Tag Archives: summer holidays

Best rest areas around Australia

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Highway, Tourism Australia

Highway, Tourism Australia

Have you ever planned to stop at a rest area, taken one look at the facilities, and just decided to drive on?

A good rest area can make a long drive that much smoother (and a bad one can add a few more rocks to the road). That’s why we asked Paul Smedley, author of Budget Rest Areas around Australia – which lists all of the rest areas along major highways in Australia – to nominate his favourite places to stop along Australia’s highways.

So whether you want to stop and stretch your legs or save a few dollars by staying the night (if permitted) these rest areas are always worth a stop.

Sea Lake park area, Calder Highway, Victoria

Near new, well designed and very well maintained, this rest area is at the entrance to the caravan park – but you won’t have to pay a cent. While you can’t stay here overnight, there are toilets, showers, barbecues, water, picnic tables, as well as being dog friendly.

Highly recommended in Victoria: Greenhill Lake camp area, Plantation camp area, Genoa rest area and Minyip rest area

Mundoonan rest area, Hume Highway, New South Wales

This rest area on the southbound side of the highway is matched by a twin area on the northbound side. Both are excellent, with toilets, drinking water, barbecues and shade. You can stay overnight for free. We’re not sure what it is about the rest area on the southbound side – but it’s slightly better than its twin, luckily for the people travelling towards Melbourne.

Highly recommended in New South Wales: Gol Gol park area, Ardlethan park area, Kempsey park area, Diamond Head camping area, Mulligans Hut camping area and Wallabadah rest area

Waikerie park area, Sturt Highway, South Australia

A picture-perfect rest area on the banks of the Murray River, this rest area is overflowing with facilities. But don’t worry, the facilities themselves aren’t overflowing, with clean toilets, showers, picnic areas, a playground and caravan access.

Highly recommended for South Australia: Port Neil park areas, Wilpena Pound camping area and Mambray Creek camping area.

Ellendale Pool camping area, Brand Highway, Western Australia

Ellendale Pool camping area is 27 kilometres from the highway, so it’s only worth the drive if you’re planning to stay overnight. It’s a scenic spot next to a pool, with showers, toilets, shade, picnic tables, barbecues and disabled access. There’s a small fee to stay here.

Highly recommended: Big Brook Dam park area, Walpole park area and Shannon camping area.

Berry Springs park area, Northern Territory

This is Paul Smedley’s favourite spot for a short break that usually lasts for hours. Around 10 kilometres west of the highway, the park area is in Berry Springs Nature Park, so you can take a dip as well as use the facilities (the creek can be shut to swimmers in the wet season).

Highly recommended in Northern Territory: Lake Mary Ann park area, Wangi Falls camping area in Litchfield National Park (another Smedley favourite), Edith Falls camp area (near Katherine).

Scottsdale rest area, Tasman Highway, Tasmania

Scottsdale has the most facilities of all of the rest areas on this list, as this site is a dump point, along with the regular facilities of toilets, showers, picnic tables and water. The setting is also pleasant.

Highly recommended in Tasmania: Swansea park area, Hellyer Gorge and Sisters Beach rest areas, Fortescue Bay camp area in Tasman National Park.

Seaford camping area, Bruce Highway, Queensland

Queensland takes the prize for most rest/park/camp areas with great facilities. But Seaforth camping area is among the best of the best. This is an official campground, so you have to pay to stay here. But we think you’ll agree that the facilities are worth it, with toilets, picnic areas, shade, showers, caravan access and drinking water.

Highly recommended in Queensland: Theodore camping area, Bramston Beach camping area, Bluewater rest area and Rollingstone rest area.

 

 

     

Top 5 attractions to stop for along the Hume Highway

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Park next to the Murray River in Albury, Tourism Victoria

Park next to the Murray River in Albury, Tourism Victoria

As anyone who has completed the trip before will tell you, the Hume Highway isn’t the most exciting stretch of road in Australia. It’s a smooth drive that takes you from Melbourne to Sydney alongside stretches of golden countryside, bypassing all of the major towns along the route. But there are plenty of things to see near the Hume Highway – you just have to know where to look. Here are the top five attractions we always stop for when driving between Melbourne and Sydney.

Dog on the Tuckerbox, Gundagai, New South Wales (approx. 3.5 hours from Sydney)

The Dog on the Tuckerbox is an unassuming statue that sits off the Hume Highway to the north of Gundagai. Although it is quite small, travellers have been known to travel across the country to see this famous monument. The Dog on the Tuckerbox, unveiled in 1932, marks the pioneering efforts of teamsters and their dogs. Originally mentioned in the poem Bill the Bullocky by Bowyang Yorke, the dog has firmly taken hold in the Australian imagination. It’s also celebrated in the song ‘Where the Dog Sits on the Tuckerbox’ by Jack O’Hagan. A large complex of eateries has grown up around it and started to overshadow the statue, but it’s still faithfully sitting just off the highway, waiting to greet visitors.

Big Merino, Goulburn, New South Wales (approx. 2 hours from Sydney)

The Big Merino is exactly what is sounds like. It’s a giant statue of a sheep that stands in the town of Goulburn. And out of all of Australia’s Big Things, at 15 metres high and 18 metres long, the Big Merino would have to be one of the biggest. It was built to commemorate Goulburn’s wool industry, and inside it are three floors with information on the history of the wool industry in the town.

HMAS Otway, Holbrook, New South Wales (approx. 4.5 hours from Sydney)

The small town of Holbrook is not where you would normally expect to find a decommissioned navy submarine. But that’s exactly what you’ll find marking the main street in town. A bypass was recently built around Holbrook, which means the highway no longer passes directly by the submarine, but the submarine and related museum are well worth a detour into town. HMAS Otway was once commanded by Norman Holbrook, and the submarine was purchased by the town using funds gifted from his widow. You can run around the inside and see what a proper submarine looks like.

Ned Kelly statue, Glenrowan, Victoria (approx. 2.5 hours from Melbourne)

Just as the spectre of Ned Kelly metaphorically looms over the town of Glenrowan, so the surprisingly large statue of Ned makes its physical presence felt in town. Famous as the place where Ned made his last stand, Glenrowan has embraced this heritage, with multiple museums dedicated to the Kelly gang, as well as the statue. You’ll have to detour into town to see the statue and related Ned attractions. Glenrowan is also well known as a wine-producing district, but that won’t be as much of an attraction for those doing to long haul from Melbourne to Sydney.

The Murray River

Marking the border between Victoria and New South Wales, as well as the divider between the twin towns of Wodonga (in Victoria) and Albury (in New South Wales), the Murray River is the best-known and best-looking state marker in the country. It’s also our favourite place along the Hume Highway to take a break. Substantial parklands along the river provide a great selection of places to stop on either the Albury or Wodonga side.

Check out our list of the top 5 rest areas along the Hume Highway here.

     

Top 5 no-bookings camping areas

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Camping in Tasmania, Tom Simpson

Camping in Tasmania, Tom Simpson

There’s nothing we like better than camping in summer. And a lot of people agree, which means that campsites can get booked up quite quickly over the summer months. Luckily, there are some fantastic no-bookings camping areas around the country that mean even the most unorganised camper can find a last-minute campsite.

Mungo Brush camping area, Myall Lakes, New South Wales

Situated between a lake and a beach, Mungo Brush camping area is the pick of the bunch in Myall Lakes National Park and competition for these sites is fierce at Christmas. Set up your tent or van underneath the paperbark trees and enjoy a sundowner with spectacular lake views. The beach is only a short walk away through the dunes if you prefer an ocean view with your drink.

The camping area has good facilities, including toilets, and proximity to great fishing spots, bushwalks, swimming, as well as access to boat ramps. And at three hours away from Sydney, it’s far enough away to feel like an escape.

Tapanappa camping area, Deep Creek Conservation Park, South Australia

You don’t need to book at any of the campsites at Deep Creek Conservation Park, which means that you can take your pick from camping areas settled in a stringybark forest to campsites with little to no shade overlooking the spectacular coast.

Or there’s Tapanappa, which offers the best of both worlds, being set back from the coast so that jaw-dropping views are just a quick walk away and the campsites offer some shade. With both drinking water and toilets available, this is a popular campsite that fills up quickly. It’s also a staging ground for those preparing to undertake hikes within Deep Creek, including the epic Heysen Trail, which crosses much of South Australia.

Honeymoon Pool camping area, Wellington National Park, Western Australia

Like many campsite names in Western Australia, including Lucky Bay camping area, Honeymoon Pool lives up to its name. That’s not to say that the camping area is full of honeymooning couples – you’re more likely to find families – but rather that it’s an idyllic spot that should give campers some happy memories to take home with them.

The camping area is in a picture-perfect setting next to the Collie River in Wellington National Park. Surrounded by forest, it has toilets, drinking water, picnic tables and limited disabled access. The main activity at the pool is, of course, swimming, but canoeing and bushwalking are also popular.

Billy Goat Bend camping area, Mitchell River National Park, Victoria

The secret is out about our favourite no-bookings campsite, Johanna Beach camping area. But there are still plenty of less-crowded no-bookings sites around Victoria, included this gem in Mitchell River National Park. While not situated directly on Mitchell River, Billy Goat has a spectacular panorama over the river and park. There isn’t much else at this site apart from the view. It’s a favourite with canoeists, but its location above the river means it’s a bit of hike to reach if you are canoeing through the park.

Mt Field Campground, Mt Field National Park, Tasmania

You’ll find this caravan park and campground nestled in Mt Field National Park. Set under giant swamp gums next to the Tyenna River, this campsite is in a charming location, and offers great access to the rest of the national park. From the sweeping alpine regions to the gracefully tiered waterfalls, Mt Field offers a range of environments to explore and activities with which to explore them, including cycling, canoeing, hiking and fishing.

The campsite has fantastic facilities, including toilets, hot showers, drinking water, disabled access and powered sites – all the things you’d expect at a site you’d have to book at.

Other no-bookings campsites worth visiting: