ADVENTURE FROM KEY QANTAS GATEWAYS BRISBANE


The sunny Queensland capital manages to be laidback and full of creative energy at the same time. Based around the meandering Brisbane River, its star attractions are close to the water’s edge.


Cairns Hamilton Island Alice Springs


You can try your hand at rock-climbing at Kangaroo Point, or take a kayaking trip down the river from there, while South Bank on the other side of the city centre is home to restaurants and museums plus a massive artificial beach. For those wanting urban cool, Fortitude Valley is a hub for dozens of hip bars, design studios and places to eat. But Brisbane’s strength is as a gateway to what’s directly around it. Go west and you hit Moreton Island, where you can snorkel round shipwrecks, sandboard down massive dunes and watch dolphins being fed at the water’s edge. Head south, and you’re on the Gold


Coast, the fabled holiday strip full of surf beaches and theme parks. Or go north to the slightly less intense Sunshine Coast, where cruises to go swimming with whales depart from Mooloolaba and koalas hang out in the national parkland in chic, foodie favourite Noosa.


Brisbane and its surroundings offer


traditional holiday fun, and are great if you’ve got kids in tow.


BRISBANE Gold Coast


TAKE THE ULTIMATE TRIP: RELAX & REJUVENATE


Brisbane is a key part of this multi-city itinerary, which also heads to the Sunshine Coast, Sydney and Melbourne. This includes browsing the arty Eumundi Markets on the Sunshine Coast, watching the comical penguins at Phillip Island, touring wine regions and maybe kayaking on Noosa’s waterways.


SYDNEY ADELAIDE


Kangaroo Island


MELBOURNE


Launceston Hobart


SYDNEY KEY:


Qantas gateway cities


Qantas Explorer fare cities


Based around one of the world’s most stunning natural harbours, Sydney is rightly regarded as one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. It’s about as outdoorsy as it’s possible for a city to be – you could easily spend a holiday here walking along clifftop trails, surfing on Bondi Beach, checking out Aboriginal rock art in Sydney Harbour National Park, grinning at cockatoos in the Botanic Gardens or taking the ferry to Taronga Zoo. Then again, Sydney can be tackled in an entirely different way. Try restaurant, gallery and


bar-hopping your way through hip suburbs such as Chippendale and Surry Hills; delving into the surprisingly rich heritage on walking tours of The Rocks; or visiting the microbreweries and live music venues of the Inner West. The most famous music venue is


the Sydney Opera House. Booking to see a performance there is bucket-list territory for many, as is climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge on the other side of Circular Quay. Throw in a day trip to the picturesque


sandstone valleys of the Blue Mountains and a wine-tasting tour of the Hunter Valley, and Australia’s largest city has all the ingredients for a world-class break.


TAKE THE ULTIMATE TRIP: SYDNEY, ROCK & REEF


Sydney is the gateway for the Sydney, Rock & Reef trip that marries big-city sightseeing, outback experiences at Uluru and the rainforest-meets-


reef magic of Tropical North Queensland. Using a Qantas Explorer fare to cover internal flights, this classic itinerary shows off three different versions of Australia – all of them like nowhere else on Earth.


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