My Favourite 7 Stops in Australia and 3 To Avoid

Well when I say Australia, I mean The East Coast, Waikerie, Adelaide to Melbourne and some of Victoria. I am yet to Visit the West, North and Red Centre.

The Whitsunday Islands

Whitsunday Islands
Paradise, take a boat trip or just organise a trip to one of the many islands – if you cannot afford the stay that is. Whitehaven beach is located among these islands and despite how many photos you will have seen nothing compares to its beauty in real life. The white sand and pure blue sea can be found all over these islands but nowhere does it better than Whitehaven beach and the hill inlet view point. From here you can also dive the fringing parts of the Great Barrier Reef

Sydney
The most famous and iconic of Australian cities but its everything you imagine. Yes I may have guessed this would make the list before I landed in Oz but what other city has such famous landmarks and beaches? The North and South beaches are beautiful and the further you get from the city the better they get. Still the CBD has so much to offer with the Harbour Bridge and Opera House being the most famous views. My best recommendation for Sydney is explore more than the CBD.

Fraser Island
This is the world’s largest sand island, it is nothing like I have ever seen before, with so much history and home to some of the purest dingos. It’s hard to find an experience similar, hands down I would recommend a tag along tour where you get to experience driving on the sand. Give yourself enough time to see all the sights at a slow pace, there is too much to see in one day.

The Great Ocean Road
Possible the place I most wanted to visit before I arrived in Oz, having collected countless images of this coast line. The BEST way to see it is via campervan, take a few days and really take in the sights each day. I promise this coast line will not disappoint. Spend more than five minutes at each place, get to the Apostles in time for sunset or sunrise and try to time the trip so you don’t go during peak tourist season with everyone else who wants to see the sights.

Middle Island AKA Castaway
What and where is middle island, Castaway I would have asked before landing in OZ. Yet nine months later it remains one of my top spots. The furthest north you can surf with pure blue water, red earth and a deserted island. This is the closest you get to the ‘real Australia’ on the east coast. By real I mean an area where you can go for days without seeing a sole and the landscapes speak more than a picture ever could. It was strange knowing I was only one of 15 people on the island.

Adelaide – During the Festival Time
From the middle of February and through March its peak festival season in Adelaide and I was lucky enough to spend a week here at the end of February. With half the city providing venues for acts each night, and entire garden transformed in to a scene out of Alice In Wonderland and all different kinds of festivals going on at once such as the Fringe and Doc Week, there is so much to see and do.  The Garden Of Unearthly Delights blew me away. I couldn’t comment on what this city is like outside of the festival season.

Cape Tribulation and The Daintree
The area north of Port Douglas is full of aboriginal history, rainforests, crocodiles and the Great Barrier Reef. I experienced this area on a one day, daytrip. In my eyes that was not long enough at all. With plenty of activities on offer and so much to learn about the history of the aboriginals in this area of the rainforest, I could easily have spent a week in this area of Northern Queensland. Although one top tip would be to come during dry season, I went right at the beginning of wet season and still spent the day hiding from the rain.

And three places not to bother visiting…

This sign in NIMBIN is kinda cool though.

Townsville – Quiet and boring. There is very little to do here and the poor quality of hostels does not help. The only reason people tend to stop here is if they are heading off to Maggie Island.

Newcastle – It seems like a place which once may have been great but these days has very little to offer. The walk along the water front and beach was nice but the rest of the ‘city’ feels like it stopped caring a long time ago – a real let down. Our main reason for stopping here was to take a day trip to hunter valley, however this can be done from Sydney

Nimbin – As per usual Lonely Planet viewed this hippie town with rose tinted glasses. It wasn’t the relaxed hippie vibe I imagined or was looking for. Instead it felt like the whole town was waiting for the tour bus to arrive and add some life to this dull and sleepy town for a few hours.