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.
307 places match
Category
Typical visit duration
Interests
Caversham Wildlife Park is a wildlife attraction in the Perth metropolitan region, north-east of the central business district. It focuses on Australian animals and gives visitors an accessible introduction to native wildlife.
Adelaide Central Plaza is a multi-level retail complex in Adelaide’s central business district, positioned within the city’s main pedestrian shopping area.
Dandenong Market is a public market located in the Greater Dandenong area of Melbourne. It serves as a trading place where vendors sell goods including fresh produce, specialty foods, and various merchandise.
South Melbourne Market
South Melbourne Market is a covered market in the inner-city suburb of South Melbourne, Victoria. Established in 1867, it is one of Melbourne’s oldest continuing markets and remains a trading place for fresh food, specialty goods and everyday shopping.
SkyHigh Mount Dandenong is a scenic lookout in the Dandenong Ranges near Melbourne. Its elevated position turns the visit into a broad landscape experience, with views across the metropolitan area and, on clear days, toward Port Phillip Bay.
Prahran Market is a historic food market in Prahran, an inner Melbourne suburb. It serves the local community while also giving visitors a way to experience the city's fresh-food culture beyond the central business district.
The Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary is a protected marine area located in the Port River and Barker Inlet region north of Adelaide's central business district.
Albert Park Lake is a large artificial lake situated within Albert Park, approximately three kilometres south of Melbourne's central business district. The lake forms the centrepiece of a broader parkland area that serves multiple recreational and sporting functions.
Bare Island Fort is a preserved coastal defence structure on a rocky island in Botany Bay, reached from La Perouse by a narrow causeway. Built in the late nineteenth century, it forms part of Sydney’s military and maritime heritage.
Bay Discovery Centre is a cultural venue located in Adelaide, South Australia. The centre occupies a heritage building at Glenelg, the historic beachside suburb of Adelaide.
Bold Park is a large urban bushland reserve in Perth’s western suburbs, preserving remnant vegetation on the Swan Coastal Plain. It gives visitors a chance to exchange city streets for native bushland, varied ground, birds and other wildlife.
Boondall Wetlands Environment Centre is an environmental education facility located in the Boondall Wetlands Reserve in northern Brisbane. The centre serves as a gateway to one of the largest remaining wetland areas on the eastern coast of Australia.
Bunyaville Conservation Park is a protected natural area located within the Greater Brisbane metropolitan region. The park preserves remnant bushland and provides habitat for native flora and fauna.
Centre Place is a narrow pedestrian laneway in central Melbourne, running between Flinders Lane and Collins Street.
The Clipper Ship City of Adelaide is a historic sailing vessel and museum ship located in Port Adelaide, South Australia.
Collingwood Children's Farm is a working farm in Abbotsford, an inner Melbourne suburb beside the Yarra River. It gives city visitors a chance to see agricultural life and domesticated animals in a metropolitan setting.
Como House and Garden
Como House and Garden is a heritage estate in Melbourne, combining a historic house with landscaped grounds.
Coogee Beach is a coastal beach located in the Perth metropolitan area of Western Australia. It sits within the broader Cockburn region south-west of Perth's central business district.
Cylinder Beach is a coastal locality on North Stradbroke Island, part of the Moreton Bay region associated with Brisbane. The beach lies within a recognised natural coastal environment that forms part of the broader Stradbroke Island landscape.
D'Aguilar National Park is a protected natural area situated in the vicinity of Brisbane, Queensland.
Dandenong Ranges National Park is a protected mountain landscape east of Melbourne, known for cool temperate rainforest, mountain ash forest and dense fern gullies.
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.
Goolugatup Heathcote is a cultural precinct and heritage site in the Perth metropolitan area. Its name, Goolugatup, reflects the place’s significance to Noongar people, the Traditional Owners of the land.
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.
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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