Australia’s south-east, all the way to Tasmania

Who it is for

For travellers who like cities, food and walking and want a cooler Australia, with the island of Tasmania at the end.

Not for anyone after the reef or the desert: the Great Barrier Reef is in northern Queensland and Uluru about 2,800 km from Sydney, while this route stays in the south of the country.

The strategy

Sydney gets three days: the harbour and the ferry to Manly, the built city up to the bridge on foot, and Bondi with the Inner West. Melbourne is 880 km away, and flying is the practical option; Melbourne airport has no train, and the SkyBus takes 30 to 45 minutes to Southern Cross Station. Melbourne gets three days: the grid and laneways of the centre; the market and the northern neighbourhoods; and the Shrine, the botanic gardens and St Kilda. Trams are free inside the Free Tram Zone. For Tasmania, fly to Hobart; the Spirit of Tasmania ferry, 9 to 11 hours between Geelong and Devonport, carries cars but lands in the north of the island, far from Hobart. The island gets three to five days based in Hobart: Sullivans Cove, Salamanca and Battery Point; MONA by ferry and kunanyi in the afternoon; Port Arthur, 90 minutes by car; and, with five days, Bruny Island via the Kettering ferry and Wineglass Bay, sleeping at Coles Bay. Outside Hobart you need a rental car, and every national park requires a pass. March suits all three: autumn begins in Sydney and Melbourne, and in Tasmania average highs stay near 21 °C, outside the summer and winter peak seasons.

What you will see

• Sydney Opera House, Sydney. Competition won by Jørn Utzon in 1957, opened on October 20, 1973; the shells are clad in more than a million Swedish ceramic tiles in two shades, which make it change color with the light.
• National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne. Australia's oldest and largest art museum, founded in 1861; Roy Grounds' building on St Kilda Road dates from 1968.
• Wineglass Bay, Tasmania. The arc-shaped bay of white sand, on the ocean side of the Freycinet Peninsula, is the best-known image of the east coast.

Day by day

Sydney

1. 1
   Day 1: The harbor

   1. 1Sydney Opera HouseEssential
   2. 3Royal Botanic Garden and Mrs Macquaries PointEssential
2. 2
   Day 2: Hyde Park Barracks, museums, Haymarket, and the bridge on foot

   1. 8Hyde Park BarracksUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   2. 6The Rocks and Cadman's CottageUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   3. Barangaroo Reserve and Walsh BayIf there is time
3. 3
   Day 3: Beach and Inner West

   
4. 4
   Day 4: Blue Mountains (Katoomba) (day trip) · if you have more time

   

Melbourne

1. 5
   Day 5: The grid, the laneways and the river

   1. 6Flinders Street StationUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   2. 4State Library VictoriaUp to half an hourEssential
2. 6
   Day 6: North: market, museum and neighborhoods

   1. 2Queen Victoria MarketEssential
   2. 5Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton GardensWorth a visit
3. 7
   Day 7: South: memory, garden and bay

   1. 7Shrine of RemembranceUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   2. 8Royal Botanic Gardens and Old Melbourne GaolWorth a visit
   3. 9Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)One to two hoursIf there is time

Tasmania

1. 8
   Day 8: Sullivans Cove, Salamanca Place, Battery Point and the Female Factory

   1. Constitution DockUp to half an hourIf there is time
   2. 6Salamanca PlaceUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   3. 4Salamanca MarketOne to two hoursEssential
   4. 7Battery PointUp to half an hourWorth a visit
   5. Tasmanian Museum and Art GalleryOne to two hoursWorth a visit
2. 9
   Day 9: MONA by ferry and the top of kunanyi

   
3. 10
   Day 10: Port Arthur and the Tasman Peninsula

   
4. 11
   Day 11: Bruny Island (day trip) · if you have more time

   1. 8Bruny IslandHalf a day or moreWorth a visit
5. 12
   Day 12: Freycinet National Park and Wineglass Bay (day trip) · if you have more time

   1. 5Wineglass BayHalf a day or moreEssential