It's been a while! I haven't updated my blog in quite some time but I am back! I'm kicking off with a beast of a blog...our 10 week road trip up the East Coast of Australia.
Week 1:
We rented the smallest and cheapest van we could with Spaceships via Gap360. We picked the van up late October in Sydney and got straight to it.
We made our way south first, heading for the Great Ocean Road. With such a long hire we were in no rush, which is the best way to be. Between Sydney and Melbourne we did:
-Bald Hill Lookout
-National Falls
-Mount Kiera lookout
-Sea bridge
-Kiama blow hole and lighthouse
-7 mile beach
-Mogo wildlife park ($42 with free entry to Hunter Valley promo)
-Tura beach lookout
-Eden lookout
Phillip island
-Nobbies walk
-Swan lake walk
-Melbourne CBD
-Bunjils lookout (also a donation campground)
Stand out places were Phillip Island, Kiama blow hole and Bunjils lookout.
Week 2:
We took a week to get down to the Great Ocean Road but it could be done in a few days. I'd recommend taking the long routes though, totally worth it.
Kicked off week 2 with The Great Ocean Road:
-Great ocean road chocolate factory
-Twelve apostles
-Gibson stairs
-Bay of islands
-Bay of matrys
-The grotto
-London bridge
-Thunder cave
-Razorback edge
-Tom and Eva cave / loch Arn gorge
We did this over two days and highly recommend it! A beautiful drive with incredible scenic stops on the way.
From The Great Ocean Road we went:
-Bombala platypus lookout
-National museum of Australia (free)
-Canberra Parliament House
So in two weeks we crossed 3 states!
Week 3:
Back to NSW this week for the ever so stunning Blue Mountains:
-Scenic world ($50)
-Devils archway
-Cahills lookout
-Minnehaha falls
-Wentworth falls
There is so much to see in an around the blue mountains (aside from the three sisters). We spent 4 days in the area and there was still so much we didn't see.
Firmly heading North now we did:
-Australian Reptile Park ($47.99)
-Hunter Valley Wildlife Park (free with Mogo promo)
-Boat Harbour beach
-One mile beach
Ending week 3 in Port Stephens with the most horrific bug bites you've ever seen...
Week 4:
Next stop Port Macquarie, Byron Bay and Gold Coast:
-Koala Hospital (donation)
-Port Macquarie coastal walk
-Dorrigo rainforest walk (donation for the skywalk)
-Urunga broadwalk
-Waterfall way
-Booms head lookout
-Tallow beach (Byron)
-Kool Katz Surf club (Byron) ($48.50)
-Burleigh heads National Park
-Surfers paradise river cruise ($45)
-Gold coast skypoint observation deck ($31)
The Koala Hospital in Port Macquarie is free (optional donation) and totally with a visit.
Byron Bay is an absolute tourist trap, I only recommend there if you're an absolute beach bum (because there's nothing else to do!).
Week 5:
Halfway through the trip and nearing Brisbane. Still some stops to make before hitting Brissy:
-Surfers Paradise beach
-Palm grove circuit
-Curtis falls
-Eagle heights lookout
-Museum of Brisbane (free)
-Clock tower tour (free)
Moreton island: ($110)
-snorkel and shipwrecks
-paddle board
-sea kayaking
Week 6:
I got really ill this week so we spent a few days just resting at free campgrounds, hence why we did a lot less this week in comparison to others...
- Australia Zoo ($59.95)
- Melaleuca walk
- Mooloolaba beach
- Noosa main beach
- Lagona lookout
- Noosa coastal walk
Australia zoo, in my opinion, was expensive for what it is. It's a standard zoo with no variety of species! Lots of Aussie species and Crocs (obviously, being Steve Irwin's zoo) but limited primate and mammal species. The shows were included which is good, but the ethics of the shows/talks I did question.
Noosa is beautiful and how I imagined Byron Bay would be! We would love to return to Noosa for a week or so and chill out in the many beach front bars, restaurants and hotels.
Week 7:
Great barrier reef week! This was so exciting for me and remains one of my biggest highlights. We didn't do the Whitsundays like everyone does, although I know it's spectacular, it's also busy and expensive. So we searched around and found loads of other reef cruises! We did more than just the reef this week though:
- Rainbow beach
- Tin Can Bay Dolphin feeding ($10)
- Snakes down under reptile park and zoo ($27)
- Alexander Zoo (free)
Lady Musgrave island: ($228 via 1770reef tours)
- Southern Great Barrier Reef snorkelling
-Glass bottom boat
-Island tour
- Horizons Kangaroo sanctuary and camp ($30)
- Wave Lookout (1770)
Rainbow beach was nothing special but it's the last stop for surfing on the east coast if that's your thing. I highly recommend the wild Dolphin feeding at Tin Can Bay, it's a phenomenal experience. Horizons Kangaroo sanctuary can only be visited if you are staying at the campground. It's a lovely camp and sanctuary but the guy who owns it is a bit...odd.
Week 8:
We secured a job in Mackay to start early January (once we hand the van back) so as we reached Mackay we popped in to meet the boss and see our new home. He gave us loads of recommendations for the area:
- Rockhampton botanical gardens and zoo (free)
- Capricorn caves cathedral tour ($33)
- Mount Archer National Park walkway
- Yeppon lagoon
- Capricorn dinosaur mini golf ($20)
- Mackay Lagoon
Rockhampton free zoo and gardens is a brilliant way to fill the day! We loved the zoo. The tour of the cave was magical and as we were the only two booked on, it was a private tour! We really appreciated the free lagoons too, as the sea is not safe to swim in this far north due to stingers, rays, crocs etc.
Eungella national park:
- Araluen cascades
-Finch hatton gorge
-Goodes lookout
-Peases lookout
-Skyway lookout
-Broken river platypus broadwalk
These were the suggestions from our boss and they were awesome! Especially broken river because I finally got a good look at wild Platypus, I was so happy I didn't even care about the mosquitoes.
Week 9:
Still in the Mackay area (we had to hang around a bit as the van broke down! Right before Christmas... typical) we visited a few more of our bosses suggestions before making our way to Airlie beach where we booked a chalet for Christmas:
-Smalleys beach
-Casuarina beach
-Prosperine lake
-Lions Park lookout
-Airlie beach
-Ceader creek falls
-Airlie beach lagoon
-Mount Inkerman lookout
-Museum of tropical Queensland ($15)
-Castle hill lookout
-Mount Stuart lookout
After leaving Airlie Beach we went to Townsville to get the car sorted, it had been half fixed in Mackay but needed another part and because of Christmas we had to wait. We did a few lookouts in Townsville and the Museum, which was really cool and worth a visit!
Week 10:
The last week! I can't even explain how quickly this time went. We had two days of chasing waterfalls before arriving in Cairns for new year:
-McClellands lookout
-Little crystal creek
-Big crystal creek
-Jourama falls
-Mena creek
-Millaa Millaa falls
-Zillie falls
-Ellinjaa falls
-Henrietta creek
-Tchupala falls
-Claireview lookout
-Josephine falls
-Babinda boulders
-Reef sprinter Low Isles Great Barrier Reef snorkelling ($150)
-McArthur lookout
-Crystal cascades
-Four Mile beach
-Flagstaff hill lookout
-Solar Whisper Daintree river cruise ($34)
On New Years Eve we went up to Port Douglas to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef once again and New Years Day we swam in waterfalls and went to lookouts in Cairns. The Daintree river cruise was the last thing we did before returning the van. We were so sad to say goodbye to our little van! We had an epic 10 weeks and we will always remember those 10 weeks!
If you are thinking of doing something similar but unsure, take this as your sign to do it!
Hope you enjoyed this blog! Follow along for more here on WIX, on Instagram @bilbo.h and on TikTok @travelbeeblog
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