21 emerging experiences in NSW

Journey with our writers as they take you into NSW’s top 21 emerging travel experiences from our 100 Emerging Destinations and Experiences series.

1. Shining new light on Tenterfield

Travelling with: Celeste Mitchell

It’s been called the ‘birthplace of Australia’ since it’s where Sir Henry Parkes called for Australia’s federation in 1889, but it always has been and always will be Ngarabal Country. Right now, it’s Country that feels infinite. Cocooned in a transparent bubble tent, the galaxy above beams down on me.

Beyond my toes, golden grasses and Mt Mackenzie’s frosted coat of green will greet me come morning. Outside, the embers of the fire pit are glowing their final hurrah. This is Mirumiru Bubbletent, a luxurious off-grid escape where two bubble tents – and a tiny bubble tent in a tree – call to those seeking a unique escape. It’s one of a raft of new experiences to take root here in the past 12 months.

Just south of the Queensland border in NSW’s New England High Country, Tenterfield is three-and-a-half hours’ drive from Brisbane and eight hours from Sydney, but that’s not stopping city folk from flocking on weekends.

From my rural repose, I’m only five minutes’ drive from the town’s heart where Stonefruit quietly opened last year. The Granite Belt and New England are celebrated on the plate – think Granite Belt black truffle through hot tagliatelle – and in the glass, alongside a refined edit of rare international drops. For more casual eats there’s Manners & Co – a buzzing collective of local food businesses – and the new Barn at Glenrock Gardens. All worthy entrees to the glamping main event.

2. A luxe edition to Sydney’s Sandstone Precinct

Travelling with: Megan Arkinstall

The doors have swung open to a new era for one of Sydney’s grand heritage-listed buildings. Part of the new ‘Sandstone Precinct’ just steps from Circular Quay, the Department of Education building has been reimagined as Capella Sydney after a painstaking seven-year project. The sensitive restoration honours the original 20th  century design by government architect George McRae, whose legacy also includes Town Hall and the Queen Victoria Building.

If he were alive, the Scotsman would be well placed today swilling whisky in the hotel’s glamourous bar that bears his name. While Capella’s interiors are contemporary and eclectic, McRae’s vision of a central garden courtyard is realised in the light-filled glass-ceilinged lobby. It features a seven-metre green wall, pair of weeping fig trees, and a mesmerising kinetic floral light installation that opens and closes under streams of sunlight.

Australian art adorns the walls, including those by First Nations artists Otis Carey and Judy Watson. Interpreting Sydney’s history with ancestral elements of Sydney’s Eora people, Watson’s work is framed by the original bronze directory boards of the Department of Agriculture (who occupied the southern end of the building before the educators moved in).

Capella oozes luxury with its high-end design and palatial guest rooms, styled with premium furniture and high-tech amenities. Its refined restaurant Brasserie 1930 is an Australian take on a classic French Brasserie experience, created by renowned Bentley Group. And service is unparallel and personalised to detail.

Capella’s culturalists, who walk the line between concierge and all-knowing friend, are tasked to curating guest experiences. Each evening they host cocktail hour, sharing the intriguing story of late Sydney street poet Arthur Stace over an aperitif.

Creating a strong sense of place through both tangible and experiential in line with luxury is what the hotel does so well, setting a new benchmark for luxury accommodation in Sydney.

3. Walk on Darkinjung Country

Travelling with: Megan Arkinstall

The Central Coast of NSW has, in recent years, cemented its status as a rich, multifaceted destination for languid escapes.

It’s where beachside days can culminate in evenings dining on an artfully plated degustation or sipping molecular cocktails in a hip bolthole. Add to that a strong sustainable ethos in this officially labelled ECO Destination and you’ve got yourself a feel-good stay in more ways than one. Visitors who scratch beneath the surface will be surprised to discover the Central Coast/Darkinjung Country has one of the highest densities of culturally significant sites in Australia.

In fact, there are almost 3000 registered sites dotted across the region – stretching from the Hawkesbury River to Lake Macquarie, and from the Pacific Ocean to the Watagan Mountains. Witness 1000-year-old rock art sites in Bulgandry Art Site Aboriginal Place that tell the Creation Dreaming story of Baiyami; discover middens along the shoreline of placid Pearl Beach; or visit a sacred cultural site and ancient camping ground, only accessible with Darkinjung Cultural Tours.

Girra Girra is another Aboriginal-owned operator who can lead you in the footsteps of the Central Coast’s First Nations people, guiding visitors to staggering cultural sites and offering an unforgettable camp-out option for groups. The experience includes a smoking ceremony, traditional ochre body painting, and dancing and storytelling under a blanket of stars.

Meanwhile, Firescreek Botanical Winery, a small regenerative organic vineyard in the leafy suburb of Holgate, has a host of curated experiences including Aboriginal Storytelling and Wine Tasting. Led by a local Aboriginal Elder and a Firescreek winemaker, guests listen to Indigenous stories and learn about native bush foods while lingering over some of the unique botanical-infused wines made on site.

4. Rock on at Orange’s latest luxury stay

Travelling with: Emily Murphy

The aptly named Basalt sitting just below the extinct volcano of Gaanhabula (Mt Canobolas) is the newest luxury accommodation to sprout from Orange in NSW’s Central West. The quaint property overlooking the owner’s cherry orchard has three private studios, each with its own personality and perspective.

I am instantly in awe of the thoughtful design by Mudgee-based architect Cameron Anderson and unique furnishings by Lisa Johnson Design Studio as I open the large timber-framed sliding door and walk into the Drifter Studio.

It’s the attention to detail that woos me. There’s a Nood Co Concrete bathtub with a view, native flowers carefully placed throughout the studio, an internal wood fire, outdoor fire pit and Carlotta + Gee French linen for the king-size bed. There’s also a walk-in rainfall shower and a telescope for stargazing.

I pour a glass of local winemaker Swinging Bridge’s pinot noir to enjoy in a hot bath as the afternoon transforms into evening. The kangaroos seem to energise as the sun lowers in the sky, bounding through my view of the cherry orchard.

Basalt has partnered with local businesses to offer exclusive experiences for its guests to immerse themselves in the best of the Orange region. We open the fridge to find a suite of preordered delicious baked goods from Racine Bakery, an easy dinner to enjoy in our cosy studio. Then we head outside to join the incredible Stargazing Experience with Rod Somerville, the night-sky expert behind the town’s planned planetarium.

Another must-try diversion is the Heli & Winery Experience, where the pilot picks you up from Basalt and takes you to Printhie Wines for a wine tasting and five-course degustation lunch.

5. The secret’s out on Crescent Head

Travelling with: Lara Picone

NSW’s Crescent Head has blipped onto the radar with a pulsating coolness. The Macleay Valley Coast surf town may still be sleepy-ish, but now there’s much more going on than wave-watching from Kombis. As is evident by the soon-to-open Sea Sea, which has slipped into the disused shell of a once-mediocre holiday resort, pricking the senses of hip holiday hunters everywhere.

Set to welcome guests in June, Sea Sea was always going to hit with hype, given it’s the project of Ksubi co-founder and culture wunderkind George Gorrow and his wife, Cisco Tschurtschenthaler. The pair have been busy reforging the hotel into a design-led boutique haven. Gone are the budget family holiday vibes and cement frog ornaments. Instead, the original building has inspired a modern interpretation of 1970s-era style.

From the laid-back luxe rooms to the public access Club House, and restaurant and bar, Sea Sea will be the beacon that illuminates Crescent Head’s once low-key appeal.

6. The chic place to be in Mossy Point

Travelling with: Celeste Mitchell

I’ve been seduced south – further south than I’ve ever been – to a land of fairy-tale beaches drawn on mud maps, of shacks set among virgin forest with no official road in. A land where kangaroos mill by the fire pits and cacti gardens, overlooked by those sitting beside a sapphire magnesium pool. Coffee negroni in hand as the soundtrack runs from Angus and Julia Stone to Bill Withers in Arlo restaurant, this scene loops in my mind after staying at The Oaks Ranch in Mossy Point, four hours from Sydney in NSW’s Eurobodalla region.

The ranch is a little bit Palm Springs meets Aussie coastal bushland; it’s a far cry from the purple walls and colourful sheets that used to greet guests at the Spanish Mission-style venue. Twelve additional rooms are to come, alongside self-contained villas and a Greg Norman-designed golf course upgrade. Go before it gets too big.

7. Emerging flavours in Murwillumbah

Travelling with: Lara Picone

There’s something wonderful about watching a town unfurl its potential to become a destination. Gaining confidence in assets overlooked and coaxing out their dormant beauty. Murwillumbah in NSW is a place amid such an evolution.

A hinterland jewel shouldered by ranges of subtropical Gondwana Rainforest, punctuated by mighty Wollumbin/Mt Warning and running to the coast across a carpet of cane fields, this Tweed Shire town has been timidly emerging from its agricultural cocoon for years.

Emergence involves a chain reaction that typically dominoes in order of art, food and tourists. Murwillumbah has long had the art. The Tweed River Art Gallery began luring aesthetes back in 1988. By 2004, it required bigger digs in an architecturally celebrated new building, becoming the Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Art Centre. Artists and appreciators congregated in greater numbers and other galleries sprang up, including the M|Arts Precinct.

Creativity prospers because Murwillumbah is a muse. The Art Deco town sits between lush mountain ranges and the elegant Tweed River. She was slumped in disrepair for a long while, but she’s been attracting attention in the last few years. Some of which has come from chefs and restaurateurs lured by Northern Rivers produce and untapped potential. Adding to the noteworthy restaurants rapidly amassing on the Tweed Coast such as Pipit, Paper Daisy and No. 35 Kitchen and Bar, Murwillumbah is plating up fare worth travelling for.

Awarded a chef’s hat in the SMH Good Food Guide 2023 edition, Bistro Livi is a sleek 36-seater in the M|Arts Precinct run by MoVida alumni. The minimalist aesthetic, sophisticated food and considered wine list wouldn’t be out of place in Melbourne, but instead is here.

Just south of the town centre and majestically presiding over the river is the impeccably restored Tweed River House, where diners watch the water as they move through elegant courses in the British Raj-styled manor. And Husk Farm Distillery celebrates the primary crop of the area, crafting beautiful rum from sugar cane.

It’s in nearby Tumbulgum where you can stretch out on the lawn for an afternoon of nibbles and tipples at its cellar door. You’ll also find excellent coffee at Keith, locally made cheeses from Kat Harvey Cheese and craft beer at Spangled Drongo to fuel your artful pursuits.

If you want to lean into more active adventures, head to the newly opened Tweed section of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail. The trail kicks off in Murwillumbah before weaving for 24 blissful kilometres through the Tweed Valley, casting another lure in this riverside town on the runway to revival.

8. The country pub revitalising Rockley

Travelling with: Emily Murphy

While the tiny NSW village of Rockley may only have 10 streets and 180 residents, it does, like every Australian town, have a classic country pub. Reopened by chef and restaurateur Matt Moran in 2022, The Rockley Pub is his most personal venue yet.

With family ties to Rockley and his Moran family farm close by, Moran wants to revive the village as a destination in its own right and support local food and wine producers while he’s at it. As a pioneer of the paddock-to-plate movement in Australia, Moran’s menu features locally sourced meat from the Central Tablelands in iconic pub meals such as dry-aged pasture-fed sirloin, parmesan-crumbed chicken schnitzel and mushroom and sage fettuccine.

The pub represents the first stage of his wider plan to reinvigorate the town, a 30-minute drive south of Bathurst, with plans to add a bakery, general store and more accommodation.

9. Soaking up change in Mullum

Travelling with: Lara Picone

I rarely do things that alarm my body, but it’s physiological panic stations as I plunge into a 9°C cold pool. I employ every trick my astonished brain can muster to endure two minutes of extremity-creeping chills. Then, I’m out, and into a warm mineral spa. The contrast makes my limbs fizz like a Berocca in a glass of water. Cold gives way to a post-adrenaline state of calm, allowing me time to soak in the magnesium-enriched water and my surroundings at Mullumbimby’s bathhouse, The Banya.

Opened in December 2022, if one is ever compelled to force their body into a series of hot and cold sensations, The Banya is an agreeable place to do so. The space is well-styled to enhance a sense of unmitigated relaxation.

Polished green and white marble tiles line the plunge pool and spas; white-washed walls encircle the traditional woodfired sauna, punishingly hot steam room and bucket showers; and lounging nooks topped with terracotta pots conjure Mediterranean beach club vibes. Throughout, gentle Art Deco touches honour the original architecture of the 1920s former bank.

The Banya would make sense in Biarritz, Bali and nearby Byron Bay, yet it’s the last thing I’d expect to see in rural and alternative-leaning Mullumbimby. It draws a line in the sand, accelerating Mullumbimby’s inevitable gentrification.

Inspired by Russian bathhouse culture, The Banya encourages the social aspect of communal bathing, helping the community to feel welcome and included in the transformation of their hometown. Judging by their serene smiles, they’re embracing the benefits Mullum’s proximity to Byron will continue to attract.
Lounge around on shaded day beds. (Image: Kristian Beek)

As Byron Bay has swelled with prosperity over the past few decades, spilling into the nearby towns of Bangalow and Brunswick Heads, Mullumbimby, just 20 minutes north, remained the final stronghold of affluence adverse hippie types. While gentrification has always been inevitable, it was taking its time. That was until The Banya opened, essentially drawing a line in the sand of what Mullumbimby was and what it will most certainly become.

You’ll pay: A very reasonable $60 for 90 minutes using the bathhouse facilities, but you’re welcome to stick around after your session for a bite, a massage or just to lounge about.

Where: 35–37 Burringbar Street, Mullumbimby. It’s just 20 minutes north of Byron Bay and 10 minutes west of Brunswick Heads.

10. Go with the flow in Shoalhaven

Travelling with: Carla Grossetti

It takes just a few hours from Sydney to arrive in Berry, where I find a group of women aged between 20 and 60 arranged artistically on lounges waiting for the fun to begin. Excited chatter ricochets all around the space after Standing Tall Retreats’ founder Amy Manton outlines the three-day itinerary she has curated.

There’s a horse named Bill with my name on it. A surf lesson. My first reformer Pilates class. Some scheduled relaxation around the infinity pool looking out over green fields and brown cows. There’s hula hooping, a nutrition workshop and a relaxing reiki experience.

A vast sky full of stars also beckons each night after wholefood feasts shared around the communal table at Sinclairs of Berry. The Global Wellness Institute recently named Australia as the No. 1 wellness destination in the world. And Shoalhaven is shaping up as an emerging destination in that space.

This is thanks in part to its proximity smack bang between Sydney and Canberra and a roster of retreats designed to support meaningful connections between places and people. Being given those moments to sit and just be against a backdrop of beautiful beaches, unspoilt coastal villages and sun-lit escarpments provides us all with new ways of looking at the world and working out our place in it.

Sinclairs of Berry is one of several new retreats that revolve around wellness in the Shoalhaven. Tailor your retreat to suit by requesting everything from a weekend of Wim Hof-inspired ice baths to an Indigenous-led cultural experience, art therapy or a nature-focused retreat.

11. A different school of thought on the Coffs Coast

Travelling with: Carla Grossetti

Gumbaynggirr Country as seen through the lens of Indigenous culture is a significant part of the Coffs Coast journey as NSW’s first ECO Destination. The region recently placed third at the prestigious 2023 Global Green Destinations Story Awards in the Culture and Tradition category thanks to the work being done by the trailblazing Bularri Muurlay Nyanggan Aboriginal Corporation. Indigenous Australians are the ultimate pioneers in conservation.

The Giingan Gumbaynggirr Cultural Experience is a celebration of Gumbaynggirr culture, people and language. It’s also a great example of ecologically sustainable tourism, as support of BMNAC helped fund the first bilingual language school in NSW.

12. Walk into wellness with Positive Energy Adventures and Retreats

Travelling with: Taylah Darnell

Journey 34 kilometres from Settlement Point in Port Macquarie to Crescent Head on Birpai and Dunghutti Country with Positive Energy Adventures and Retreats to clear your thoughts and move your body. Experience the benefits of hiking without added stress; replace a rucksack and swag with yoga, Pilates or meditation, hot breakfasts, glamping tents and sunset drinks.

Like-minded locals Peta Alexopoulos and Belinda Johnson noticed a gap between wellbeing retreats and sustainability and launched their hikes in March to remedy this. The pair invite guests to connect with themselves as well as the land. You’ll wrap up this three-day adventure feeling healthier in mind, body and spirit knowing you haven’t left a heavy footprint, except for just a few in the sand.

13. A slow food and rail tour through the Riverina

Travelling with: Taylah Darnell

Climb aboard the restored sleeper Aurora Australis and venture from Sydney into the heart of Australia’s food bowl. Vintage Rail Journeys’ Riverina Rail Tour is a four-night passage through rural NSW that features off-train adventures to Coolamon Cheese, Piccolo Family Farm and even Emeri De Bortoli’s private garden.

With a contemplative stretch that traces the Canola Trail – its fields of gold rolling by your window come springtime – this is a chance to knock off two trends in one: slow food and slow travel. Oenophiles embarking on Vintage Rail Journeys’ Golden West Rail Tour will take in the vineyards of the Hunter Valley and Orange.

14. Australia’s bushwalking state

Travelling with: Megan Arkinstall

NSW is on track – no pun intended – to become Australia’s bushwalking mecca with its developing network of 13 ‘Great Walks’. The network, which comprises new tracks that connect with existing ones, covers more than 630 kilometres, tracing beach laden coast, climbing high peaks and weaving through ancient rainforest. Six of the walks are already in operation, while the remaining are in development, with a range of levels to suit everyone from leisurely walkers to hardcore hikers.

The 20-kilometre Grand Cliff Top Walk is ready for explorers to pound its 100-year-old sandstone pavements in the Blue Mountains between Wentworth Falls and Katoomba. The track traces sheer escarpment through to Scenic World via eucalypt forests and past panoramic lookouts, where you can soak up the beauty of this World Heritage-listed area.

Newly launched in April of this year, the Murramarang South Coast Walk connects forest and ocean between Ulladulla and Batemans Bay. The track weaves through 34 kilometres of terrain including groves of spotted gum and burrawangs (Australian cycads) and secluded bays and coves. It also adjoins Murramarang Aboriginal Area, which has one of the largest Indigenous sites on the NSW coast with middens and artefacts dating back 12,000 years.

The Tomaree Coastal Walk in Port Stephens is set to open mid-year within the Worimi Aboriginal cultural landscape. The spectacular 20-kilometre trail threads through Tomaree National Park and comprises ancient volcanic peaks, rich Second World War heritage and spectacular coastal scenery. It will be a prime whale-watching spot during winter and a picturesque place to see the land carpeted in wildflowers come spring.

Have your hiking boots at the ready if reaching ‘The Roof of Australia’ is on your to-do list. The first stage of the Snowies Alpine Walk, running from Guthega to Charlotte Pass, is now open with the completed track set to launch in 2024. The walk culminates in the climb to the 2228-metre summit of Mt Kosciuszko. This epic 55-kilometre walk through alpine and subalpine environments in Kosciuszko National Park also traces the Snowy River, along high-country plains and snow-capped mountains.

15. The Barrington Coast’s crowning beach

Travelling with: Megan Arkinstall

I had mixed feelings when I saw the second place-getter crowned by Tourism Australia’s ‘Beach Expert’ Brad Farmer as one of his favourite stretches of sand for 2023. Don’t get me wrong, I wholeheartedly agree that Boomerang Beach, on NSW’s serene Barrington Coast, is one of Australia’s best. This pristine arc of sand is bookended by headlands that create both a sheltered swimming spot and excellent surf conditions. But alas, the secret is now out.

Simplicity is the lure of Boomerang Beach in the nostalgically named Pacific Palms region, which cues memories of sun-soaked school holidays spent in retro beachside motels. Neighbouring Blueys Beach is the main hub where you’ll find chilled Indo-inspired Kembali Cafe, Hueys at Blueys pizzeria, a bottle shop, deli and small supermarket. Blueys has a consistent beach break and boasts views towards isolated surf village Seal Rocks to the south.

In the other direction, you’ll find Booti Booti National Park, an eight-kilometre peninsula wedged between the Pacific Ocean and Wallis Lake. Meaning ‘plenty of honey’ in the local Worimi language, this protected paradise comprises walking tracks through coastal rainforest and white-sand swimming spots such as remote Seven Mile Beach and family-friendly Elizabeth Beach. If you crave more hustle, take the 25-minute drive north to Forster.

Embark on a road trip with your favourite crew and bunker down in one of Hola Palms’ beautiful holiday homes in Boomerang Beach, such as bright and cheerful townhouse Sundays or luxe four-bedroom house Mahalo. Here you can spend your days with sandy feet and salty skin bouncing between beach and pool. When night falls, the place to be is around Mahalo’s outdoor fire pit sipping sundowners and cooking up a feast in the pizza oven. Bliss.

16. Conquer Australia’s longest whitewater trail

Travelling with: Emily Murphy

Seek adventure and that’s what you’ll find on the Clarence Canoe and Kayak Trail in northern NSW’s Clarence Valley. Combining the Nymbodia, Mann and Clarence rivers, the 195-kilometre trail is the longest-mapped whitewater trail in Australia.

This gem is split into eight sections of varying difficulty for you to pick and choose what suits your skill level – whether that be waterfalls and unhinged rapids with names such as Tombstone and Demolition Derby or mellow cruising downriver. However you experience the trail, you’ll be left in awe of the natural beauty that it encompasses.

17. Take in the scale of the Pilliga, NSW’s hidden wilderness

Travelling with: Daniel Down

The Pilliga is like a brilliant green island in a sea of brown pasture on the western side of the Great Dividing Range, and a bastion of what once was: a forest wilderness.

If you’re in NSW’s Narrabri region, this massive swathe of nature – habitat for koalas and endemic animals such as the Pilliga mouse – is essential viewing often skipped over in favour of spots with a little more clout to their name.

The best way to see its Amazon-like scale is to climb two mountains, each in a spectacular national park. Take a day to climb Mt Exmouth in the Warrumbungles to the south-west of the Pilliga. From here you can look north out across the Pilliga’s infinite stretch of eucalypts. Legs rested, take the Newell Highway north.

Stop at the Sandstone Caves in Pilliga Nature Reserve, sacred to the Gamilaraay people, before heading on to Narrabri and Mt Kaputar National Park. Book a cabin or camp for the night and summit the titular mountain in the evening to watch the sun sink into the Pilliga. It’s life-affirming stuff.

18. The Murray River comes to light, NSW and Victoria

Travelling with: Emily Murphy

The Mildura–Wentworth region will soon hit the spotlight as renowned artist Bruce Munro, of Field of Light Uluru acclaim, develops Light/State, two incredible outdoor light installations across the NSW–Victoria border.

On either side of the Murray River, the Trail of Light and Fibre Optic Symphonic Orchestra installations will connect the communities and inspire visitors to reflect and engage with the stories, culture, history, landscape and individuality of this thriving border region from summer 2023.

If Munro’s previous art successes are anything to go by, Light/State is about to put this region firmly on the map.

19. Food theatre stars in Albury

Travelling with: Sue Wallace

Albury now boasts a whimsical food theatre experience on its roster of reasons to visit; the NSW-Victorian border city that sits on the banks of the Murray River is the winner of Wotif’s recent Aussie Town of the Year Award.

Shiny new Glenbosch on Dean is a restaurant and wine and gin bar. Here, executive chef Chris de Jongh creates a nine-course degustation feast that reflects his love of molecular cuisine, inspired presentations and tastes that pop such as sago crisp, tuna tartare and a ‘smoking’ oyster on dry ice.

Owners Dirk and Nika Bester, who arrived from the Western Cape of South Africa in 2019, also own Glenbosch Wine Estate, home to a restaurant, distillery and luxe eco cottages at Everton, near Beechworth. Dirk, a passionate distiller, makes Rooibos Gin with botanicals and tea from South Africa and Golden Granite Gin with floating gold flakes as a nod to the region’s gold rush days.

20. Rail trail movement gathers steam, NSW and Victoria

Travelling with: Carla Grossetti

Abandoned railway tracks around Australia continue to be reimagined as recreational trails for cyclists. And riding along these corridors is one of the most popular ways to enjoy a join-the-dots jaunt through the countryside. NSW’s first true rail trail on an ex-government rail corridor sealed the deal for the small townships of Tumbarumba and Rosewood, when the first section of the pioneering Riverina Highlands Rail Trail opened in 2020.

The rail trail has put the Snowy Valleys region on the map, providing visitors with yet another excuse to hit the high country and explore this stunning subalpine region when it’s not dusted in snow. The trail is about 21 kilometres each way and includes interpretive signage about the history of the rail route and the region. There are also ample opportunities to cycle to cellar doors such as the award-winning Courabyra Wines, which is part of the Snowy Valleys Sculpture Trail.

A disused train line in South Gippsland has also increased opportunities for walkers and cyclists to explore southeastern Victoria. The Nyora to Leongatha route extends the Great Southern Rail Trail by 36 kilometres and includes plenty of inspired places to stop. According to Will Owens, Rail Trails Australia’s southern NSW representative, the trend to reimagine disused railway lines is gaining momentum in the state, led by demand from domestic and international visitors who are looking to see the landscape up close.

Riders looking for new routes should also check out the newly opened first stage of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail, which connects Murwillumbah with Crabbes Creek in NSW. There are also plans to connect Yarra Glen and Healesville to the Lilydale-Warburton rail trail as part of the multi-stage Yarra Valley Trail in country Victoria.

21. The rise and rise of regional galleries, NSW and Victoria

Travelling with: Carla Grossetti

Kunmanara Carroll was a Luritja, Pintupi and Pitjantjatjara man based in Pukatja/Ernabella in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands of South Australia. Until his passing in 2021, Carroll worked with clay and paint to form artworks that told stories about his ancestors, culture and identity.

A series of these earthy, organic vessels form part of the upcoming Kunmanara Carroll: Ngaylu Nyanganyi Ngura Winki (I Can See All Those Places) exhibition to be featured this year at the Shepparton Art Museum (SAM), which opened its doors in November 2021.

The artworks on show in the new $50 million Denton Corker Marshall-designed SAM are emblematic of the dynamic gallery scene now flourishing in regional Australia.

The newly transformed Central Goldfields Art Gallery in Maryborough is another cultural attraction drawing visitors to regional Victoria. The gallery reopened in March 2023 with the headline exhibition Ladder to the Stars: Dean Bowen Sculptures after undergoing a $2.28 million upgrade.

The reimagined 19th-century fire station is worth a visit in its own right. There is also a vibrant arts scene unfolding in the Bega Valley with the South East Centre for Contemporary Art (SECCA), the latest place-making attraction in regional NSW following the double-whammy openings of Bundanon and Ngununggula, Southern Highlands Regional Gallery in recent years.

The state-of-the-art SECCA gallery is set to open its doors soon after a major $3.5 million redevelopment and expansion. The art centre will be dedicated to nurturing local talent and acknowledging First Nations people while providing a platform for artists to express their diverse political, social and cultural beliefs. Whether classic, contemporary, cool or creative, gallery-hopping is an inspired way to connect an ever-widening audience of art lovers with regional communities. We’re all for it.