Language · 11 published
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, 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.
Reviewed by Elena Voss · SSMTour Travel Editor
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
Ranked by importance — sitelinks, pageviews and heritage status, not editor preference.
307 places match
Category
Typical visit duration
Interests
The Melbourne Cricket Ground, commonly called the MCG, is Melbourne's landmark stadium in the sporting precinct east of the central city.
Glenelg Beach is Adelaide's best-known metropolitan beach precinct, centred on the sand, Glenelg Jetty, Moseley Square and the western end of Jetty Road.
The Rocks is a historic precinct on the western fringe of Sydney Cove, forming the birthplace of European settlement in Australia. Its sandstone warehouses, laneways, and terraces survive from convict-era foundations through maritime commercial periods to contemporary adaptive reuse.
Adelaide Oval is a major sports stadium located in the parklands district of Adelaide, South Australia. It serves as a venue for Australian rules football, cricket, and other events.
Elizabeth Quay is a mixed-use development on Perth's central waterfront, positioned where the Swan River meets the central business district. The precinct redeveloped former industrial and transport lands into a publicly accessible leisure and entertainment zone.
Mount Coot-tha Lookout is a prominent elevated viewing platform situated in the western suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland.
State Library Victoria is a major public reference library in Melbourne, Australia. Established in 1854, it occupies a prominent position in the city's cultural and civic landscape.
Cleland Wildlife Park is a wildlife attraction in the Adelaide Hills region near Adelaide, South Australia. The park is situated within Cleland Conservation Park and offers visitors encounters with native Australian animals.
Flinders Street railway station is a railway station on the corner of Flinders and Swanston Streets in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It serves the entire metropolitan rail network.
Swan Valley is a recognised tourism and wine-producing region situated in the upper reaches of the Swan River, northeast of Perth's central business district.
Hahndorf is a township in the Adelaide Hills region of South Australia, approximately 28 kilometres east of Adelaide's central business district. Established in 1839 by Prussian Lutheran immigrants, it holds distinction as Australia's oldest surviving German settlement.
The Art Gallery of Western Australia is a public art museum located in the Perth Cultural Centre. It serves as the principal state art collection holder for Western Australia.
Howard Smith Wharves is a heritage-listed riverside precinct beneath the Story Bridge in Brisbane. Originally constructed as wharves in the 1930s, the site was redeveloped into a dining and entertainment destination.
Brisbane City Hall is a heritage-listed municipal building located in King George Square, serving as the seat of the Brisbane City Council. Completed in 1930 after a decade of construction, it remains one of the city's most prominent civic landmarks.
Circular Quay is a harbourfront precinct and major transport interchange in Sydney, New South Wales. It serves as the primary ferry terminal for Sydney Harbour, connecting passengers to locations including Manly, Taronga Zoo, and Parramatta.
Perth Cultural Centre is a public cultural precinct in the heart of Perth, Western Australia. It serves as a hub for arts, culture, and learning, bringing together several major institutions in one connected space.
The Mortlock Wing is a heritage-listed reading room and exhibition space within the State Library of South Australia on North Terrace in Adelaide.
North Terrace is a premier boulevard in Adelaide, South Australia, forming the northern edge of the Adelaide city centre grid. It functions as a significant cultural precinct, hosting major state institutions along its length.
Rundle Mall is Adelaide's premier pedestrian shopping street and public thoroughfare in the South Australian capital. It functions as the city's commercial and social heart, stretching east from King William Street through the central business district.
Optus Stadium is a major sports and entertainment venue located in Perth, Western Australia. It serves as the primary home ground for Australian Football League matches featuring the West Coast Eagles and Fremantle Dockers.
Matagarup Bridge is a pedestrian and cyclist bridge spanning the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia. The bridge connects the East Perth and Burswood precincts, providing access to the Optus Stadium area.
River Torrens Linear Park is a public open space corridor following the River Torrens through Adelaide. It forms part of the broader Adelaide Park Lands system, which encircles the city centre.
Brisbane Powerhouse is a former power station redeveloped as a contemporary arts and cultural venue. Located on the Brisbane River at New Farm, the industrial heritage building now hosts theatre, dance, music, comedy, visual arts and festivals.
Hillarys Boat Harbour is a recreational marina and leisure precinct located approximately 20 kilometres north-west of Perth's central business district, within the City of Joondalup local government area.
Fortitude Valley is an inner-city suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, situated immediately northeast of the central business district. Historically an industrial and working-class area, it evolved into a prominent entertainment precinct from the late twentieth century.
Fremantle Fishing Boat Harbour is a working harbour located in Fremantle, a port city within the Perth metropolitan area in Western Australia. It serves as a base for commercial fishing vessels and has developed into a significant visitor destination.
Southbank Promenade is a pedestrianised riverside walkway along the southern bank of the Yarra River in central Melbourne. It forms the spine of the Southbank precinct, connecting the central business district to the Crown Entertainment Complex and beyond.
The Adelaide Festival Centre is South Australia's principal performing arts venue and the heart of Adelaide's cultural precinct. Located on the banks of the River Torrens, it was Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre when established.
Chinatown Melbourne is an ethnic enclave in the central business district of Melbourne, Australia.
The WA Maritime Museum is a maritime history museum located in Fremantle, Western Australia. It sits at the entrance to Fremantle Harbour, occupying a prominent waterfront position at Victoria Quay.
Elder Park is a public park situated on the southern bank of the River Torrens in Adelaide, South Australia. It forms part of the linear parklands that characterise the city's layout.
St John's Cathedral is a Gothic Revival cathedral in Brisbane, Queensland. It serves as the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane and stands as a prominent religious and architectural landmark in the city.
Parliament House Queensland is the meeting place of the Parliament of Queensland, located in Brisbane. The building occupies a prominent position on the corner of George and Alice Streets in the CBD, overlooking the Brisbane River.
Royal Arcade is a working nineteenth-century shopping passage in central Melbourne, opened in 1870 and still linking the city’s retail streets.
Fremantle Arts Centre is a public arts venue located in the port city of Fremantle, part of the greater Perth metropolitan area in Western Australia.
Parliament House South Australia is the seat of the bicameral Parliament of South Australia, comprising the House of Assembly and the Legislative Council.
The Queensland Performing Arts Centre is a major performing arts venue located in Brisbane's South Bank cultural precinct. It serves as Queensland's premier destination for theatre, music, dance, and opera.
The State Library of New South Wales is Australia's oldest library, established in 1826. It occupies a prominent position on Macquarie Street in Sydney's central business district, adjacent to the Royal Botanic Garden.
State Library of Queensland is the principal reference and research library of the state, located in the Queensland Cultural Centre on the South Bank of the Brisbane River.
Adelaide Town Hall is a working civic and cultural landmark at 128 King William Street, not a museum with a fixed visitor circuit.
The Army Museum of Western Australia is a military heritage institution located in the Perth metropolitan area. It preserves and presents the history of the Australian Army in Western Australia, covering conflicts from colonial times through to contemporary operations.
Waterfall Gully is a valley and recreational area located in the Adelaide Hills face zone, within the Greater Adelaide metropolitan area.
Sydney Opera House is a performing-arts complex at Bennelong Point, where its white sail-like roof shells project into Sydney Harbour beside Circular Quay.
Waite Arboretum is a botanical collection situated in Adelaide's southern suburbs, within the grounds of the University of Adelaide's Waite Campus at Urrbrae. The arboretum occupies land bequeathed through the Waite Agricultural Research Institute legacy.
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge spanning Sydney Harbour, connecting the Sydney central business district with the North Shore. Opened in 1932, it carries rail, vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic.
Royal Exhibition Building is a historic exhibition building and one of Melbourne's highest-priority visitor stops in the current curated list.
Carlton Gardens is a heritage-listed public garden located in the inner-city suburb of Carlton, adjacent to the Melbourne central business district.
Federation Square is Melbourne’s civic gathering place beside the Yarra River and Flinders Street Station, built around open terraces, angular architecture and a changing programme of cultural activity.
Cockatoo Island is the largest island in Sydney Harbour, positioned where the Parramatta and Lane Cove rivers meet. It forms part of the Australian Convict Sites UNESCO World Heritage property.
National Gallery of Victoria is an art museum and one of Melbourne's highest-priority visitor stops in the current curated list.
The Perth Mint is a heritage precious metals refining facility and tourist attraction in Perth, Western Australia. Established in 1899 as a branch of Britain's Royal Mint, it originally struck gold sovereigns from Western Australian gold rush output.
Royal National Park is a large protected landscape on Sydney’s southern edge, stretching between eucalyptus forest, sandstone country, coastal heath and the Pacific shoreline. Established in 1879, it is recognised as one of the world’s oldest national parks.
The Australian Museum is Sydney’s natural-history and cultural museum on William Street, opposite Hyde Park and St Mary’s Cathedral. Its collections and exhibitions connect Australian wildlife, geology and biodiversity with First Nations cultural material.
Hyde Park Barracks is a historic Georgian building on Macquarie Street beside Hyde Park in central Sydney. Built in the early nineteenth century, it first housed transported convicts and later served as an immigration depot and government offices.
Cook's Cottage is a historic building in Melbourne's Fitzroy Gardens. It was built in 1755 in Great Ayton, Yorkshire, England, then dismantled, shipped to Australia and rebuilt in Melbourne in 1934.
Perth Observatory is an astronomical observatory located in the Perth metropolitan area. The facility serves as a centre for public astronomy education and stargazing experiences.
Royal Botanic Garden
The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney is a major botanical garden occupying a prominent harbourside position in the Sydney central business district.
The Shrine of Remembrance is Melbourne’s principal war memorial, set on St Kilda Road with a deliberate architectural presence above the surrounding parkland.
The Mint
The Mint is a heritage building in Sydney associated with Australia’s colonial period and the early development of the city. Its sandstone construction reflects the architectural character of historic Sydney.
Fremantle Prison stands as a former Australian convict establishment in Fremantle, the port city of Perth.
Hyde Park is a 16-hectare public park in the centre of Sydney, stretching between the city’s museum and civic precincts. Governor Macquarie proclaimed and named it in 1810, and the City of Sydney identifies it as Australia’s oldest park.
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park is a protected national park located north of Sydney. It encompasses significant natural landscapes including bushland, waterways, and Aboriginal heritage sites.
Polly Woodside is a historic iron-hulled sailing ship preserved as a maritime heritage attraction in Melbourne. Built in 1885 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the vessel operated as a cargo ship for decades before retirement.
Brisbane City Botanic Gardens
City Botanic Gardens is a historic riverside botanic garden in Brisbane. The current curated ranking identifies the exact production place and prioritises it for garden paths, mature planting, lawns, and a river-edge setting beside central Brisbane.
Sydney Observatory is a heritage astronomical observatory and museum located in The Rocks area of Sydney. Established in 1858, it occupies a prominent position on Observatory Hill near the harbour.
Kamay Botany Bay National Park protects coastal landscapes and culturally significant places around Botany Bay in Sydney. Its two principal visitor areas are Kurnell and La Perouse.
Melbourne Museum is a large museum in Carlton where natural history, social history and cultural material share one visitor complex.
Old Melbourne Gaol is a preserved former prison in central Melbourne where the building carries as much meaning as the displays.
Darling Harbour is Sydney’s waterfront public precinct around Cockle Bay, where a broad promenade connects working harbour views with pedestrian bridges, Tumbalong Park, Darling Quarter, museums and event venues.
Arts Centre Melbourne is a performing arts centre located in the Southbank precinct of Melbourne, Victoria. It serves as a major hub for theatre, music, dance, and cultural events in Australia's second-largest city.
Fort Denison is a heritage-listed former penal site and defensive facility located on a small island in Sydney Harbour, New South Wales.
Art Gallery of New South Wales is a major public art museum beside the Domain, combining historic collections with contemporary exhibition spaces.
The Art Gallery of South Australia is a major public art museum in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It forms part of the North Terrace cultural precinct alongside other significant institutions.
Museum of Contemporary Art
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia occupies the former Maritime Services Board building on Circular Quay West, beside Sydney Harbour. Its galleries bring contemporary art into direct conversation with the waterfront, ferry movement and the Opera House across the quay.
Adelaide Gaol is a former prison located within the Adelaide Park Lands. It operated as a correctional facility for more than a century before ceasing operations.
Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts is a leading cultural institution in Western Australia dedicated to contemporary art practice. Located in Perth's cultural centre, PICA occupies a distinctive heritage building that has been adapted for modern exhibition purposes.
John Forrest National Park is a protected bushland area in Perth’s Darling Range, offering a close-to-the-city escape into jarrah and marri forest. Established in 1900, it is one of Western Australia’s oldest national parks.
The Australian National Maritime Museum is a major cultural institution located in Sydney's Darling Harbour. It preserves and presents Australia's maritime heritage through exhibitions, vessels, and programs.
The South Australian Museum is a major natural history and cultural institution in Adelaide. It occupies a prominent position on North Terrace in the cultural precinct.
Melbourne Zoological Gardens
Melbourne Zoo is a zoological park situated in the city of Melbourne, Victoria. Established in 1862, it holds distinction as Australia's oldest zoo and one of the world's oldest.
Cadman's Cottage
Cadmans Cottage is a historic sandstone building in The Rocks, beside Sydney Cove. Built during Sydney’s early colonial period, it is one of the city’s oldest surviving residential buildings.
The Chinese Garden of Friendship is a traditional Chinese garden located in Sydney. It was established as a symbol of friendship between Sydney and its sister city in China, Guangzhou.
Heide Museum of Modern Art is a Melbourne museum devoted to Australian modern and contemporary art.
Elizabeth Bay House is an 1830s colonial residence built for Alexander Macleay, the colony’s colonial secretary, in Sydney’s inner east.
Elizabeth Farm is a historic house museum in Sydney's Parramatta area and one of Australia's oldest surviving European buildings. John and Elizabeth Macarthur's house was constructed in 1793 and is closely connected with the beginnings of Australia's wool industry.
Saint Patrick's Cathedral
St Patrick's Cathedral is a major Roman Catholic landmark in Melbourne and the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne. Its Gothic Revival design gives the building a strong architectural presence within the city centre.
Hornby Lighthouse is a heritage-listed active lighthouse situated at the southern entrance to Sydney Harbour, on the tip of South Head in Watsons Bay.
Melbourne Town Hall is a civic building serving as the seat of the City of Melbourne local government. Located on Swanston Street in the central business district, it occupies a prominent position in the city's civic and cultural landscape.
St Mary's Cathedral
St Mary's Cathedral is a significant ecclesiastical structure in Sydney, recognised as a meaningful visitor destination within the documented city scope. The cathedral represents an important example of Gothic Revival architecture in Australia.
The Immigration Museum is a museum in Melbourne dedicated to the history of immigration to Australia. It explores the stories of people who have migrated to Victoria and Australia, examining the causes, processes, and impacts of immigration.
The Museum of Sydney is a history museum near Circular Quay on the site of Australia’s first Government House, built in 1788. It explores Sydney’s colonial foundations, Indigenous history and continuing urban development through archaeology, objects, art and multimedia.
Queensland Museum Kurilpa is Queensland's state museum at the Queensland Cultural Centre in Brisbane's South Bank precinct. Its public galleries connect natural history, palaeontology, biodiversity, technology, cultural history and First Nations stories with the museum's active collections and research.
Fitzroy Gardens is a historic public garden in Melbourne, Victoria, situated on the city's eastern fringe near the central business district.
His Majesty's Theatre is a historic performing-arts venue in central Perth, Western Australia. It is a destination for theatrical productions, musicals, and live entertainment, as well as a notable heritage building within the city.
Anzac Square
ANZAC Square is a war memorial and public park in central Brisbane, Queensland. It commemorates Australian and New Zealand Army Corps personnel who served in conflicts.
Old Treasury Building is a grand nineteenth-century public building in Melbourne, Victoria. Built during the Victorian gold rush era, it reflects the wealth and administrative ambition that shaped the young city.
Parramatta Park is a large public park in Parramatta, western Sydney, beside the Parramatta River. It combines open lawns, mature trees, garden areas, walking paths and colonial heritage associations.
Susannah Place Museum preserves a terrace of four houses built in 1844 in Sydney’s The Rocks. The site presents working-class domestic life across more than 150 years, showing how successive families lived within a compact urban terrace.
Manly Beach is a broad ocean beach reached through the Manly peninsula, combining surf frontage with a harbour-to-ocean visitor route.
The Wheel of Brisbane
The Wheel of Brisbane is a prominent observation wheel situated in the South Bank Parklands area of Brisbane, Queensland.
Source: OpenStreetMap contributors, Wikidata ·
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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