Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
No matter how many times you've seen it on postcards, nothing prepares you for the burnished grandeur of Uluru as it first appears on the outback horizon. With its remote desert location, deep cultural significance and dazzling natural beauty, Uluru is a pilgrimage well worth the many hundreds of kilometres it takes to get there. But Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park offers much more than the chance to see a big boulder. Along with the equally captivating Kata Tjuta (the Olgas), there are mystical walks, sublime sunsets and ancient desert cultures to encounter.
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Sydney Opera House
The instantly recognisable Sydney Opera House on Sydney Harbour is Australia's headline act. An exercise in architectural lyricism like no other, Jørn Utzon’s building on Bennelong Point more than holds its own amid the visual feast of the harbour’s attention-grabbing bridge, shimmering blue waters and jaunty green ferries. Everyone can experience the magic on offer here – a stunningly sited waterside bar, acclaimed French restaurant, guided tours and star-studded performance schedule make sure of that.
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Daintree Rainforest
Lush green rainforest replete with fan palms, prehistoric-looking ferns and twisted mangroves tumble down towards a brilliant white-sand coastline in the ancient, World Heritage–listed Daintree rainforest. Upon entering the forest, you’ll be enveloped by a cacophony of birdsong, frog croaking and the buzz of insects. Continue exploring the area via wildlife-spotting night tours, mountain treks, interpretive boardwalks, canopy walks, self-guided walking trails, 4WD trips, horse riding, kayaking, croc-spotting cruises, tropical-fruit orchard tours and tastings…Whew! If you’re lucky, you might even spot a cassowary.
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Fremantle
Fremantle – Western Australia’s major port 22km south of Perth – is a raffish, artsy, student-filled harbour town, defined by a classic cache of Victorian architecture. It’s an isolated place – closer to Singapore than Sydney. But like any port, the world washes in on the tide and washes out again, leaving the locals buzzing with global zeitgeist. Funky Fremantle has sea-salty soul to burn: expect craft-beer breweries, live-music rooms, hipster bars, late-night coffee joints, Indian Ocean seafood shacks, buskers, beaches, markets and students on the run from the books.
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Bondi Beach
Definitively Sydney and irresistibly hip, Bondi is one of the world’s great beaches. Surfers, models, skate punks and backpackers surf a hedonistic wave through the pubs, bars and restaurants along Campbell Pde, but the beach is a timeless constant. It's the closest ocean beach to the city, has consistently good (though crowded) waves and is great for a rough ’n’ tumble swim. Don't miss a jaunt along the Bondi to Coogee Clifftop Walk, kicking off at the southern end of the beach.
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Gourmet Food & Wine
Right across Australia you'll find gourmet offerings for all budgets: oysters and seafood in Sydney; cool-climate wines, whisky and cheeses in Tasmania; coffee and fabulous Greek and Italian in Melbourne; punchy red wines and riesling in South Australia; marron in Western Australia (WA), and native meats and bush tucker in the Northern Territory. Foodie heaven! The nation's many wine regions have spawned a culture of fine cuisine using regional ingredients – if you're touring the cellar doors, you'll never be far from a starchy white tablecloth and a romantic lunch.
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The Whitsundays
You can hop around a whole stack of tropical islands in this seafaring life and never find anywhere with the sheer beauty of the Whitsundays. Travellers of all monetary persuasions launch yachts from party town Airlie Beach and drift between these lush green isles in a slow search for paradise (you'll probably find it in more than one place). Don't miss Whitehaven Beach – one of Australia's best. Wish you were here?
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Hobart & MONA
Occupying an improbable riverside location a ferry ride from Hobart's harbourfront, the Museum of Old & New Art – aka MONA – is an innovative, world-class institution. Described by its owner, Hobart philanthropist David Walsh, as a 'subversive adult Disneyland', three levels of astounding underground galleries showcase more than 400 challenging and controversial artworks. You might not like everything you see, but a visit here is a sure-fire conversation starter and one of Australia's unique arts experiences.
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Byron Bay
Up there with kangaroos and Akubra hats, big-hearted Byron Bay (just Byron to its mates) is one of the enduring icons of Australian culture. Families on school holidays, surfers and sun-seekers from across the globe gather by the foreshore at sunset, drawn to this spot on the world map by fabulous restaurants, a chilled pace of life and an astonishing range of activities on offer. But mostly they’re here because this is one of the most beautiful stretches of coast in the country.
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Melbourne
Why the queue? Oh, that’s just the line to get into the latest hot 'no bookings' restaurant in Melbourne. The next best restaurant/chef/cafe/barista/food truck may be the talk of the town, but there are things locals would never change: the leafy parks and gardens in the inner city 'burbs; the crowded trams that whisk the creative northerners to sea-breezy southern St Kilda; and the allegiances that living in such a sports-mad city brings. The city’s world-renowned street-art scene expresses Melbourne’s fears, frustrations and joys.
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Broome & Northwest WA
Harsh, remote and beautiful, Australia's final frontier boasts three World Heritage sites: Shark Bay, Ningaloo and Purnululu. Distances here are immense and towns scarce. Broome is one of the world's great travellers' crossroads, where every evening a searing crimson sun slips into the turquoise Indian Ocean. The far-flung Dampier Peninsula is a top experience in its own right, not only for the drive here, but for extraordinary cliffs, red pindan soils, awesome seafood, Indigenous cultural experiences, outdoor adventures and luxury camping.
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Great Ocean Road
The Twelve Apostles − craggy rock formations jutting out of wild waters − are one of Victoria's most vivid sights, but it's the 'getting there' road trip that doubles their impact. Drive slowly along roads that curl beside spectacular Bass Strait beaches, then whip inland through rainforest studded with small towns and big trees. The secrets of the Great Ocean Road don't stop there; further along is maritime treasure Port Fairy and hidden Cape Bridgewater. For the ultimate in slow travel, walk the Great Ocean Walk from Apollo Bay to the Apostles.
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Canberra's Museums & Galleries
Though Canberra is only a century old, Australia’s purpose-built capital has always been preoccupied with history. So it’s not surprising that the major drawcard here is a portfolio of lavishly endowed museums and galleries focused on interpreting the national narrative. Institutions such as the National Gallery of Australia, National Museum of Australia, National Portrait Gallery and Australian War Memorial offer visitors a fascinating insight into the country’s history and culture – both ancient and modern – and do so with style and substance.
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Margaret River Region
The decadent joy of drifting from winery to winery along eucalypt-shaded country roads is just one of the delights of Western Australia's southwest (Click here). There are caves to explore, historic towns to visit and spring wildflowers to ogle. Surfers bob around in the world-class breaks near Margaret River, but it's not unusual to find yourself on a white-sand beach where the only footprints are your own. In late winter and early spring, cast an eye offshore to spot whales migrating along the 'Humpback Highway'.
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Cradle Mountain
A precipitous comb of rock carved out by millennia of ice and wind, crescent-shaped Cradle Mountain is Tasmania's most recognisable – and spectacular – mountain peak. It's an all-day walk (and boulder scramble) to the summit and back, for unbelievable panoramas over Tasmania's alpine heart. Or you can stand in awe below and fill your camera with the perfect views across Dove Lake to the mountain. If the peak has disappeared in clouds or snow, warm yourself by the fire in one of the nearby lodges…and come back tomorrow.
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The Outback & Broken Hill
Whether you're belting along South Australia's Oodnadatta Track or the Birdsville Track in southwest Queensland, you'll know you're not just visiting the outback, you've become part of it. Out here, the sky is bluer and the dust redder than anywhere else. Days are measured in hundreds of kilometres, spinifex mounds and tyre blowouts. Nights are spent in the five-zillion-star hotel, waiting for one to fall… If time is not on your side, a road trip to the outback mining town of Broken Hill may be as far from the coast as you get.
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Darwin & Kakadu National Park
Levelled by WWII bombs and Cyclone Tracy, Darwin knows a thing or two about reinvention. This frontier city has emerged from the tropical steam to become a multicultural, hedonistic hotspot: the launch pad for trips into some of Australia's most remarkable wilderness. Two hours southeast, Kakadu National Park (Click here) is the place to see Indigenous rock art under jagged escarpments and idyllic waterholes at the base of plummeting waterfalls. Raucous bird life and saltwater crocodiles are guaranteed highlights.
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Fraser Island
The world's largest patch of sand, Fraser Island is home to dingos, shipwrecks and all manner of bird life. Four-wheel drive vehicles (regular cars aren't allowed) fan out around epic camp spots and long white beaches. The wild coastline curbs any thoughts of doing much more than wandering between pristine creeks and freshwater lakes. Beach camping under the stars will bring you back to nature. A short ferry trip away is Hervey Bay, where humpback whales shoot along the coast in winter and spring.
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South Australian Wine Regions
Adelaide is drunk on the success of its three world-famous wine regions (Click here), all within two hours' (designated) drive: the Barossa Valley to the north, with its gutsy reds, old vines and German know-how; McLaren Vale to the south, a Mediterranean palette of sea, vines and shiraz; and the Clare Valley, known for riesling and wobbly bike rides (in that order). Better-kept secrets are the cool-climate stunners from the Adelaide Hills and the country cabernet sauvignon from the Coonawarra.
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Ningaloo Marine Park
Swim beside 'gentle giant' whale sharks, snorkel among pristine coral, surf off seldom-visited reefs and dive at one of the world's premier locations at this World Heritage–listed marine park, which sits off the North West Cape on the Coral Coast in Western Australia. Rivalling the Great Barrier Reef for beauty, Ningaloo has much more accessible wonders: shallow, turquoise lagoons are entered straight from the beach for excellent snorkelling. Development is very low-key, so be prepared to camp, or take day trips from the access towns of Exmouth and Coral Bay.
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Indigenous Art
Immersed in ‘The Dreaming’ – a vast unchanging network of life tracing back to spiritual ancestors – Aboriginal art is a conduit between past and present, supernatural and earthly, people and land. Central Australian dot paintings are exquisite, as are Tiwi Island carvings and fabrics, Arnhem Land bark paintings, Torres Strait Islander prints, weavings and carvings, and creations from Aboriginal-owned art cooperatives in the Kimberley. Most large galleries around Australia have indigenous collections. You can make an informed purchase at commercial galleries or (even better) direct from Aboriginal communities.
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The Gold Coast
Brash, hedonistic, over-hyped…Queensland's Gold Coast is all of these things, but if you're looking for a party, bring it on! Beyond the fray is the beach – an improbably gorgeous coastline of clean sand, warm water and peeling surf breaks. The bronzed gods of the surf, Australia's surf life-savers, patrol the sand and pit their skills against one another in surf carnivals – gruelling events involving ocean swimming, beach sprints and surf boat racing. Also here are Australia's biggest theme parks – rollercoaster nirvana!
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Sporting Obsessions
Australia is sports-mad! Australian Rules football is a religion here: the pinnacle of the Australian Football League (AFL) season is the Grand Final in Melbourne (September). Melbourne also hosts the Australian Open tennis (January), the Australian Formula One Grand Prix (March), the Melbourne Cup horse race (November), and the annual Boxing Day test cricket match. In Queensland and New South Wales, catch a bone-crunching National Rugby League (NRL) match during winter. Watching big-screen sport in a pub is an essential experience – grab a beer and yell along with the locals.
