Australia Holidays and Honeymoons
Where to start with arguably the most fun country on earth?! One of the best things I've done in my life so far was spending over a year living in Melbourne and before I came back to Ireland - we took the iconic Ghan train from Adelaide to the Red Centre and backpacked our way through Queensland and New South Wales. Australia is huge, and while you might not see it all in one trip, even a fraction of the country is just incredible! Thinking about an Australia holiday or honeymoon? Let's go!
Why Choose Australia?
You might be planning an Australia holiday to visit family and friends or even an Australia honeymoon (which I love!) and it really is a destination that has a bit of everything, and no two days feel the same. You’ve got:
- iconic cities like Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney
- coastal drives and amazing long road trips
- national parks and wide open landscapes
- some of the best beaches in the world
- fantastic food
Where To Go In Australia
Melbourne and Victoria
I may be biased having gotten to know Melbourne a little, but it really is one of my favourite cities. The summers are hot and winters are cold, and we lived by the sea in St Kilda.
Melbourne is full of neighbourhoods with their own feel, places like Fitzroy and South Yarra, with great restaurants, bars, galleries and plenty of shopping.
Outside of Melbourne, there’s loads to see in Victoria. The Great Ocean Road is a must including the famous Twelve Apostles. One of my favourite experiences was heading east to Phillip Island for the Penguin Parade. Every evening the small penguins come in from the ocean and make their way back to their burrows. It’s a fab experience and not always on people’s radar.
If you have more time you could drive to Sydney via Wilsons Prom, too
The Red Centre and The Ghan
We took ‘The Overland’ from Melbourne to Adelaide and from there we met 'The Ghan'. I absolutely love long-distance train travel (it’s a novelty when you’re from a small island!) and this was a 20-hour journey through the red wilderness to Alice Springs.
From there, we explored the Red Centre. Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Kings Canyon vast landscapes that are hard to get your head around. Sunset BBQ dinners, watching the colours change over Uluru and stargazing with almost no light pollution. We even experienced a rare thunderstorm.
It does add in a couple of extra flights or trains, but it’s 100% worth it - the vastness of Northern Australia really is magic.
Queensland
Cairns to Brisbane or Sydney is one of the most fun road trip routes you can do.
Cairns and Port Douglas are the perfect jump off points to the Great Barrier Reef, Cape Tribulation and the Daintree Rainforest and the Kuranda Scenic Skyrail.
Head further south and you'll come to Airline Beach - the gateway to The Whitsundays. This is one of my favourite parts of the world. We spent a night on a catamaran and anchored at Whitehaven Beach. The silica sand literally squeaks when you walk on it, the water is every shade of blue, and there were turtles swimming around the boat.
That night, after everyone else had gone to sleep, I lay out on and fell asleep there under a million stars. One of those perfect travel moments.
As you go further you'll come to K’gari (formerly Fraser Island), the only place in the world where rainforest grows on sand dunes. Lake McKenzie and Lake Wabby, driving along 75 Mile Beach, spotting wild dingoes. It’s a fun place and definitely worth more than a day trip.
Sunshine Coast's Noosa is a fab little town with Australia Zoo and just south of here, Brisbane is a great city to break up the journey. We stopped on the Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise) and ideal if like me you're partial to a theme park or water parks
Byron Bay is one of my favourite places in Australia. I was lucky enough to do a skydive here and jumped out over a rainbow, another one of my favourite travel memories.
Sydney
And then there’s Sydney - a city you could spend weeks and months in. Sydney Harbour and the Opera House Bondi Beach, 'County' Coogee and Manly seeing the city from the water plus trips to the Blue Mountains and Hunter Valley
and that's all before we even talk about Darwin and Perth! It's hard to do it all - even when you're there for over a year!
Planning Your Australia Trip
Australia is incomprehensively vast, and that’s the biggest thing to keep in mind. You might want to factor in:
- how much you can realistically fit in
- where to focus your time
- how you move between places
- balancing travel with downtime
And that's where I come in. I'm here to help you maximise your time and help you plan the perfect Australia itinerary from flights to transport, hotels to activities - I'm here to make your Australia honeymoon or holiday easy peasy!
Feedback from a recent Australia trip
"Exceptional service! Karen Pugh took the time to understand our travel needs and budget and created a personalized plan that worked perfectly with our schedule and preferences. Highly recommended."
Ready to start planning an Australia honeymoon or holiday?
