There’s nowhere like Australia…
And with so many locations to explore, welcoming locals to meet and activities to try, it can be a little overwhelming figuring out where to start.
But, this year, we want to up our holiday game by weaving in tantalising, adrenaline-fuelled or awe-inspiring experiences to make up for the countless weeks cooped up. So, with the help of our friends at Tourism Australia, we’ve fine-tuned our list of the ultimate seven experiences you should pop on your summer 2020/21 Australian travel list.
Forget the seven-wonders, and, instead, try something a little less understated, but all the same, breath-taking.
Premier Travel Tasmania, TAS
Cradle Mountain, Tasmania. Image purchased via shutterstock. Photo by Olga Kashubin
After a wilderness encounter? Premier Travel Tasmania has launched the 5 Day Tasmanian Wildlife and Wilderness Encounter, centring around UNESCO World Heritage-listed Cradle Mountain National Park, about 200-kilometres north-west of Hobart. Better yet, this sensational adventure also takes in the Central Highlands, Maria Island and Mount Field National Park.
As you are guided through ancient rainforest to the rugged coastline, you can see the likes of quolls, kangaroos, echidnas, platypus, wallabies, wombats and the most famous local, the Tasmanian devil. From the wildly rugged to the wildly comfortable, you’ll then retire to luxury accommodation nestled in nature, such as the iconic Cradle Mountain Hotel and Thousand Lakes Lodge. Wilderness and luxury? It’s a yes from us. See more information here.
Darwin Rural pub & grub crawl tour, NT
Good food and a pub – it’s all you need in life. And now, it’s an escape tour. Discover some of the Top End’s most iconic pubs on the new Darwin Rural Pub Crawl. The new experience by Wallaroo Tours gives you the chance to enjoy a cold one whilst being entertained by an expert guide with stories about the everyday characters in Australia’s Top End, Northern Territory.
This unique tour includes door-to-door pick-up and drop-off at your accommodation, beginning in the world-famous Humpty Doo Hotel. There’s even a private jumping crocodile cruise. Sign us up. Find more information here.
Flinders Chase Focus, SA
Kangaroo Island. Image purchased. Photo by Soeren Kracht.
What’s more iconic than a kangaroo? Exceptional Kangaroo Island has partnered with private wildlife refuge Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife to launch Flinders Chase Focus. This hands-on full-day tour allows you to actively take part in conservation efforts to regenerate the island’s vast wilderness, which was affected by the Australian 2019/2020 bushfires.
As a guest, you’ll be able to participate in wildlife surveys and check fencing and motion cameras while getting a close understanding of the endemic sooty dunnart (an endangered tiny carnivorous marsupial), followed by a gourmet picnic lunch in the bush. Efforts are rewarded with a guided tour of Flinders Chase National Park to explore nature’s gravity-defying sculpture, Remarkable Rocks, as well as Admirals Arch – home to a large colony of fur seals. Do good and feel good on your next escape. Find more information here.
Saltwater Eco-Tours, QLD
Want to learn about our First Nations peoples? Saltwater Eco Tours is a Mooloolaba-based ecotourism company creating unique cultural tours escorted by Indigenous guides who share their peoples’ stories, traditions and culture during an unforgettable cruising experience along the Mooloolah River onboard the historical 100-year-old timber sailing vessel “Spray of the Coral Coast”. The eco-tourism sailing experience inspires a deeper connection to Indigenous culture and the ocean.
The tour highlights the role that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples played in preserving the natural beauty and ecological diversity of the Sunshine Coast, much of which has now been preserved in the National Parks for the enjoyment of locals and visitors. Collaboration with Local Traditional Owners of the Kabi Kabi first nation people ensures that Saltwater Eco Tours delivers an authentic local visitor experience, sharing the timeless wisdom of the world’s oldest continuous living cultures, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Find more information here.
Kalbarri Skywalk, WA
Kalbarri National Park Skywalk. Image via shutterstock. Photo by Agent Wolf
Get your heart pumping and lose your breath all at once. The breathtaking, newly opened Kalbarri Skywalk in Kalbarri National Park Western Australia is now open and ready to become a major tourism drawcard for the region, providing visitors like you a stunning vista of the park’s gorges, rust-red cliffs, flowing waterways and bushland from high above. Located at West Loop Lookout, the structure features two cantilevered viewing platforms that offer soaring views of the Murchison Gorge, river and surrounds.
The platforms project 25-metres and 17-metres beyond the gorge rim, and more than 100-metres above the river. The site also provides toilets, shade shelters, parking, interpretive artwork, improved road infrastructure and a soon to open kiosk. Located a six-hour drive from Perth, the Kalbarri National Park is well known for its coastal cliffs which provide an excellent vantage point to view humpback whales and access to some of the Western Australia’s most spectacular wildflowers. The inland gorge sites of the national park are open from 6am – 6pm daily and there is no additional cost to access the Kalbarri Skywalk. See more information here.
The Museum of Underwater Art, QLD
Looking for something a little different? Stage One of the Museum of Underwater Art (MOUA) in Townsville North Queensland launched on 1 August 2020 with tours commencing to the Coral Greenhouse installation at John Brewer Reef. The MOUA comprises a series of installations by renowned underwater sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor that highlight reef conservation, restoration, and education. As the only underwater art museum in the Southern Hemisphere (yes, how cool is that?!), MOUA is a beautiful and innovative blend of art, science, culture and conservation.
The first stage of MOUA has already been installed including ‘Ocean Siren’ at The Strand and the ‘Coral Greenhouse’ at John Brewer Reef in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, with further installations planned for Palm and Magnetic Islands. Find more information here.
Central Australian walking holiday
Kings Canyon, Australia. Image purchased.
Missed the outdoors? Then this will surely cure your pining. Australian Walking Holidays’ has launched a new, seven-day Central Australian experience that combines three unmissable highlights of Australia’s Red Centre – the Larapinta Trail, Kings Canyon and Uluru. The new Larapinta, Kings Canyon and Uluru in Comfort immerses active travellers in one of the world’s most evocative and ancient landscapes and combines an exploration of the best sections of the Larapinta Trail, the wonders of Kings Canyon and the sacred site of Uluru.
Professionally guided and fully supported throughout, guests will stay in multi-award-winning, exclusive eco-campsites on the Larapinta Trail near Alice Springs, and at permanent campsites at Kings Canyon Resort and Uluru. Find more information here.
Now that you’ve explored the best seven experiences on offer, why not explore the top 10 destinations of 2020 or rest and unwind at one of Australia’s best 7 health and wellness retreats.
We acknowledge the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging.