Australia Information

There is a lot to see in Australia, but also a lot of Australia to see it in. And while there are many ways to travel around the country, a self-drive holiday will give you the flexibility to do things at your own pace and see the real Australia. Do this by hiring a rental car or luxury car through Drive Travel today!

Australia is a vast country with much to entice the traveller. From cosmopolitan cities to unique and varied wildlife, from harsh deserts to glorious beaches, from ski resorts to tropical coral reefs, Australia has something for everyone.



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Sydney

Sydney remains a major drawcard for tourists, and for good reason. From iconic Sydney Harbour to world-famous beaches, Sydney has a charm about it to woo even the most seasoned traveller. Start your stay in Sydney with a harbour cruise, and see the famous Opera House and Harbour Bridge. You can even climb the bridge if you wish; organised tours for this are available through BridgeClimb. For such a young city, Sydney has a surprising number of cultural and historic attractions. Areas such as The Rocks have many buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries, and are good to get a feel for life here in Sydney's difficult early days as a convict colony and fledgling new town. Sydney also possesses many quality restaurants and cafes, plus a bustling nightclub scene.

From Sydney, a large amount of worthwhile daytrips are possible. The Blue Mountains, with its rugged terrain, for years frustrated explorers looking for a route west. But this ruggedness nowadays is both accessible and spectacular, with many sights such as The Three Sisters at Katoomba. The area is just over one hour's drive west of the Sydney centre.

North of Sydney, the Ku-ring-gai National Park and Hawkesbury River area offers unspoiled fishing, boating and yet more spectacular scenery, surrounded by thick bushland. Further north again is the Hunter wine region, which exports wine around the world, and the Port Stephens area, famous for its dolphins and beaches. South of Sydney you'll find the Royal National Park and Illawarra, with numerous natural attractions such as beaches and abundant wildlife.



Canberra

Australia's capital city, Canberra, is a few hours' drive southwest of Sydney. Attractions here include Parliament House and the Australian War Memorial, a museum and monument to Australia's war fallen. Canberra also offers the Old Parliament House, the National Museum, the National Gallery, the Australian Institute Of Sport, Royal Australian Mint and Mount Stromlo Observatory.

Gorgeous beaches can be found in almost predictable fashion right up and down Australia's east coast. In this department, Australians are definitely spoiled for choice. But probably the most famous beaches are on the Gold Coast, about one day's drive north of Sydney in southern Queensland. But Queensland also boasts the world-famous Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef, that stretches over an incredible 1600 miles. The area supports and abundance of flora and fauna; 215 species of birds, 2,195 species of plants, 1,500 species of fish and 400 species of coral, not to mention sea turtles, crocodiles, whales, dolphins, dugongs, seahorses, snakes, sharks and stingrays. In short, the Great Barrier reef is spectacular, one of the world's must-see natural wonders. But Queensland also features the Daintree National Park, home to the largest range of plants and animals to be found anywhere on earth, within the Daintree rainforest.


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Melbourne

To the south, Melbourne, Australia's second-largest city, features many museums, galleries, theatres, historic sites dating from the Gold Rush period, fine restaurants, cafes, pubs, parklands, interesting shops, nightclubs and sporting events such as the Australian Open tennis tournament. There are also several other worthwhile areas to visit within reach of Melbourne. The Dandenong Ranges are located just to Melbourne's east. This region is popular with Melburnians, and offers hiking, natural scenery, flora and fauna, plus picturesque small towns with a number of restaurants and cafes. The Great Ocean Road, to Melbourne's south-west, is a must-see. The road runs for 273km along Australia's south coast between the towns of Geelong and Warrnambool. Hugging the coastline for most of its length, it contains no end of dazzling scenery, including beaches, mountains, ocean and natural rock formations. The area is sparsely populated, with only a few small towns on the length of the road.



Tasmania

South of the Australian mainland, Tasmania offers a uniquely unspoiled natural experience, even by Australian standards. In fact, 36% of Tasmania consists of national parks or reserves. Foremost among these is the Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Claire National Park, which is on the World Heritage List. It contains rugged mountains, rainforest, pristine lakes and hiking trails. Also in Tasmania, the city of Hobart features the famous Salamanca Place market, while Port Arthur is a monument to Australia's convict past.



South Australia

South Australia lies west of Victoria and east of Western Australia. Apart from the capital city, Adelaide, it is sparsely populated. Adelaide has about 1 million people, and features an attractive city centre, parks, good shopping, cafes, restaurants, beaches and nightlife. Within reach of Adelaide is the Barossa Valley, one of Australia's premier wine regions, from where wine is exported all over the world. Kangaroo Island, 15km off the South Australian coast, features untouched bushland and abundant wildlife, including kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, penguins and seals. In fact, Kangaroo Island is probably the best place to see Australian wildlife, due to its lack of introduced species such as foxes, that are all too common on the mainland. The Coorong, an isolated coastal region to the south of Adelaide, features bird and animal life, and abundant sand dunes. North of Adelaide, in the Outback, is the town of Coober Pedy. An opal region, most of its residents live underground, which offers protection from the harsh temperatures.

Western Australia

Western Australia is Australia's largest state, covering a third of the continent - making it four times the size of Texas. Most of its 2 million people live in the capital city, Perth. Perth is one of the world's most isolated cities; the nearest sizeable centre,
Adelaide, is about 2700km away. Attractions in Perth include Kings Park, the historic port town of Fremantle, beaches, cafe scene, restaurants and shopping. The rest of Western Australia is very sparsely populated. There are many pristine beaches that are as yet undiscovered by the tourist trade. Small towns are scattered along the coastline, but the inland areas are almost entirely empty - the fabled Australian Outback. Some 800km north of Perth is the Shark Bay region, on the World Heritage list for its many species of animals, including dugongs, dolphins and 323 fish species. Most well known is Monkey Mia, where visitors can swim with dolphins. Also in the area is Hamelin Pool, featuring the world's longest living organisms. Further north (over 2000km from Perth) is the Kimberley region. This is a true wilderness area, twice the size of Great Britain but with only 40,000 people. The Purnululu National Park features the Bungle Bungles, highly unusual sandstone structures that have earned the area World Heritage status.


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Northern Territory

The Northern Territory is where to go to see the Australian Outback. Sparely populated, most of the towns are on Stuart Highway, which runs from Darwin in the north, through Alice Springs in Australia's centre, and eventually to Adelaide (3,042km away). Uluru, or Ayers Rock, is located near the geopgraphic centre of Australia and the southern end of the Northern Territory. Uluru is mystical, mysterious, eerie, awe-inspiring and not to be missed. 348 metres tall, and 9.4km around, it constantly changes colour according to the weather, and is spectacular during sunrise and sunset. Kata Tjuta is a series of rock formations just to the west of Uluru. Kakadu National Park is located south-east of Darwin, in the north of the Northern Territory (also known as the Top End). Australia's largest national park contains numerous wetlands and waterfalls, and a large amount of wildlife, including freshwater and saltwater crocodiles, 280 bird species, 60 mammal species, 117
reptile species, 25 species of frogs, poisonous snakes such as the Taipan, Death Adder and King Brown, and 53 species of freshwater fish. There are also 1600 plant species. The Northern Territory's capital and largest city, Darwin, features a crocodile farm with over 10,000 crocodiles.

It used to be that the Northern Territory did not have any speed limits outside of its towns; unfortunately, this is no longer the case.

Driving in Australia