Road Trip Guide Through Australia
There is hardly a better way to experience Australia than by road tripping. The vast and beautiful country will make you feel as if you have visited many different worlds, as the road takes you from turquoise waters of the bay and lush rainforests to outlandish rock formations and arid deserts where unbelievably starry nights remind native people from whence they came. Seeing them all is as easy as starting a camper van. A road trip through Australia is guaranteed to be an exciting and memorable experience of a lifetime. Mind blowing landscapes and nature reserves packed with wildlife will make you go on and on about your drive Down Under for years.
Picking a route
You will be best off if you consult both Google maps and old fashioned, fold out maps. You should definitely pack one fold out map as you will likely have quite a few times without any kind of mobile service. Also, everyone can share it and mark their ideas what to visit next. Take your time and research the interesting places to stop along the way. If you want a true experience of the land, stay away from the bigger towns. You’ll soon find that isolated corners of the country are far more interesting.
Popular tours
Bear in mind that Australia is huge. How far you can go will depend on the time you have.
- Among the popular routes, you will find a trip along the northeast coast, roughly between Sydney and Cairns. After 100 miles of stunning beaches of the Sunshine Coast, you will reach Hervey Bay, a hotspot for whale watching. The nearby Fraser Island with its 100 freshwater lakes and tea trees is a backpacker’s paradise.
- More adventurous travelers may follow a 2100-mile-long route from Sydney to Perth. Massive sand dunes of Port Stephens are like made for sandboarding. The Great Ocean Road will take you along some of the finest surfing beaches in Australia with many historic landmarks.
- If you have 21 days at your disposal, the West Coast adventure from Perth to Darwin might just be what you are looking for. Once you have enjoyed the sights and laid-back beach loving culture of this beautiful city, head north across the Pinnacles Desert towards Shark Bay that is brimming with marine wildlife. Karijini National Park that lies ahead is the place to experience real outback camping in the bush. The drive from Karijini to Nitmiluk is 1500 miles long and it is one of the most picturesque parts of the journey. It winds among lofty mountains, gorgeous East Coast beaches, scenic gorges and lovely villages. Cold beverages await you in Darwin.
The right vehicle
Road trips are immensely popular in Australia, so finding a caravan to hire is easy. Roadtripping in Australia is so well covered that you can even ask for a custom paint job for your vehicle before you set out. If you are sharing the road costs among your friends, instead of hiring, you can buy a cheap car. While this might turn as a less reliable option, it is often cheaper. One way or another, a vehicle becomes another member of the company. If you go for the purchase, you don’t have to answer to anybody for its condition. That independence, however, cuts both ways, and having a reliable mobile mechanic in your phone’s memory is advisable, just in case your car needs service.
If hiring a camper van and hitting the road has always been your dream, you definitely need to put Australia on the top of your list. Fill your petrol tank to the top and crank up that Men at Work hit from 1981.
Do share your experiences if you’ve done road tripping in Australia? If not, do tell us about your last road trip adventure in the comments below?
About the Author
Peter Minkoff is a beauty & fashion editor for Shlur magazine from the UK living in London and occasionally in Brisbane, Australia. After graduating from Australian Institute of Creative Design, he worked as a stylist for few fashion events around the UK. Besides beauty and fashion, he loves reading, making DIY cosmetics and traveling around tropical destinations. He plans to create a business for beauty & style advising.
lex
June 11, 2017good guide for a new comer. good pictures and surely a great way to see the country around since i am not there in person
View CommentMilica
June 11, 2017Australia is one of the few countries my husband and I haven’t visit yet, but it’s on our bucket list. Our last road trip was from Chicago to Miami.
View Commentollaswanson
June 11, 2017Thank you so much for the tips! I love going on road trips in America and one day I’ll have to go through Australia. I’ll make sure to look this up when I do.
View CommentMELANIE EDJOURIAN
June 10, 2017Google maps really does come in hand doesn’t it. I’ve never been to Australia it’s a bit too far for me unfortunately.
View CommentJill
June 10, 2017Australia is awesome for variety of travel reasons, but next time I’m there I’ll definitely do a road trip!
View CommentStuart Brazell
June 9, 2017I really enjoyed this and am now adding this to my bucket list!!!
View CommentDavid
June 9, 2017Ana,
View CommentThanks for writing this awesome article! I cannot wait until my wife and I can visit this beautiful place! There looks like so much to do there and it looks dangerous at the same time! Thanks for sharing this experience with us!
chiimmiii
June 9, 2017I have never been to Australia before and it sure would be amazing to experience. 🙂
View CommentEG III
June 9, 20172100 miles from Perth to Sydney sounds like an awesome adventure. What I truly love about road trips is the ability they give you to explore and discover new destinations and people. It’s been quite some time since my last road trip but I’m itching to rectify that very soon.
View Commentdeepagandhi
June 9, 2017Australia is beautiful and your pics are doing all the justice to it. Thanks for this virtual trip.
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