Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A Note on Abbreviations
In the listings below, NSW stands for New South Wales, QLD for Queens-
land, NT for the Northern Territory, WA for Western Australia, SA for
South Australia, VIC for Victoria, TAS for Tasmania, and ACT for the Aus-
tralian Capital Territory.
Tips
you're going to need it. See chap-
ter 3, “Sydney.”
•
Seeing the Great Barrier Reef
(QLD): It's a glorious 2,000km
(1,240-mile) long underwater
coral fairyland with electric colors
and bizarre fish life—and it comes
complete with warm water and
year-round sunshine. This is what
you came to Australia to see.
When you're not snorkeling over
coral and giant clams almost as big
as you, scuba diving, calling in at
tropical towns, or lazing on
deserted island beaches, you're try-
ing out the sun lounges or enjoy-
ing the first-rate food. See chapter
6, “Queensland & the Great Bar-
rier Reef.”
•
Exploring the Wet Tropics Rain-
forest
(QLD): Folks who come
from skyscraper cities like Manhat-
tan or Los Angeles can't get over
the moisture-dripping ferns, the
neon-blue butterflies, and the
primeval peace of this World Her-
itage rainforest stretching north,
south, and west from Cairns. Hike
it, four-wheel-drive it, or glide over
the treetops in the Skyrail gondola.
See “Cairns” in chapter 6.
•
Bareboat Sailing in the Whit-
sundays
(QLD): Bareboat means
unskippered—that's right, even if
you think port is an after-dinner
drink, you can charter a yacht, pay
for a day's instruction from a skip-
per, and then take over the helm
yourself and explore these 74
island gems. It's easy. Anchor in
deserted bays, snorkel over daz-
zling reefs, fish for coral trout, and
feel the wind in your sails. See
“The Whitsunday Coast &
Islands” in chapter 6.
•
Exploring the Olgas (Kata
Tjuta) & Ayers Rock (Uluru)
(NT): Just why everyone comes
thousands of miles to see the big
red stone of Ayers Rock is a mys-
tery—that's probably why they
come, because the Rock is a mys-
tery. Just 50km (31 miles) from
Ayers Rock are the round red
heads of the Olgas, a second rock
formation more significant to
Aborigines and more intriguing to
many visitors. See “Uluru-Kata
Tjuta National Park (Ayers
Rock/The Olgas)” in chapter 7.
•
Taking an Aboriginal Culture
Tour
(Alice Springs, NT): Eating
female wasps, contemplating a hill
as a giant resting caterpillar, and
imagining that the stars are your
grandmother smiling down at you
will give you a new perspective on
Aboriginal culture. See what we
mean on a half-day tour from the
Aboriginal Art & Culture Centre.
See p. 370.
•
Discovering the Kimberley
(WA): Australia's last frontier, the
Kimberley is a romantic cocktail
of South Sea pearls, red mountain
ranges, aqua seas, deadly croco-
diles, Aboriginal rock art, and mil-
lion-acre farms in a never-ending
wilderness. Cross it by four-wheel-
drive, stay in safari tents on a cat-
tle ranch, swim under ferny
waterfalls, ride a camel along the
beach in Broome, and more. See
chapter 8, “The Top End.”
