Find all 100 Amazing Road Trips here

Australian Traveller Australian Traveller
hero media
Discover Australia’s top 100 Amazing Road Trips in one quick reference guide.

Start planning your next road trip by reading our 100 Amazing Road Trips by experience below.

Coastal road trips

Even a road trip well-travelled can reveal plenty of surprises if you take the time to slow down. Here are 11 of Australia’s best coastal road trips to inspire you.

  • Sydney to the Gold Coast
  • Sydney to Ulladulla, NSW
  • Broome to Cape Leveque, WA
  • The Capricorn Coast, Qld
  • The Great Green Way, Qld
  • East Coast Tasmania
  • Fleurieu Peninsula, SA
  • Sydney to Port Macquarie, NSW
  • Eyre Peninsula, SA
  • Central Coast, NSW
  • Yorke Peninsula, SA

Iconic road trips

Journeys of epic proportions through wilderness that will shift your perceptions and stay with you forever. Here are 11 of Australia’s iconic road trips to inspire you.

  • Gibb River Road, WA
  • Sydney to Melbourne
  • Darwin to Kakadu, NT
  • Kosciuszko Alpine Way, NSW
  • Hobart to Cradle Mountain, Tas
  • The Nullarbor
  • Murray River Drive
  • Great Barrier Reef Drive, Qld
  • Adelaide to Ikara/Flinders Ranges National Park, SA
  • Great Ocean Road, Vic
  • The Big Lap

Don’t miss our beautifully illustrated wall map of the Great Ocean Road and Geelong in our 100 Amazing Road Trips edition or you can download the PDF version.

Great Ocean Road Illustrated Map

Illustration: Mike Rossi @micro.grafik

Outback road trips

Take a journey into the vast, red heart of Australia and discover the magic of the outback. Here are seven of Australia’s best outback road trips to inspire you.

  • Golden Quest Discovery Trail, WA
  • Broken Hill via White Cliffs, NSW
  • Kings Canyon to Uluru, NT
  • The Warlu Way, WA
  • The Savannah Way
  • The Canning Stock Route, WA
  • The Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail, WA

Need tips, more detail or itinerary ideas tailored to you? Ask AT.

AI Prompt

Regional road trips

It’s not just good things that come in small packages, but road trips too. Here are 13 of Australia’s best regional road trips to inspire you.

  • Huon Valley, Tas
  • Victoria’s Silo Art Trail
  • Dubbo, NSW
  • Mudgee, NSW
  • Brisbane to Charleville, Qld
  • Bushranger Country, Vic
  • Hobart to Launceston, Tas
  • Scenic Rim, Qld
  • Northern Rivers, NSW
  • Great Alpine Road, Vic
  • Limestone Coast, SA
  • Bathurst, NSW
  • Albany to Margaret River, WA

Weekend road trips

Even a short weekend road trip can leave you feeling refreshed for the months ahead. Here are 12 of Australia’s best weekend road trip destinations to inspire you.

  • Sydney to Wolgan Valley, NSW
  • The Grampians, Vic
  • Kangaroo Island, SA
  • Phillip Island, Vic
  • Darwin to Katherine, NT
  • Sunshine Coast, Qld
  • West Coast, Tas
  • Daylesford & Macedon Ranges, Vic
  • Southern Highlands, NSW
  • Canberra museum road trip, ACT
  • Lithgow round trip, NSW
  • Canberra to Sapphire Coast

Day trip drives

While the next long weekend is still months away, one can still explore by taking easy day trips from the city. Here, find the best day trip drives to inspire you.

  • Wildflowers road trip, WA
  • Litchfield Loop, NT
  • Swan Valley, WA
  • Great Beach Drive, Qld
  • Mary River Valley, Qld
  • Kenilworth, Qld
  • Adelaide Hills, SA
  • Tasman Peninsula, Tas
  • Melbourne to Marysville, Vic
  • Sydney’s Northern Beaches, NSW
  • Royal National Park, NSW
  • Mornington Peninsula, Vic

No drive road trips

Kick back, relax, and let someone else take the wheel. Here are 8 of Australia’s best no drive road trips to inspire you.

  • That Pink Merc, NSW
  • Globus Gems of the Red Centre, NT
  • Outback Spirit Binns Track, NT
  • Melbourne urban tram trip, Vic
  • Kiff & Culture Brisbane to Byron food trail
  • AAT Kings Outback Adventure
  • Overland Adventure Aboard the Ghan
  • Inspiring Journeys Dark Mofo, Tas

Weekly travel news, experiences
insider tips, offers, and more.

Off-the-beaten-track road trips

Give way to spontaneity and discover some hidden gems along the road less-travelled. Here are 9 of Australia’s best off-the-beaten-track road trips to inspire you.

  • Atherton Tablelands, Qld
  • Darling River Run, NSW
  • Oodnadatta Track, SA
  • Tassie’s interior
  • Arnhem Way, NT
  • Launceston to Penguin/Stanley/Tarkine, Tas
  • Sydney to Birdsville (and back)
  • Cocos Keeling West Island Tour
  • Port Douglas to Coolangatta, Qld

Food and wine road trips

Some road trips lead to the most memorable food and wine experiences in Australia. Foodies, take note: here are 11 of Australia’s best food-and-wine-focused road trips to inspire you.

  • Hunter Valley winery trail, NSW
  • Noosa Country Drive, Qld
  • The Tasmanian Whisky & Spirits Trail
  • Melbourne to Macedon Ranges, Vic
  • Melbourne to Gippsland, Vic
  • Adelaide to Barossa Valley, SA
  • Orange winery trail, NSW
  • Adelaide to McLaren Vale, SA
  • Melbourne to the Sunshine Coast
  • Sydney to Canberra via Yass
  • Margaret River region, WA

Two-wheel drives

Not all road trips require four wheels. Sometimes riding freely atop your two-wheeler can be just as exhilarating, especially in Australia. Here are six of Australia’s best cycling and motorcycle trips to inspire you.

  • New England High Country, NSW
  • Cairns to Cape York by motorbike, Qld
  • Great Southern Rail Trail, Vic
  • Lakes Highway, Tas
  • Cycling the Clare Valley, SA
  • Canberra’s cold climate wine region, ACT

Want to see more stories from Australian Traveller in your Google search results?

  1. Click here to set Australian Traveller as a preferred source.
  2. Tick the box next to "Australian Traveller". That's it.
Australian Traveller

Australian Traveller

View profile and articles
sydney harbour
Australia

2026 Readers’ Choice Awards – here are the results you’ve been waiting for

Thousands of Australian Traveller readers voted in our 2026 Readers' Choice Awards. The results are in, and here are your winners.

Read more
RISE Kirra Point on the Gold Coast
Australia

27 in 2027: The Aussie travel experiences you can’t miss next year

The travel trends, destinations and experiences coming in hot for 2027.

Read more
Skyline view of Melbourne
Australia

Readers’ Choice 2026: Best city to visit

Winner: Melbourne, Vic

Read more
mossman gorge
Australia

2026 Readers’ Choice Awards: Best First Nations experience

Winner: Ngadiku Dreamtime Walk at Mossman Gorge Cultural Centre, Qld

Read more
hero media

The secret Sydney suite life: a luxury under-the-radar stay right on the harbour

    Kate Bettes Kate Bettes
    Continue
    This winter, these secret Sydney harbour suites are the staycation we’ve been looking for.

    Whether it’s the crisscrossing ferries or the white sails of the Opera House rising out of blue depths, Australia’s biggest city lives for its harbour. But while locals might glance at that watery expanse on their daily commute across the Bridge, it can still be hard to truly connect with Sydney’s maritime soul. The secret: seeing the harbour eye-to-eye, right at water level. And what better place to submerge yourself in that energy than sleeping there? That’s where Pier One Sydney Harbour comes in (and with new all-inclusive bed and breakfast benefits, there’s even more to love).

    All-inclusive VIP benefits

    Who Is Elijah Amenities at Pier One Sydney Harbour
    Book in for the all-inclusive VIP treatment.

    The hard truth is that it will be very difficult to tear yourself away from your ultra-luxurious harbour home-away-from-home to explore the city. If you want to make leaving even harder, opt for Pier One’s all-inclusive VIP treatment.

    The Bed and Breakfast with Suite Benefits package turns up the volume on what is already the ultimate staycation, with complimentary valet parking, daily breakfast for two and turndown service. The biggest perk? Enjoy a bottle of French champagne every day during your whole stay

    Pier One Sydney Harbour

    Pier One Sydney Harbour
    Step into a piece of history with all the modern comforts. (Credit: Dave Wheeler)

    The five-star Pier One Sydney Harbour is quite literally old Sydney through and through. Built on what was once a working cargo wharf and the passenger terminal for those heading to the North Shore before the bridge was constructed, the heritage building sits right between the tangle of cobblestones, pubs and alleyways of The Rocks and the historic docking zone of Walsh Bay – at the centre of the city’s old sea trade.

    If knowing the hotel’s history isn’t enough to get your sea-longing going, the interior design certainly will. As soon as you step up to the concierge desk in the lobby of the restored building – which underwent a $15 million redevelopment in 2019 – you’re immersed in Sydney’s seafaring tale. Weathered wood panelling and white marble floors surround you, while loop lighting installations hover above the bar island just beyond, ringed with stools ready for intimate, martini-tinted conversations. Steel rivets and timber beams speak to its past, and glass-walled views anchor you firmly in the present-day life on the harbour.

    Pier One Suites

    Pier One Sydney Harbour admiral suite
    Enjoy incredible views from your suite.

    Across the 189 rooms and suites built on and over the water, the maritime theme continues. Sculptural aged brass fittings, exposed girders, colour schemes that evoke shifting currents, and mirrors that reflect ripples that – depending on your booking – sit just metres from your pillow.

    United on theme yet unique in set-up, each room or suite is different. On the ground floor, dog-friendly rooms with direct access to the pier are all prepped for pampered pups, while others have views and even balconies overlooking Walsh Bay, the Bridge and the Harbour.

    But the 19 suites step things up even more. Gaze out through floor-to-ceiling windows, or get even closer. Your private balcony is made for sipping a Nespresso coffee on as the sun comes up – or soaking in the bathtub of the Admiral Suite on the deck, a drink from the locally stocked mini bar in hand. This mini bar was recently completely transformed, so you have more Aussie favourites to choose from, including alcohol and snacks.

    Dining at Pier One

    Pier Bar Pier One Sydney Harbour
    Settle in for an afternoon of good drinks and views.

    Once you’re checked in, start your afternoon with a spritz at PIER BAR – or arrive by boat via the private pontoon if the occasion calls for it – and settle into one of the cabanas. Weekdays bring Happy Hour (or ‘sunset hour’ at Pier One); weekends bring the DJs. After an even sweeter experience? The Everyday Creamery and Matcha Kiosk is slinging mango and vanilla soft serve – classic and those spiked with Midori and gin alike.

    PIER Dining is an ode to contemporary Australian flavours across the terrace, pier and dining room. On its seafood-leaning menu are Sydney rock oysters from Merimbula, potato scallops with salmon roe and crème fraîche, chicken with melting sundried tomato butter, vodka rigatoni with Shark Bay prawns. And the ‘Pierlova’ – that’s pavlova with chocolate, dulce de leche and banana is worth saving room for. Make sure to ask for the wine list – it’s 100 per cent Australian drops.

    Around town

    luna park, sydney opera house and sydney harbour bridge
    Explore the neighbourhood during your stay. (Credit: Destination NSW)

    If you’re strong enough to polish off just one last pastry from the breakfast buffet and walk out the door, we applaud you. Luna Park across the harbour beckons with its wide grin, while a glance upward might spur you to climb the Bridge’s famous iron arches. The Opera House – just across Circular Quay from the Museum of Contemporary Art – sings out for a concert.

    You’ll want to book ahead for those hot-ticket performances at Sydney Theatre Company and Sydney Dance Company, just a few minutes’ walk south of the hotel. Ten minutes further brings you to the waterfront bars, restaurants and clubs of Barangaroo, or the karaoke, gardens and dim sum of Chinatown further afield.

    Keep the mellow of your weekend getaway going with a stop at Barangaroo Reserve, watching the yachts go by – all before returning for that Sydney sundowner at Pier One.

    Ready to make that Pier One stay a reality? Book the ultimate Sydney staycation at pieronesydneyharbour.com.au