Australia Is A Vast Country, Though Most Visitors Stay On The Same Tried And Tested Track, Ticking Off Well-touristed Pitstops Along The Way. But, Of Course, There's Plenty More To See Beyond The Usual Sydney, Rock And Reef Holiday Triangle. Here’s Our Pi

1. For wildlife: Mackay, Queensland

Surrounded by sugarcane and with a main street well shaded by tropical foliage, Mackay is a great base for checking out Eungella National Park.

This enchanting jungle has rivers abundant enough in platypus to make seeing one nearly ensured. Your best chance is at Broken River, where the viewing platform is surrounded by ferns and vines-- load a picnic and wait a while in silence to see them.

Later on, take a hike on walking tracks through the trees, suitable for birdwatching and goanna spotting, or head http://edition.cnn.com/search/?text=australia back to town for a stroll along the golden sands of Harbour Beach.

2. For epic sundowns: Tower Hill, Victoria

Continue just a little more west from the Great Ocean Road and you'll discover this volcanic crater. Encircled by beds of ash, it's a fertile green sanctuary that is home to koalas and kangaroos aplenty.

The guided walks from the visitor centre will introduce you to the wildlife, in addition to to the Aboriginal history-- and you'll learn how to rustle up some bushtucker. But the sunset-- finest seen from the crater's rim-- is the centerpiece. Stay later on and sign up with the directed night walk to see the fauna at its most active.

3. For incredible images: Devil's Marbles, Northern Territory

You'll require to dedicate to a long drive for this one-- however it's well worth it. Some 130km south of Tennant travel to australia Creek, en path to Alice Springs, you'll discover a geological phenomenon: a fistful of rock marbles flung throughout the Outback.

Envision them as the eponymous marbles, or as the eggs of the rainbow serpent from the local Aboriginal story. In any case, they're ideal fodder for the keen professional photographer.

4. For white wine: Denmark, Western Australia

Let Margaret River keep its crowds of red wine tourers and head instead to Denmark on the south coast. Here you'll discover a laid-back cluster of shop wineries and hyper-local dining establishments beneath a karri tree canopy. Head for the hills inland and visit Castelli Estate for terrific Pinot Noir and Shiraz or hit Howard Park for red wines that integrate the very best of both Denmark and Margaret River grapes.

Don't miss out on Pepper and Salt for dinner, where chef Silas uses the location's gourmet produce to produce dishes motivated by his Fijian-Indian heritage. And check out in March or April for Taste Terrific Southern, which commemorates the area's exceptional regional fruit and vegetables.

5. For an amazing journey: The Nullarbor Plain, South Australia

Superlatives are plentiful on the Nullarbor-- it's the planet's largest single piece of limestone, the world's longest stretch of straight train track and even the universe's longest golf course.

All that produces one long (however legendary) drive, stressed just by lookouts over the Great Australian Bight (next stop Antarctica), dusty roadhouses and the odd pitstop to strike a golf ball, if you're so likely.

6. For outdoor camping and climbs: Freycinet National Park, Tasmania

Freycinet might be among Tassie's many gone to websites, but that doesn't indicate you'll run into anyone else on a walk here. Go out on the 31km peninsula circuit and you'll quickly get rid of any fellow visitors (so bring plenty of water) as you tramp anti-clockwise around the peninsula from the Hazards Beach Track to the Wineglass Bay lookout.

Camping is at Cooks Beach and there's time to climb Mount Freycinet (the summit is 620m above sea level). When you're done, kick off those treking boots and dig your toes into the unspoiled white sands of Wineglass Bay.

7. For unequalled hiking: New England National Park, New South Wales

Ancient rainforest capes the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales, much of it an inaccessible wilderness that would quickly pass for the Amazon. New England National forest opens this UNESCO World Heritage rain forest for visitors, providing strolling trails through the snow gums and lookouts from which the view stretches all the way to the coast.

Take the Eagles Nest track, a 2.2 km loop, and you'll see Antarctic beech trees covered in fungus, endemic beech orchids and dripping waterfalls, frequently frozen in winter season. You'll eventually reach Point lookout for those scenic rainforest views.