Inside tips for travelling Australia
What to do, what it costs and what locals know, town by town. Every tip is fact-checked and comes from The Big Lap.
Learn about Oz the fun way: play hereQueensland
Cairns
- A swim at the Cairns Esplanade Lagoon, with lifeguards on duty. What does entry cost?
- How long is the fast ferry ride from Cairns to Fitzroy Island?
- Boats to Green Island leave Cairns from which terminal?
- Green Island, off Cairns, is a small coral cay covered in what?
- A tandem skydive over Cairns, from up to 15,000 feet. What's the price?
- Swimming at the Cairns northern beaches. Where does the council say to swim?
- Myth or legit: Cairns Botanic Gardens run free guided tours.
- Translink's airport bus, route 100, runs from Monday 23 November 2026. What's the fare into the city?
- A full day on the reef with Passions of Paradise, snorkelling included. What's the adult ticket?
- Cheapest one-night dorm bunk at Gilligan's, the big backpacker resort in central Cairns?
- When can you shop at Rusty's Markets for cheap fruit and veg?
- It's stuck on a snag in knee-deep water, a metre from the bank. What do you do?
- That EMC is the Reef Authority's charge. How much is it per person for a full day?
- It's already dead. Can you pocket it as a souvenir?
- How many Aboriginal Traditional Owner groups have Sea Country in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park?
- Paid bar shifts in Cairns (4870). Which working holiday visas can count them toward the 88 days?
- Myth or legit: Cairns city has a sandy sea beach along the Esplanade where everyone swims.
Kuranda
- The Kuranda Scenic Railway climbs from Cairns through how many tunnels?
- Skyrail's cableway glides over rainforest between Smithfield and which village?
- Myth or legit: Barron Falls, near Kuranda, is most spectacular in the dry season.
- Myth or legit: Australia once had a real tree-climbing, meat-eating marsupial, a bit like a drop bear.
Port Douglas & the Daintree
- There's no footpath from the car park into Mossman Gorge. How do you get in?
- Driving north to Cape Tribulation, how do you cross the Daintree River?
- Which Daintree spot is famous as the place where the rainforest meets the reef?
- Myth or legit: 'saltwater' crocs live in freshwater rivers too, even hundreds of kilometres inland.
Mission Beach & Tully
- You skydive over Mission Beach from up to 15,000 feet. Where do you land?
- Myth or legit: it's illegal to feed cassowaries in Queensland.
- Picking bananas near Tully (4854) on a 417. Does it count toward 88 days?
- It's two metres away and staring right at you. What do you do?
- Spot the scam: tap the 3 red flags in this farm job ad.
- On a 417, paid packing in the farm's own shed near Innisfail (4860). Does it count?
Cardwell & Hinchinbrook
Ingham & Wallaman Falls
Townsville & Magnetic Island
- How long is the fast ferry from Townsville to Magnetic Island?
- Taxi from Townsville Airport to the Magnetic Island ferry: roughly what cost?
- Magnetic Island's Forts Walk is famous for spotting which wild animal?
- When is stinger season on Townsville's beaches?
- The Strand's glowing Ocean Siren statue changes colour to show what?
- The SS Yongala, a famous North Queensland wreck dive, sank in which year?
- Townsville's most popular walking trail climbs which landmark above the city?
Airlie Beach & the Whitsundays
- Whitehaven Beach is famous for bright white sand made of what?
- Besides Airlie Beach's marinas, Whitsunday island trips also depart from where?
- In the Whitsundays, dangerous stingers are only a summer problem.
- Where can you swim stinger-free all year in Airlie Beach town?
- Bowen, an hour north of Airlie Beach, is famous for which harvest?
Mackay & Eungella
Rockhampton & Great Keppel
Agnes Water & 1770
Bundaberg
- When do baby turtles usually hatch at Mon Repos, near Bundaberg?
- In turtle season you can walk Mon Repos beach alone at night.
- Picking vegetables on a Bundaberg farm counts toward your 88 days.
- New adult casual fruit picker in Bundaberg: minimum hourly pay from 1 July 2026?
- Which reef island do Bundaberg day boats visit for snorkelling with turtles?
Hervey Bay & K'gari
Noosa
Brisbane
- What's Brisbane's free, lifeguard-patrolled beach in the middle of the city?
- Brisbane's Lone Pine is the world's oldest and largest what?
- Which lookout shows Brisbane from its highest point, open 24 hours?
- Where in Brisbane can you abseil 20-metre cliffs with city views?
- One bus, train or ferry journey around Brisbane costs how much?
- You can pay the driver in cash on Brisbane buses.
- Brisbane's fast river ferries with open decks are called what?
Gold Coast
- Caught in a strong current at a Gold Coast beach. What should you do?
- What lights up the Natural Bridge cave in Springbrook National Park at night?
- Burleigh Head's Oceanview track passes six-sided columns of which rock?
- Since August 2026, the Gold Coast tram runs south to which suburb?
- Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary's wild lorikeet feeding, 8am and 4pm daily, costs what?
New South Wales & the ACT
Byron Bay
- Cape Byron is mainland Australia's furthest point in which direction?
- Which sharks visit Julian Rocks, off Byron Bay, in the warmer months?
- Parking at Cape Byron Lighthouse: what does it cost per hour?
- When do lifeguards patrol Byron Bay's Main Beach?
- You can hike to the summit of Wollumbin (Mount Warning) near Byron.
Coffs Harbour
Port Macquarie
Newcastle
Hunter Valley
Sydney
- Adult Opal or bank card: most you'll pay for a week of travel?
- Subletting a room in NSW: the most bond the head tenant can ask?
- At Bondi, what is the 'Backpackers' Express'?
- How long is Sydney's Bondi to Coogee coastal walk, one way?
- What does entry to Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden cost?
- Roughly how many tiles cover the Sydney Opera House roof?
- What do locals affectionately call the Sydney Harbour Bridge?
Blue Mountains
Jervis Bay
Canberra (ACT)
- Which ceremony is held every afternoon at the Australian War Memorial?
- Lake Burley Griffin honours Canberra's designer. Which country was he from?
- What is Canberra's month-long spring flower festival called?
- At Parliament House in Canberra, what can visitors sit in and watch?
- Visiting Canberra: which can you tap to ride buses and light rail?
Young
Victoria
Melbourne
- Tram trip only inside Melbourne's Free Tram Zone: do you need myki?
- You forget to tap off your myki after a Melbourne train. What happens?
- Hot Melbourne afternoon, then suddenly cold, windy and wet. What usually caused it?
- Queen Victoria Market is closed on which two days each week?
- St Kilda's penguin viewing at the end of the pier costs what?
- Which famous bushranger's armour is on display at State Library Victoria?
- Entry to the NGV's main collection in Melbourne is free.
Phillip Island
Torquay & Bells Beach
Apollo Bay & the Otways
The Twelve Apostles
The Grampians (Gariwerd)
Mildura
Shepparton
Tasmania
Devonport
Cradle Mountain
Launceston
Bay of Fires & St Helens
Freycinet & Wineglass Bay
Hobart
- Hobart's Salamanca Market runs on which day of the week?
- Myth or legit: on kunanyi / Mount Wellington, snow only falls in winter.
- How high is the summit of kunanyi / Mount Wellington, above Hobart?
- Mona's fast catamarans leave from which Hobart pier?
- Myth or legit: you can ride Tasmania's Metro buses free until 30 June 2027.
- The car ferry to Bruny Island leaves from which town south of Hobart?
Port Arthur
South Australia
Adelaide
- You need a ticket to ride Adelaide's trams around the city centre.
- Adelaide's Visitor metroCARD gives three days of unlimited travel. Roughly what does it cost?
- Adelaide Central Market is closed on which two days?
- Adelaide Fringe, the Southern Hemisphere's biggest arts festival, happens in which months?
- Adelaide's most popular hike climbs from Waterfall Gully to where?
- Port Adelaide's river sanctuary, 20 minutes from the city, protects which wild animals?
Barossa Valley
Kangaroo Island
Renmark & the Riverland
Flinders Ranges & Wilpena Pound
Northern Territory
Darwin
- When does Darwin's Mindil Beach Sunset Market run?
- A public bus ride around Darwin right now costs how much?
- In the Dry season, Top End rivers and creeks are free of crocodiles.
- Crocosaurus Cove's Cage of Death: how long are you in with the croc?
- Where in central Darwin can you swim stinger- and croc-free?
- Darwin marks Bombing of Darwin Day each year on which date?
Litchfield National Park
Kakadu
Katherine & Nitmiluk
Tennant Creek & Karlu Karlu
Alice Springs (Mparntwe)
- Where does Alice Springs' Henley-on-Todd regatta race its boats?
- The Larapinta Trail starts in Alice Springs and ends on which summit?
- Which desert animal can you spot at Alice Springs Desert Park?
- What might you spot at Simpsons Gap at dawn or dusk?
- Walking in hot NT parks: how much water should you drink?
Western Australia
Perth & Fremantle
- On Sundays, a Transperth train trip with a SmartRider or bank card costs?
- Kings Park's Federation Walkway crosses a glass and steel bridge through what?
- Who built Fremantle Prison in the 1850s?
- On which days are the Fremantle Markets open?
- Which Transperth train line takes you to Cottesloe Beach?
- You spot a shark off a WA beach. Who do you call?