Yes, the Land Down Under has like a zillion animals that can kill you. Their offbeat humor may be dry and sarcastic, but it’s all just good-natured banter. Explore this ancient land from the Outback to the rainforests, beaches, and the Great Barrier Reef. Discover the evolving mosaic of Aboriginal people, Europeans, and more recent Asian immigrants.

ADVENTURES

SCUBA Diving the Great Barrier Reef

Diving the Great Barrier Reef is on most SCUBA diver’s wish lists

Ride a Steam Engine in the Blue Mountains

Ride a railway through gum trees in the Blue Mountains

Explore Daintree Rainforest

Hop on a 4WD truck, cruise the Daintree River, and hike the Daintree Rainforest

MUST SEES: SYDNEY

Sydney Opera House

Sydney Opera House is an architectural masterpiece that evokes maritime visions of large white sails and seashells.

Circular Quay

Near the Rocks, the Circular Quay is a U-shaped promenade by Sydney Cove. The air throbs with the strains of electronic beats intermingled with live didgeridoo music.

The Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains are about an hour from Sydney. The dense eucalyptus tree forest emanates a bluish haze. The Three Sisters is a rock formation of triple sandstone peaks.

Zig Zag Railway

The old fashioned steam engine takes you on a trip from Clarence to Bottom Points and back. The train smells like coal smoke as it enters dark tunnels and crosses high bridges.

Watsons Bay

A former fishing village, Watsons Bay is now a lovely seaside cove with waterfront seafood restaurants. Explore an anchor from a shipwreck and the lighthouse. Get here by an express ferry from Circular Quay.

Bondi Beach

Sydney’s most famous beach has tidepools and overwhelming crowds. The waves crash at a rocky promontory, creating a spray of white frothy fireworks.

Taronga Zoo

Taronga is great for viewing Australian native wildlife, as well as rare and endangered exotic animals. You’re here for the koalas, kangaroos, wombats, platypus, echidna, and cassowary. They also have some of the many deadly animals Oz is known for.

Royal Botanic Garden

There are parrots and rainbow lorikeets everywhere you look. There once was a colony of Grey-headed Flying Foxes. When the sun went down, the bats awakened and rapidly turned the sky black with their flapping erratic wings.

MUST SEES: ALICE SPRINGS

Alice Springs

Alice Springs is a remote town in the Outback. The terrain is red, dry, and craggy with very few water sources. There are insects everywhere, moths, grasshoppers crawling on walls, and flies buzzing about.

Uluru (Ayer’s Rock)

Uluru is the world’s largest monolith with a circumference of six miles. At sunset, Uluru burns red like fire in a spectacular display of light, colors, and shadows. Don’t climb Uluru out of respect to the Aborigines. They believe ancestral beings created Uluru at the beginning during the Dreaming.

Kata Tjuta

Kata Tjuta is a group of large red domes and marble-shaped rock formations. They are formed of conglomerate rock, a mix of granite and basalt held together by sandstone. The Anangu people believe Kata Tjuṯa is home to spirits from the Dreaming.

MUST SEES: CAIRNS

Cairns

Cairns is a city in the northeastern state of Queensland. It is the gateway for day trips to the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest.

Daintree

Drive from Cairns to Daintree. Cruise Daintree River past epiphylums, bromeliads, mangroves, and crocodiles. With rain jackets, walk among 1,000-year-old plants of Daintree Rainforest, the oldest rainforest in the world. Feed yam slices to wallabies.

Great Barrier Reef

The world’s largest coral reef contains 2,900 reefs, 900 islands, and coral cays across 1,400 miles. There are so many ways to experience the rich biodiversity from above and below. Take a boat from Port Douglas to dive the reef.

MUST SEES: MELBOURNE

Shrine of Remembrance

The Shrine of Remembrance originally honored those who served in World War I and now honors all Australians who served in any war. The top of the Greek-inspired Shrine provides a great view of Melbourne’s skyline.

Phillip Island

Phillip Island is home to the Little Penguin. At sunset, the Little Penguins depart the surf and return to land. And so the Penguin Parade begins. Some glide in on their bellies. Others get swept back by the waves. Groups of 12 dash to the hills.

Aussie Rules Football Match

Watch the local team, the Western Bulldogs, in an Aussie rules football match. It’s a mash-up of kicking, tackling, and rugby. The players run, punch, or kick their way in this game of field position.

Centre Place

Centre Place appears to be dodgy and grungy with graffiti. It’s actually full of energy and hidden treasures. Wander through the little alleys and find a great hole-in-the-wall place to eat.

Twelve Apostles

The Twelve Apostles are limestone rock formations off the shore of Port Campbell National Park. Drive on the Great Ocean Road by Victoria.

FOOD

Meat Pie

Meat pies are the best comfort food. Minced beef and gravy are placed in a flaky pastry. These handheld treats are great at Aussie rules football matches or anytime really.

Fish and Chips

Australia has access to an abundant supply of great seafood. Their take of fish and chips comes with salt and lemon and is wrapped in newspaper. If you aren’t interested in fried fish, pan fried barramundi filets are also great with chips.

Vegemite

Vegemite is a thick, dark brown spread made from brewers’ yeast extract. You spread it on toast.

Lamington

A lamington is a square of butter cake coated in a layer of chocolate sauce and rolled in dried coconut. The outside of the cake absorbs the sauce. There’s a layer of jam in the middle. The cake has a tender and moist texture.

Regions

Elemental Quests

Australia