Australia Is A Vast Country, Though Most Visitors Stay On The Same Tried And Tested Track, Ticking Off Well-touristed Pitstops Along The Way. But, Of Course, There's Plenty More To See Beyond The Usual Sydney, Rock And Reef Holiday Triangle. Here’s Our Pi

1. For wildlife: Mackay, Queensland

Surrounded by sugarcane and with a main street well shaded by tropical foliage, Mackay is a fantastic base for visiting Eungella National Park.

This enchanting jungle has rivers rich enough in platypus to make seeing one practically guaranteed. Your finest opportunity is at Broken River, where the viewing platform is surrounded by ferns and vines-- load a picnic and wait a while in silence to see them.

Later on, take a hike on walking tracks through the https://www.washingtonpost.com/newssearch/?query=australia trees, suitable for birdwatching and goanna spotting, or head back to town for a stroll along the golden sands of Harbour Beach.

2. For legendary sundowns: Tower Hill, Victoria

Continue simply a little additional west from the Great Ocean Road and you'll discover this volcanic crater. Encircled by beds of ash, it's a fertile green sanctuary that is home to koalas and kangaroos aplenty.

The directed strolls from the visitor centre will present you to the wildlife, in addition to to the Aboriginal history-- and you'll find out how to rustle up some bushtucker. But the sundown-- best seen from the crater's rim-- is the centerpiece. Stick around afterwards and join the directed night walk to see the animals at its most active.

3. For remarkable images: Devil's Marbles, Northern Area

You'll need to dedicate to a long drive for this one-- but it's well worth it. Some 130km south of Tennant Creek, en route to Alice Springs, you'll discover a geological phenomenon: a fistful of rock marbles flung across the Wilderness.

Envision them as the eponymous marbles, or as the eggs of the rainbow snake from the regional Aboriginal story. In any case, they're perfect fodder for the eager professional photographer.

4. For red wine: Denmark, Western Australia

Let Margaret River keep its crowds of white wine tourers and head instead to Denmark on the south coast. Here you'll discover an easygoing cluster of shop wineries and hyper-local restaurants beneath a karri tree canopy. Head for the hills inland and check out Castelli Estate for great Pinot Noir and Shiraz or struck Howard Park for red wines that combine the very best of both Denmark and Margaret River grapes.

Don't miss out on Pepper and Salt for supper, where chef Silas utilizes the area's premium produce to create meals motivated by his Fijian-Indian heritage. And visit in March or April for Taste Terrific Southern, which celebrates the area's exceptional local fruit and vegetables.

5. For an extraordinary journey: The Nullarbor Plain, South Australia

Superlatives abound on the Nullarbor-- it's the world's largest single piece of limestone, the world's longest stretch of straight train track and even the universe's longest golf course.

All that makes for one very long (but legendary) drive, stressed only by lookouts over the Great Australian Bight (next stop Antarctica), dirty roadhouses and the odd pitstop to hit a golf ball, if you're so likely.

6. For camping and climbs: Freycinet National forest, Tasmania

Freycinet might be among Tassie's most visited websites, but that does not suggest you'll run into anyone else on a stroll here. Head out on the 31km peninsula circuit and you'll soon shake off any fellow follow visitors (so bring a lot of water) as you tramp anti-clockwise around the peninsula from the Hazards Beach Track to the Wineglass Bay lookout.

Camping is at Cooks Beach and there's time to climb up Mount Freycinet (the summit is 620m above water level). As soon as you're done, start those treking boots and dig your toes into the pristine white sands of Wineglass Bay.

7. For unequalled hiking: New England National Park, New South Wales

Ancient jungle capes the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, much of it an unattainable wilderness that would easily pass for the Amazon. New England National forest opens this UNESCO World Heritage rainforest for visitors, providing walking trails through the snow gums and lookouts from which the view stretches all the way to the coast.

Take the Eagles Nest track, a 2.2 km loop, and you'll see Antarctic beech trees covered in fungi, endemic beech orchids and trickling waterfalls, frequently frozen in winter. You'll eventually reach Point lookout for those panoramic rainforest views.