Refreshed: August 2026
Where else in the world could I say that I had stood at the top of a mountain at the bottom of the planet?
That was me in Kuranda, a mountain village near Cairns in Queensland, thinking exactly that. I knew Australia was enormous before I went, of course, but I don’t think I had really appreciated its scale until I travelled through it.
My journey through Australia formed part of a wonderful 28-day trip through Australia and New Zealand. It was one of those big journeys that required plenty of planning, but it gave me the opportunity to experience several very different parts of this vast country.
My first impressions of Australia
There were certain things I noticed very quickly.
Australians love sport, and there seemed to be a healthy rivalry between the different states. I particularly enjoyed listening to the banter between our guides from New South Wales and Queensland.
Then there was the outdoor lifestyle. Beaches seemed to be everywhere and life generally felt relaxed and informal. I also loved the Australian sense of humour. People tended to say what they meant, often with a very dry sense of humour, and they didn’t appear to take themselves too seriously.
It suited me perfectly. And naturally, I had to try the food, that included Vegemite.
Now, Vegemite is certainly not for everyone, but I already liked Marmite, so perhaps I had an advantage. I liked Vegemite so much that I ate it whenever I could and even brought a couple of jars home with me to the UK.
Trying to see Australia
The biggest challenge with Australia is its size. There is simply too much to see in one visit.
I wanted to experience as many of the major sights as possible, so my journey took me to Melbourne, the Red Centre, Alice Springs, Cairns and Sydney. Each place was completely different from the last, which was one of the things I enjoyed most about travelling through the country.
Sydney had the energy and buzz of a major international city. Cairns took me into tropical Queensland. Melbourne introduced me to a very different side of Australian city life, while the Red Centre was unlike anywhere I had been before.
There was far too much to squeeze into one post, so I decided to write separately about some of the places and experiences from the journey.
The mysterious Hook Turn
One of the little things that fascinated me in Melbourne was a road sign for something called a Hook Turn.
I already knew that Australians drove on the left, so that part felt familiar to me as someone from the UK. But the Hook Turn was something else entirely.
It is a particular way of turning right at certain intersections in central Melbourne, designed to keep vehicles out of the path of trams. Instead of positioning your car on the right to turn right, you move over to the left and wait before completing the turn when the signals allow.
It made sense once it was explained to me, but as a visitor seeing the sign for the first time, I would never have known what to do!
It is one of those small travel observations that has stayed with me.
The Red Centre and Uluru
One of the highlights of my Australian journey was visiting Uluru.
Nothing quite prepared me for seeing it in person. Photographs give you an idea of its scale and colour, but standing there is a completely different experience.
Uluru is also a place of profound cultural and spiritual importance to the Anangu, the Traditional Owners of the land. Being there gave me an appreciation that this extraordinary landscape is much more than a famous Australian landmark.
Something else surprised me in the Red Centre — the sky.
It was unbelievably clear and blue. The clouds looked like pieces of cotton wool floating above the landscape and at times seemed almost close enough to touch. I couldn’t stop photographing them and must have taken more than a hundred pictures.
I had seen beautiful skies in many places, but there was something about the vastness and clarity of the sky in Australia’s Red Centre that stayed with me.
Don't write off group tours
I know organised tours are not for everyone, but I wouldn’t dismiss them automatically.
For a journey covering a country as large as Australia, I found travelling as part of an organised group particularly useful. The logistics of accommodation, internal travel and sightseeing had already been arranged, leaving me free to enjoy the experience.
They can also be a good option for people who would like to travel but feel apprehensive about making a long journey alone.
I have travelled in groups of very different sizes over the years, and the number of people has mattered far less to me than the organisation of the tour and the people travelling together.
For Australia, it worked very well.
Good to Know
Don’t assume your international and domestic baggage allowances are the same. This caught me out. If your Australian itinerary includes domestic flights, check the allowance for every flight before you leave home and pack according to the most restrictive one. Packing light and using laundry facilities along the way can save a lot of inconvenience.
Take Australia’s biosecurity rules seriously. Australia has strict controls on food, plant and animal products entering the country. Check the current official requirements before travelling and declare anything you are unsure about when you arrive.
Allow for the distances. Australia is vast. Places that look relatively close on a map can involve long journeys or internal flights, so don’t try to fit too much into one trip.
Australia gave me cities, beaches, tropical landscapes, the extraordinary Red Centre, plenty of laughter and, apparently, a lasting fondness for Vegemite.
And somewhere along the way, I really did get to stand on a mountain at the bottom of the planet.
Have you visited Australia? I’d love to hear about your experience or any tips you’d add in the comments below.
You can read about my visit to Australian Red Centre and The Great Barrier Reef.
