Far North Queensland

The northeast corner of the continent, from Cairns north into Australia's last great! frontier, is nothing short of heaven for backpackers and outdoor adventurers. The Great Barrier Reef snakes close to shore here, luring divers with shorter boat trips and longer visits to the spectacular corals of the reef. The reefs biological diversity is complemented by that of the vast swaths of tropical rainforest, pressed up close to the Coral Sea by the craggy mountains of the Great Dividing Range.

As with most places in Australia, it wasn't nature but the promise of gold that first brought European settlement here, as a steady stream of prospectors advanced from Townsville to the then-tiny villages of Cairns and Port Douglas. The legacy of the gold rush lives on in Cooktown, Queensland's northernmost outpost. For the most part, divers have displaced miners in recent decades, and Cairns now caters to travelers with city comforts. Still, the more remote parts of this land remain untamed wilderness. The Captain Cook Highway, named after the premier European explorer of these lands, leads modern-day trailblazers north into the rainforest, which becomes impenetrably dense around Cape Tribulation. Wilder yet is the Cape York peninsula, starting beyond Cooktown and stretching all the way to the Torres Strait, which separates the Gulf of Carpentaria from the Coral Sea and Australia from Papua New Guinea. On Cape York, only the most rugged of tracks allow humans to venture into the ordinal landscape of hungry crocs and unforgiving bush.

Featured Destinations from Australia

Australia : Capricorn and Whitsunday Coasts

Capricorn and Whitsunday Coasts From the Tropic of Capricorn, the Bruce Highway worms its way north through sugar cane fields and along the tropical coast. Between Rockhampton and Towns-ville, some oceanside towns have morphed into backpacker havens like Airlie Beach, while others, such as Mackay, still grimace at the sight of

Norman Lindsay Gallery & Museum

Norman Lindsay Gallery & Museum Visit the Gallery Shop and view our extensive collection of Norman Lindsay Limited Edition Facsimile Reproduction Etchings, Limited Edition Watercolour Prints and Original Woodblock Prints. You can see here some of his famous oil paintings, water colours, etchings, sculptures, ship models and memorabilia. Open 1100 to1700,

King Street

King Street This small street is becoming known for its impressive resurgence restaurants, cafés and shops which line the road, and also the nearby lanes and arcades, in an area which previously consisted mainly of disused warehouses.

Perth Boys' School

Perth Boys' School The former premises of Perth Boys’ School date from 1854. This is the second oldest independent school in Australia, the oldest being King’s School, Parramatta, near Sydney (1831). Corner of the Esplanade and William Street

Aquarium of Western Australia

Aquarium of Western Australia Hillarys Boat Harbour, a little north of Scarborough, is the home of the Aquarium of Western Australia.

Australia : Great Southern

GREAT SOUTHERN Stretching from the karri and tingle forests of Pemberton and Walpole, through the rugged Porongurup and Stirling Ranges, to the vast scrubland at the beginning of the Nullarbor Plain, the Great Southern region possesses an expansive beauty. The char¬acter of the land and people changes as one follows die

Namadgi National Park

Namadgi National Park Namadgi National Park, proclaimed in 1984 and over 106,000 hectares, is partly situated in the Australian Alps. It offers some astonishing views of nature at its best and also houses the only Aboriginal rock-art sites in the high country. You can do some excellent bushwalking in this area

Australian War Memorial

australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial was opened in 1941, and looks down upon Canberra and Parliament House. It is open everyday between 10.00am-5.00pm and hosts a large collection of pictures and documentation about the War. In addition Anzac Parade gives you an opportunity to reflect on the human cost

Meekatharra

Meekatharra Situated 650 kilometres north-east of Perth and 470 kilometres inland from Geraldton, Meekatharra is one of the most isolated regions in Western Australia. Located approximately 500 kilometres inland from Geraldton, Meekatharra is the centre of a mining, sheep and cattle district. The area has many old worked out gold mines

Nowra - Bomaderry

Nowra - Bomaderry This busy and expanding agricultural and business centre, located just upstream from the mouth of the Shoalhaven River, is an extremely popular tourist resort because of its stunning beaches extending north and south of the town. Wreck Bay to the south is extremely popular spot for surfing (Australia's