East Coast of Australia
A roughly 2,800 km coastal route from Sydney north to Cairns, linking beaches, surf towns, the Great Barrier Reef and rainforest.
Australia's East Coast route runs from Sydney in New South Wales north along the Pacific Highway, into Queensland, as far as Cairns. It covers about 2,800 km and is Australia's most classic route for backpackers and campervan travelers. Key stops along the way: the Sydney Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and Bondi Beach; inland, the Hunter Valley wine region and the Blue Mountains; the surf and counterculture town of Byron Bay; the Gold Coast, with Surfers Paradise and its theme parks, and Brisbane, the capital of Queensland; the stylish seaside town of Noosa; Hervey Bay, for humpback whales, followed by a four-wheel-drive trip across K'gari (Fraser Island), the world's largest sand island; the Whitsunday Islands, with Whitehaven Beach and sailing trips; and finally Cairns, from where you can head out to the Great Barrier Reef and into the Daintree Rainforest. Allow 3 to 4 weeks for the full route. If time is short, split it into Sydney–Brisbane (about 10 days) and Brisbane–Cairns (about 10 to 14 days), or fly between the two. You can drive yourself, rent a campervan or take a Greyhound long-distance bus, which offers a pass for hopping on and off along the way. Australians drive on the left. Watch for kangaroos in rural areas at night. K'gari requires a four-wheel-drive vehicle and a permit.