Country guide
Australia covers 7,688,287 km², sixth largest in the world, and close to 4,000 km separate its east coast from its west. Nearly 28 million people live here, abo...
Photograph · Corey Leopold · CC BY 2.0
Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor
Australia covers 7,688,287 km², sixth largest in the world, and close to 4,000 km separate its east coast from its west. Nearly 28 million people live here, about 80 per cent of them within 25 km of a mainland coastline 35,821 km long — which is the fact that governs any trip taken across it. The cities form a rim around an interior that stays largely empty; Sydney and Melbourne pass five million each, and Canberra, the capital, is neither of them. Six states and ten territories, and a sensible visit chooses two of them rather than the map.
Checked 2026-08-25
Every city catalogued in this country so far, ranked by how much there is to see.
Photograph · W. Bulach · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photograph · Shkuru Afshar · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photograph · Chris Olszewski · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photograph · Samuel Wiki · CC BY 4.0
Photograph · Photograph by Doug Barber · CC BY-SA 3.0
Seasonal closures come from recorded opening hours.
Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.
109 places match
Category
Typical visit duration
Interests
Enoggera Reservoir is a heritage-listed water supply reservoir located in Brisbane's north-western suburbs. Constructed in the 1860s, it represents one of Queensland's earliest major public water infrastructure projects.
Freshwater Beach is a sandy coastal cove in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, set between two headlands. Its sheltered shape makes it a natural place for swimming, surfing, sunbathing and a relaxed seaside walk.
Grange Beach is a coastal beach located within the Adelaide metropolitan area in South Australia. It forms part of the shoreline fronting the suburb of Grange, positioned north-west of Adelaide's central business district.
Henley Beach is a coastal suburb and beach located in Adelaide's western suburbs, approximately 10 kilometres west of the central business district. The area forms part of the Adelaide metropolitan coastline along Gulf St Vincent.
Jawbone Marine Sanctuary is a protected marine area located in Melbourne's vicinity. The sanctuary preserves coastal waters and marine ecosystems, offering visitors a chance to observe natural underwater environments.
Kangaroo Point Cliffs is Brisbane’s distinctive river-edge recreation landscape: a band of red-brown cliffs rising beside the Brisbane River, with the city centre spread across the water.
Kingston Park Coastal Reserve is a coastal open space within the Adelaide metropolitan area, situated along the shoreline of southern Adelaide. The reserve forms part of the continuous coastal belt that characterises this section of the Gulf St Vincent coastline.
Lesmurdie Falls National Park is a Perth Hills nature destination centred on a waterfall descending the Darling Scarp. The escarpment setting creates a strong contrast between elevated bushland and views toward the coastal plain.
Melbourne Park is Melbourne's major sports and entertainment precinct and the principal home of the Australian Open tennis tournament. The site brings together stadiums, tennis courts, event spaces, and public movement routes beside the Yarra River.
Mettams Pool is a natural swimming spot on Perth’s coast, formed by rocky reef that creates a partially sheltered pool beside the open ocean.
Minnippi Parklands is a public park area in Brisbane, included in curated metropolitan visitor rankings as a notable green space. The parklands form part of Brisbane's broader network of recreational areas accessible to residents and visitors.
Mount George Conservation Park is a protected natural area situated within the greater Adelaide region of South Australia. The park forms part of the Mount Lofty Ranges and preserves significant bushland habitat characteristic of the Adelaide Hills environment.
Nerima Gardens is a Japanese-style garden located in Brisbane, Queensland. It forms part of the broader network of parks and gardens across the Brisbane metropolitan area.
Newport Lakes Reserve is a public park and nature reserve in the inner-western Melbourne suburb of Newport. The site occupies a former bluestone quarry that operated from the mid-1800s until 1978.
Nielsen Park is a heritage-listed public park situated within Sydney Harbour National Park in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. The park occupies a prominent harbour foreland position in Vaucluse, offering sheltered swimming beaches and picnic grounds.
Northshore Riverside Park is a public riverside green space located along the Brisbane River in Brisbane, Queensland.
Orleigh Park is a public park situated in the inner-western suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland. It occupies a riverside position along the Brisbane River within the West End locality.
Palm Beach is a coastal suburb and beach at the northern end of Sydney's Northern Beaches peninsula. A narrow isthmus places the Pacific Ocean on one side and Pittwater on the other, giving the area two contrasting waterfronts.
Point Walter Reserve is a broad riverside recreation area in Bicton, on the southern bank of the Swan River in Perth.
Port Melbourne Beach is a broad Port Phillip Bay shoreline where sand, palms, suburban streets and working maritime infrastructure meet. Its setting is shaped by Station Pier, Beach Street, heritage buildings and the active Port Melbourne waterfront.
Rose Bay Beach is a harbour beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, facing the waters of Port Jackson. It offers a coastal pause within the metropolitan city, with space for swimming, walking, and relaxing beside the harbour.
Scarborough Beach Park is a coastal parkland in the Brisbane metropolitan area, situated within the Moreton Bay Region. The park takes its name from Scarborough Beach, a sandy foreshore on the Redcliffe Peninsula facing Moreton Bay.
Seven Hills Bushland Reserve is a protected natural area within the Brisbane metropolitan region. It forms part of the city's network of bushland reserves managed for conservation and passive recreation.
Thorndon Park is a public green space in Adelaide, South Australia, within the metropolitan area. Its defining experience is an outdoor pause among open landscape and greenery, with the atmosphere of a shared urban park rather than an enclosed attraction.
Victoria Square / Tarntanyangga is a public square located in the central business district of Adelaide, South Australia. The dual name reflects both its colonial designation and its Kaurna name, acknowledging the area's Indigenous heritage.
Ten to fourteen days should cover one coast, one city pair or one city plus a nearby landscape, not the continent. Sydney and Melbourne can share a southeastern route; Perth, the tropical north and the Red Centre each demand separate flights and more time.
Australia’s Department of Home Affairs is the authority for Visitor visas and electronic travel permissions. Select the product for the passport and purpose, complete required declarations, and remember that visa approval does not remove Australia’s strict biosecurity obligations.
Flights are usually the efficient link between distant states. Rail and coaches serve selected corridors, cars become important outside cities, and urban fare cards are local rather than national; remote drives require fuel, water, communications and realistic distance planning.
Australia’s seasons and hazards vary dramatically by latitude. Southern-city summers, tropical dry seasons and Red Centre heat create different windows, so choose dates for the selected region and check official fire, cyclone or flood advice before road travel.
The Australian dollar is the sole recorded currency. Contactless payment is common, but remote roadhouses and small services justify a backup card or cash; check surcharges at the point of sale and budget fuel around long gaps rather than metropolitan prices.
Use 000 for urgent police, fire or ambulance assistance; Australia uses Type I power at 230 V. Treated public tap supplies are recorded as safe, but remote-site notices take precedence, and travellers should save the state emergency service relevant to their route.
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