Australia-wide

Australian road trips

The country opens up at the windscreen. These are the drives we keep coming back to — each one written as a day-by-day plan you can actually follow.

Featured drives

Routes worth the distance

Tap any card to open the day-by-day breakdown. Distances and seasons are listed so you can plan around the reality, not the postcard.

3-day410 km

Victoria · Coastal

Great Ocean Road in Three Days

The classic run from Torquay to the Twelve Apostles, taking it slow enough to actually stop at the lookouts everyone else drives past.

3Days

410Distance

Sep–AprBest season

Day 1

Torquay to Lorne

Surf Coast beaches, the Memorial Arch and a first night where the rainforest meets the sea.

Day 2

Lorne to Apollo Bay

Erskine Falls, koalas at Kennett River and the long green sweep of the Otways.

Day 3

Apollo Bay to the Apostles

Cape Otway light, Gibson Steps and sunset at the Twelve Apostles.

7-day1,180 km

Tasmania · Wilderness

The Tasmania Loop, Seven Days

A full circuit taking in Hobart, the east-coast beaches, Cradle Mountain and the wild west, with time built in for weather.

7Days

1,180Distance

Nov–MarBest season

Day 1–2

Hobart & the south

kunanyi/Mt Wellington, Salamanca and a day trip to the Tasman Peninsula.

Day 3–4

East coast

Freycinet, Wineglass Bay and the orange-lichen boulders of the Bay of Fires.

Day 5–6

Cradle Mountain

Dove Lake circuit and alpine moorland in the island's wild heart.

Day 7

The west & return

Strahan, the Gordon River and the drive back through the highlands.

5-dayBoat & air

Queensland · Reef

Whitsundays Island Route, Five Days

Airlie Beach as your base, with sailing days out to Whitehaven, Hill Inlet and the fringing reefs of the inner islands.

5Days

BoatTravel

Apr–OctBest season

Day 1

Airlie Beach

Settle in, walk the lagoon and provision for the days on the water.

Day 2–3

Whitehaven & Hill Inlet

Silica sand, the swirling tidal inlet lookout and a night at anchor.

Day 4

Snorkel the inner reef

Fringing coral off Hook and Border islands.

Day 5

Island lookout & return

A final headland walk before the ferry back.

2-day260 km

New South Wales · Escarpment

Blue Mountains Weekend

An easy escape from Sydney into eucalypt-blue valleys, clifftop lookouts and waterfall walks — no camping required.

2Days

260Distance

Year-roundBest season

Day 1

Leura & Katoomba

Three Sisters at Echo Point, the Prince Henry clifftop walk and a long lunch in Leura.

Day 2

Grand Canyon walk

The Grand Canyon track at Blackheath and Govetts Leap before the drive home.

7-day1,480 km

Northern Territory · Outback

Red Centre to the Top End, Seven Days

Desert icons and monsoon-country gorges in one big northbound run, from Uluru's sandstone to Kakadu's wetlands.

7Days

1,480Distance

May–SepBest season

Day 1–2

Uluru & Kata Tjuta

Sunrise at the rock, the Valley of the Winds and a desert night sky.

Day 3–4

Kings Canyon & the drive north

The rim walk, then the long haul up the Stuart Highway.

Day 5–7

Kakadu

Ubirr rock art, Nourlangie and the wetlands at Yellow Water.

5-day800 km

NSW Coast · Beaches

Sydney to Byron, Five Days

A northbound beach-hop up the NSW coast, trading the city for headland walks, river towns and a slower pace by the day.

5Days

800Distance

Sep–MayBest season

Day 1

Sydney to Newcastle

Central Coast beaches and a first night by the harbour.

Day 2–3

Port Macquarie & Coffs

Koala country, the coastal walk and the big banana-belt beaches.

Day 4–5

Yamba to Byron

Underrated Yamba, then the lighthouse and hinterland around Byron.

3-day540 km

Victoria · Ranges

Grampians & Goldfields, Three Days

Sandstone ranges, wildflower season and the grand streetscapes of Victoria's gold-rush towns, looped from Melbourne.

3Days

540Distance

Sep–NovBest season

Day 1

Melbourne to Halls Gap

The drive west and an evening among the kangaroos at Halls Gap.

Day 2

The Grampians

The Pinnacle lookout, MacKenzie Falls and Aboriginal rock-art shelters.

Day 3

Ballarat & home

Goldfields history at Ballarat before the run back to the city.

4-day900 km

South Australia · Outback

Flinders Ranges Outback, Four Days

Ancient ranges north of Adelaide, where the geology is older than almost anywhere on Earth and the silence is the point.

4Days

900Distance

Apr–OctBest season

Day 1

Adelaide to the Clare Valley

A wine-country waypoint on the drive north.

Day 2–3

Wilpena Pound

The natural amphitheatre, scenic flights and Brachina Gorge's geological corridor.

Day 4

Return south

The long, quiet road back through the wheat country.

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Turn a route into a real trip

Browse itineraries by region and season, or read the journal for the stops worth building a day around.

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